Tag: sausage

21st June 2013

Pasta, pesto and sausage for the Sopranos

The death in Rome of James Gandolfini, the American actor who played a leading role in the Sopranos series, gave me pause to think. At just 51, his demise was a reminder that a heart attack can strike anytime. Especially if you do not exercise regularly and do indulge in the pleasures of life. It also reminded me of the scenes in Mafia movies where […]

Main dish Offal Sausages

27th February 2013

Blood sausage with apple and onion

There are people who do not like to eat offal and they would find the idea of eating blood disgusting. I would say they are missing out on something. Blood used to symbolise vigour and, according to some books about these periods as they did not keep records themselves at the time, warriors in long-flown times used to drink the blood of beaten rivals. Blood […]

Beans Sausages

14th December 2012

A bowl of beans

The winter season is a good period for hearty bean dishes and European culture counts a number of such traditional recipes. I often go to the south-west of France and have come to know quite a bit about the local ‘cassoulet’ with several towns still fighting over the “real” recipe. Cassoulet, like sauerkraut, was a poor peasant’s dish that has been elevated to nobility. After […]

Cabbage Vegetables

26th November 2012

A “light” version of Sauerkraut

Sauerkraut, fermented cabbage, is part of the Germanic diet and eaten from the Netherlands to Poland, with Germany and the Alsace region in France being the standard bearers. In the times before refrigeration, the fermentation process allowed people to have access to vitamins and nutrients in winter when other vegetables were scarce. Sauerkraut still has many vitamins, such as vitamin C, lactibacili and other nutrients […]