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Mangia!
Cooking Authentic Italian
By Jacqueline Rupp
Now, what should every good Italian pantry be stocked with? The old saying less is more applies to Italian cooking – using fewer high-quality ingredients is key. Here are some staples to always have on hand:
- Dried herbs: For example, parsley, basil and rosemary. "It is also nice to have fresh basil, which can easily be grown in the warm weather months outside," Sanders says. Also, remember never to add basil (a member of the mint family) into a sauce while cooking. Wait until just before serving to avoid heartburn.
- Canned tomatoes: These work well for quick meals or when tomatoes go out of season.
- Fresh tomatoes: From sauces to salads, this Italian staple is actually native to North America.
- Canned white beans: "A Tuscan cannellini can be used in soup or with sauce," Sanders says.
- Dried parmesan cheese: "This is best in a hunk, which you can grate as needed. Avoid those canned supermarket varieties," Sanders says.
- Fresh vegetables: "One thing I think that is often overlooked with Italian cooking is the importance of vegetables – even more than pasta," Sanders says. "Tuscan kale, eggplant, zucchini and onions are all frequently used."
"When I go to the market I always make sure that I keep well stocked," Gillespie says. "Crushed tomatoes, garlic, red onion, grated cheeses (pecorino, Romano and parmesan) olive oil, dried pasta, olives, fresh dough, fresh mozzarella cheese, cornmeal and of course a good red wine are the real basics for me."
One of the first dishes most people think of when they think Italian, pizza is an Italian staple, which has een a crowd-pleaser since ancient times. Tomatoes were only added to the pizza a few hundred years ago. But the pizza as we know it didn't really catch on until a little over a century ago, when Queen Margherita of Italy requested a sampling from the top pizza chef of Naples. The chef created a pizza using the colors of the Italian flag: red (tomatoes), green (basil) and white (fresh mozzarella). You too can create a Pizza Margherita fit for a queen (or king).
