andiamotrips - campania, italy with karen phillips

You know how I feel about my first course dishes -  as I think about some of my favorites, I was quite surprised to see such a difference in the formats.  Not just spaghetti madness, but dishes that included stuffed pastas, gnocchis, risottos as well as minestras.  So, sit back, look back, and reminisce with me about some of the dishes that made my 2019 fantasticaaa!   So let's take a look at my favs in chronological order - My list begins back with a blog post back in February 2019.  There I took a visit to Casa A Tre Pizzi in Naples and tried this dish by Chef Francesco Sodano.    This plate of pasta, inspired by the tradition 'spaghetti, garlic, olive oil and chili pepper'  dish includes cream codfish, tomato water and tomato water for a touch of acidity. The chef's personal touches included a mix of 4 types of chili peppers and fermented black garlic.   What was really cool about the dish is that Sodano added a bit of mixed dried chili pepp

An appetizer can be defined not only as something to tie you over before the main dish arrives, but as Oxford Dictionary puts it as s omething that arouses or increases anticipation for what is to follow. That is just what Chef Ciro Sicignano 's dishes did.  Last Saturday's lunch at Lorelei Ristorante in Sorrento included his aperitif and four appetizers to arouse and increase anticipation for what was to follow.  Let's take a look. Maitre Sommelier Sascha Fausto began by serving me a glass of Franciacorta DOCG Brut Doppio Erre Di - Derbusco Cives Then the aperitifs - here which included a wide array of specialties such as a taco with bonito tartare, a panzerotti filled with smoked mozzerella cheese,  and  a mini fried pizza,   As well as a flatbread filled with the famous nero Casertano suckling pig. Then the appetizers- first up, Sicignano's millefogie with raw shrimp and broccoli. On top, a creamy sauce made with sea urchins.