You’ve arrived in your rental apartment in Florence and are faced with a busy time ahead, sightseeing and learning. You have minimal time to cook, but eating out every night will quickly bust your budget. No problem. Italian cooking is easy and inexpensive. Follow these simple shopping and cooking tips to impress your friends at group meals and go home slimmer and healthier than when you left.
If you want to have dinner, you’re going to have to think ahead. Stores in Italy are not open particularly late hours and many are still closed on Sundays. Markets, like Sant’Ambrogio and San Lorenzo, are open Monday through Saturday morning, and you can buy excellent fresh produce there for cheap, but will need a supermarket for staples. There are a few supermarket chains with small stores right downtown—look for Conad (including their Sapori e Dintorni upper line) or DeSpar—while the larger ones are located in slightly more peripheral areas like Esselunga via Pisana or via Masaccio and Coop via Gioberti.
Now, let’s tackle your shopping list. You’ll want a combination of fresh items and pantry staples. If you have these things at home, you will never return on a Sunday night from a trip down the coast to an empty cupboard and equally empty stomach. Always stock dry rice and pasta and a bottle of tomato passata (just crushed tomatoes), basic spices and Parmesan cheese. In the fridge, you’ll want a few vegetables, a package of ravioli (just add oil and grated Parmesan), mozzarella and fruit. If you have a bag of salad, you can always eat that with some cheese on it and call it a meal. Keep crackers (there are lots of healthy multi-grain types) at home for emergencies because the bread store (panificio) will never be open when you need it! Crackers and Parmesan cheese go a long way, especially with grapes. Eggs are another essential staple that allow you to whip up a quick omelette if all else fails.
Your Shopping List
Staples
Dry pasta, short and long
Rice (Arborio is good)
Crackers or dry toasts
Olive oil and balsamic vinegar
Bottled tomato passata
Salt, pepper, oregano
Fruit and veg
Baby tomatoes
Zucchini
Salad
Seasonal fruit (apples, grapes, pears, etc.)
Filled pasta (like ravioli)
Parmesan cheese(hunk, not grated)
Mozzarella
Onions
Eggs
UHT Milk
Three easy recipes
With just these items in your fridge, here are three easy vegetarian primi you can make at any time.
Spaghetti al sugo (red sauce)
An Italian classic, a warm ‘comfort food’ that combines the two most essential food groups: pasta and pomodoro.
1) In a saucepan, put olive oil and half a chopped onion, cook on medium heat, then add a bottle of passata al pomodoro, about a quarter cup of water, salt, pepper and oregano. Simmer on low heat for at least 15 minutes.
2) In a large pot, fill halfway with water and toss in a handful of salt. When the water boils, put in dry spaghetti and cook, according to package time, to al dente. (The portion per person of spaghetti should fit into your thumb and forefinger creating a circle about the size of an American quarter.)
3) Combine pasta and sauce in saucepan, serve piping hot with grated Parmesan cheese.
Penne alla sorrentina
A simple, cheesy pasta with a fresher flavour than regular red sauce.
1) In a saucepan, put in olive oil and a dozen baby tomatoes cut into halves or quarters (depending on size). Cook on high for one minute, then bring down to low heat and give it 2–3 minutes more. Salt to taste.
2) Chop a ball of mozzarella into small cubes and set aside.
3) In a large pot, fill halfway with water and toss in a handful of salt. When the water boils, put in dry penne rigate and cook according to package time, to al dente. (Calculate 80–100 grams of pasta per person or put the dry pasta in a pasta bowl to eyeball the right portion.)
4) After straining the pasta, combine in your saucepan with your cooked baby tomatoes, add mozzarella cubes. If you have it, add a few leaves of fresh basil!
Rice and zucchini
Arborio rice cooks just like pasta, in a pot of ample water and salt. I learned this comfort food from my mother in law. It’s good cold, too!
1) Chop washed zucchini, about 2 per person, into quarters and then chunks, and put them in a saucepan with a good amount of olive oil to be sautéed. Start on high heat, then lower the heat and cover them, stirring occasionally until they are soft.
2) In a large pot, fill halfway with water and toss in a handful of salt. When the water boils, put in Arborio rice (calculate about half a cup of rice per person). Boil for about 20 minutes, tasting until the grain is no longer crunchy inside. Strain in a small pasta strainer.
3) Combine rice in saucepan with zucchini, adding oil if necessary, stirring well over high heat. Serve piping hot with Parmesan cheese and black pepper to taste.
