Italian life Archives - Vorrei Delicious Italian Food Blog

Our Top 6 Italian Easter Treats

9 April 2019 || Desserts, Easter, Eat your way around Italy, Italian life

Happy Italian Easter! Much less commercialised than in the UK, Italian Easter celebrations focus on food, friends and family. They also focus on the more solemn, religious aspects of the holiday. Like many Italian holidays, Holy Week is characterised by rituals and traditions, and celebrated in many diverse ways across Italy, which reflect the regional differences. […]

Italian Wedding Traditions – A Quick Guide

29 March 2019 || Italian life, Recipes, Uncategorised

Getting married in Italy is as joyous an occasion as it is in the UK, if not more. A day filled with laughter, tears, and the people we love, Italian weddings, just like ours, are naturally coupled with the finest food, wine, and gifts one can offer. So should you be planning a wedding in […]

Aphrodisiac Foods: Spice Up Your Life With Our Top Ten Libido Boosters

30 January 2019 || Food and well being, Italian life

The word aphrodisiac comes from the name of the Greek goddess of love Aphrodite and since the ancient times people have believed in the power of aphrodisiac foods. But do they really work? Italian cuisine features so many known aphrodisiac foods; Why not create a fabulous meal using as many of the ingredients you can […]

Italian Beach Etiquette – 5 Things You Need To Know!

6 August 2018 || Italian life

Heading to the seaside in Italy this summer? Make sure you read our quick guide to Italian beach etiquette before you go so that you blend in seamlessly with the locals! 1) What to wear The key word here is ‘glamour’! Many Italian ladies will pack a range of swimwear, pareos, beach dresses, flip flops (often with […]

Top 10 Italian Love Phrases!

3 February 2017 || Italian life

Somehow everything sounds so much better in Italian, from simple words such as ‘Fagiolino’ (the word for bean) and ‘Stuzzicadenti’ (tooth pick) to the many ways of expressing ‘amore’. You are never too old (or young) to learn Italian, so in honour of Valentine’s Day, here are our top 10 Italian love phrases: 1) Ti […]

Cucina Povera – 5 Traditional Recipes

20 June 2016 || Calabrian recipes, Italian life, Pasta, Recipes, Soup, Vegetarian

What is Cucina Povera? Cucina Povera (the kitchen of the poor/frugal cooking) has its origins mainly in Southern Italy and dates back to times when families had no means to provide fancy, expensive foods. History of Cucina Povera Many lower class, country families lived off the little they could afford to buy, but mostly on what […]

Italian Street Food Tales: Naples

25 May 2016 || Eat your way around Italy, Italian life

Following on in our series of articles on Italian street food (Street Food in Sicily and Street Food in Florence), it’s time to head to the Campania region, home to one of the most significant cities when it comes to scrumptious food: Naples! Ready, grab your forks…get set…go! Naples Street Food: Neapolitan Pizza and Much […]

Easter Bread with Coloured Eggs

18 March 2016 || Bread, Italian life

Italian Easter Bread Recipe This simple, colourful Italian Easter Bread is a real favourite and is prepared by families across Italy in the days leading up to Holy Week. Children have great fun dying the eggs and decorating this braided loaf. This a soft bread with a light lemon flavour. It goes with everything, from cheese […]

Valentines Day – 10 facts you need to know about the Saint of lovers!

31 January 2016 || Italian life

We celebrate Valentines Day every year, but who exactly was the Saint of Lovers? 1) St. Valentine isn’t just the Patron Saint of courting & engaged couples, lovers, love and happy marriages; his remit also includes epilepsy, fainting, greetings, plague, travellers, young people and … bee keepers (he is said to ensure the sweetness of […]

What You Need to Know about the Mediterranean Diet

25 August 2015 || Food and well being, Italian life

The Mediterranean Diet Did you know that the Italians live on average 18 months longer than the Brits? A comparison of health outcomes in 19 countries over 20 years published in the Lancet put Britain at number 14 in the life expectancy table, down two places since 1990. Italy fared much better rising from 5th to […]

Our Top 3 Aperitivi to Make at Home

19 March 2015 || Drinks, Italian life, Wine and Prosecco

3 Easy Italian Aperitivi Recipes Fancy having friends over but don’t have the time to plan and cook a full dinner? Why not invite them for early evening aperitivi? The setting is informal and relaxed and the food is quick, easy to prepare and looks stunning – a platter of delicious mediterranean olives, sun dried tomatoes and aubergines, a selection […]

Diamante’s Chilli Pepper Festival

28 February 2015 || Eat your way around Italy, Italian life

Calabrians love peperoncino (chilli pepper), they put it in everything from pasta and risotto to cocktails and ice cream. They believe that chillies bring good luck and scare away the ‘malocchio’ or evil eye and naturally they produce the best and spiciest chillies in Southern Europe. So if a region is qualified to hold an […]

Meet Giovanni Marvulli, our organic extra virgin olive oil supplier.

29 October 2014 || Eat your way around Italy, Food and well being, Italian life

We recently visited Matera and stopped by to chat to Giovanni Marvulli our ‘Cenzino’ olive oil supplier. We wanted to see his vast olive grove and learn more about his award winning organic extra virgin olive oil. Giovanni, tell us about your passion for quality organic extra virgin olive oil… Ever since I was […]

A Week of Neapolitan Easter Food

3 April 2019 || Eat your way around Italy, Italian life

Neapolitan Easter Food Traditions The celebration of Easter in Naples is quite an event, combining established religious practices with traditional customs, some of which have pagan origins. Yet, the pivotal part of this holiday for the locals is most certainly the culinary itinerary they will be following! For the typical Neapolitan, food is always an important part of each […]

Suspended Coffee (‘Caffe Sospeso’) – Kindness through Coffee

28 March 2019 || Italian life

Ever heard of a ‘Suspended Coffee’? It’s probably not what you imagine! Find out more about this simple act of kindness which originated in war time Naples. An oversized brown Italian moka coffee pot stands in a prime location outside the historic Gran Caffe Gambrinus, Naples, Italy. Inside there contains a number of marked […]

Buon Ferragosto!

13 August 2018 || Antipasti, Italian life, Recipes, Side dishes

it’s almost Ferragosto, Italy’s traditional midsummer holiday and families up and down the boot will be preparing for their celebrations – menus for huge Ferragosto meals will have been decided upon and the food will be ready to transport to the nearest beach, park or mountain! Now that most Italians no longer disappear on holiday […]

Ten Steps to Italian Pasta Perfection

6 March 2018 || Cooking tips, Italian life

Your complete guide for a perfect pasta dish! Perfect Italian pasta doesn’t stick together, it’s not soggy or lukewarm and you definitely shouldn’t add oil to it! Here are our ten tips for making it just like mamma! 1) Your pan should be as large as possible and ideally nice and tall rather than wide. 2) […]

Italian Christmas Recipes You Will Love!

20 September 2016 || Christmas recipes, Desserts, Eat your way around Italy, Italian life, Main courses, Recipes

Christmas: what a wonderful time of the year! So wonderful that we are already looking forward to all the merry festivities! And what is more exciting than getting a few, interesting Christmas Recipes on what to cook during those joyful days? Here are five Italian Christmas Recipes you will love! We picked them out just […]

How to Prepare the Perfect Italian Picnic

16 June 2016 || Italian life, Main courses, Recipes, Salads, Side dishes

Summer is just around the corner, and how better to celebrate its arrival than with an authentic Italian picnic? All you’ll need is a bit of creativity and some tips on which foods to take with you in order to make your day out feel like a feast amongst the cypress trees in the Tuscan Hills! […]

Italian Street Food Tales: Florence

29 April 2016 || Eat your way around Italy, Italian life

Following our last post on Street Food in Sicily, here is the second in our occasional series about Italian Street Food, and this time we are in Tuscany! Italian Street Food Delicacies from Beautiful Florence Tuscany is home to some of the most famous dishes in Italy and perhaps not one of the places you might think of […]

An Italian Easter Cake To Amaze Your Taste Buds: The Colomba

1 March 2016 || Desserts, Italian life, Vegetarian

Easter time in Italy, as in countries across the world is a time spent with friends and family. Naturally, every Italian celebration has its special foods that are to be traditionally prepared and eaten during these days and Easter is no exception. The Easter Dove One of these lip-smacking treats is the Easter Colomba, a […]

The Slow Food Movement: Embracing Good, Clean and Fair Food

25 August 2015 || Food and well being, Italian life

The pasta protest on the Spanish Steps The movement began on the Spanish Steps in Rome in 1986. McDonalds wanted to open a franchise there and many Italians, who generally have a lukewarm relationship with fast food, were not happy about it. One man was particularly dismayed. Carlo Petrini, the founder of the movement descended upon […]

12 Ways with Italian Coffee at Home

24 April 2015 || Drinks, Italian life

Savour a rich Italian coffee at home with our 12 serving suggestions! Do you know your caffe macchiato from your ristretto? Your shakerato from your marocchino? We all know that it’s hard to find a bad cup of Italian coffee but did you know how many different ways there are in Italy of drinking this […]

Aperitivo Time!

16 March 2015 || Drinks, Italian life, Wine and Prosecco

Apart from the sunshine, the people and the pizza, it’s the ritual of ‘Aperitivo time’ that we miss most since moving back to the UK from Rome. The Aperitif hour signals the end of the working day, a moment to relax (usually in the sunshine), drink a glass of something refreshing (generally just the one), with […]

Italian Food Superstitions – Ten of the best!

6 February 2015 || Italian life

Italian Food Superstitions. Italians are generally very superstitious people (especially the further south you go). They may deny this but even the most logical, sensible Italians seem unable to resist following the many age-old rituals that are such a big part of every day life. Anyone ever placed garlic placed on the television to help their […]

Spaghetti with creamy Vodka & Lemon Sauce

A splash of vodka can really lift a pasta sauce, giving it an extra kick, bringing out the different flavours… Read more
Quick Fontina Cheese, Mediterranean Vegetable and Cherry Tomato Pasta Bake

Chilly, dark evenings call for proper comfort food and a pasta bake always cheers us up! This one is super-easy… Read more
Pasta Problems? Improve your Pasta Making Skills with our Quick Tips!

Pasta, in theory is an easy meal, but it's not always straightforward to make the perfect kind of pasta you've… Read more
Avoid these common mistakes & make perfect Tiramisu’ every time.

Tiramisu' is one of those desserts which, when done properly can be sheer heaven in a dish but unfortunately it's… Read more
Five Delicious Recipes with ‘Nduja Spicy Sausage

One of the most well known, traditional products of Calabrian cuisine, "Nduja" is a lean meat salami, made with lard… Read more