Fainá is a chickpea flour-based preparation, typically served as a side dish to a slice of pizza. However, some pizzerias in Buenos Aires have perfected a type of stuffed fainá so tasty and hearty that it can be enjoyed as a unique main dish.
Category: Salads, Soups & Appetizers
“Fakes” recipe: traditional Greek lentil soup
This lentil soup is a very tasty vegetarian dish, and it is an excellent source of protein and fiber. Greek-style lentil soup (or “fakes” in Greek) is served with vegetables and seasoned mainly with cumin and vinegar, which gives a unique character to this dish.
Exquisite “pesto rosso” (sun-dried tomato pesto)
Italian “pesto rosso” is a delicious variant of the famous pesto Genovese (basil pesto). In this case, the main ingredient is no longer basil but (dehydrated) sun-dried tomatoes. After grinding them together with the rest of the ingredients, you obtain a pesto that is perfect both for seasoning a short pasta and for spreading on bread or “bruschetta”.
Original and authentic Hungarian Goulash recipe (“Magyar Gulyás”)
Hungarian goulash is one of the most famous soups all over the world, and although no one doubts its fame, this statement may be striking due to an unexpected detail: is goulash a soup? Indeed, authentic Hungarian goulash is a meat soup, although it is usually confused with an almost identical recipe but served as a beef stew.
Sicilian peperonata, a very tasty and easy recipe
Sicilian peperonata or “peperonata siciliana” is a traditional vegetarian recipe based on peppers. It is a very versatile preparation that can be served cold on a bruschetta, or hot as a garnish to accompany a meat or fish dish.
The authentic Polish sauerkraut soup recipe (Kapuśniak)
Kapuśniak is the name of a traditional Polish sauerkraut soup, prepared with sour cabbage (that is, sauerkraut) and meat, usually also served with different vegetables such as carrots and potatoes or celery root.
Barley soup from Trentino (minestra d’orzo trentina)
This barley soup or “minestra d’orzo” is a typical recipe from Trentino, an area in northeastern Italy near the border with Austria. Its main ingredient is barley (orzo in Italian), a cereal of great nutritional value that is worth incorporating into our diet, especially considering that its preparation is so simple and tasty.
French lobster bisque recipe (bisque de homard)
The French term “bisque” refers to a type of velvety soup that could be classified as a waste-recycling recipe, since it is prepared from the shell, legs and other parts that are discarded from the crustaceans. However, the high culinary level of the raw material and the sophistication that the recipe gained within French cuisine, make the lobster bisque a very refined dish. The preparation is equally valid for langoustines, shrimps, prawns, etc., although lobster (homard in French) is the iconic ingredient when we talk about “bisque”.
Perfect crepes batter recipe (sweet or savory)
Crêpes are originally French, but with different names and multiple variations in shape, they are a classic in all gastronomic cultures in the world. This base recipe is very useful and is worth having in your repertoire, because it can be used interchangeably for crepes with sweet or savory filling.
How to cook snails
For many people, snails surely seem exotic or even intimidating. However, they are highly appreciated in many Mediterranean countries, especially in Spain, France and Greece. If we buy already clean snails, their preparation is very simple and quick. Otherwise, we must observe certain previous steps, which are indicated here.
