Take a quintessential Italian dish and keep two ingredients –  spaghetti and tomatoes – before adding some unlikely ingredients. Here’s the recipe by Chef Carlo Cracco.

Spaghetti with tomato: Cracco prepares them with a simple and quick recipe, but with great skill. On the other hand, they are one of the most loved recipes not only by Italians. Add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a couple of basil leaves and you have the winning dish, which often represents us abroad alongside pizza. And if you are a great chef like Carlo Cracco, then, even such a simple first course becomes a work of art; maybe with a little more attention.
We asked the MasterChef par excellence to share his recipe for spaghetti with tomato sauce; so good and easy that it becomes the perfect solution when we want to warm our hearts at the table.

Ingredients for 4 people)
320 g of spaghetti
280 g of tomato puree
10 g fresh marjoram
1 clove of garlic
1 orange
extra virgin olive oil
sale up and down

Preparation
Fry the garlic clove with its peel in a pan in 2-3 tablespoons of oil over medium heat, add 1 orange zest, wait a few moments and then pour in the tomato puree.
Add a sprig of marjoram, add salt and cook on the heat at minimum for 20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened a little, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon.
Bring a pan full of salted water to the boil, halfway through cooking the tomato. Cook the spaghetti, drain them al dente directly into the pan with the sauce.

Stir in the spaghetti by adding 1 tablespoon of oil and season with salt if needed.
With the help of a ladle, form a nest in each plate and flavor again with grated orange zest and a few chopped marjoram leaves.

let yourself be amazed , check this website Homepage | Ristorante Cracco

Croutons with Black Truffle

Vitello tonnato: the secret of the pink heart 

– Did you know that the perfect heart of veal with tuna sauce must be pink? Discover the creamy sauce and a Piedmontese twist that you don’t expect!

**INGREDIENTS FOR THE MEAT**
• Veal topside 800g
• Carrots 100g
• Celery 80g
• Onion 160g
• Bay leaves 2
• Mixed pepper 10 grains
• Cloves 5
• Water 1l
• White wine 1/2l
• Rosemary 1 sprig
• Garlic 1 clove

**INGREDIENTS FOR THE SAUCE**
• Medium eggs 4
• Tuna in oil 150g
• Capers in vinegar 10g
• Anchovies in oil 6
• Salt to taste
• Meat broth to taste

📝**PROCEDURE**
1️⃣ **Preparation of the meat**
• Place the meat, chopped vegetables, herbs and spices in a pan
• Cover with water and white wine
• Cook over low heat for 60 minutes from boiling
• Remove the foam during cooking

2️⃣ **Preparation of the sauce**
• Boil the eggs for 7 minutes and let them cool
• Blend the eggs, anchovies, capers and tuna with a little broth
• Mix until you get a smooth and thick cream

3️⃣ **Final assembly**
• Cut the topside into thin slices (2-3mm)
• Arrange the slices on a plate
• Cover with the tuna sauce, and complete with a few capers and gherkins to taste
• Leave to rest in the fridge for an hour before serving 

What Are Mushrooms?

Although sometimes considered a vegetable, mushrooms are a type of fungus. In a way, mushrooms are like the fruit of a plant. Instead of producing seeds, the mushroom fungus releases millions of microscopic spores that form under the mushroom’s cap.

They can grow above ground, on top of the soil, or on the surface of a food source. Mushrooms are native to North America and Europe and are known for their delicate flavor and meaty texture.

They are also widely known for their amazing health benefits.

Packed with a ton of essential vitamins and minerals, mushrooms make for an excellent addition to your diet, adding a great taste to many different recipes.

Mushroom Benefits

Mushrooms are a low-calorie food and pack a nutritional punch. Loaded with many health-boosting vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, they’ve long been recognized as an important part of any diet.

Mushrooms exposed to ultraviolet light are a good source of vitamin D, an important component for bone and immune health.

Lower blood pressure

Mushrooms are a rich source of potassium, a nutrient known for reducing the negative impact that sodium can have on your body. Potassium also lessens the tension in blood vessels, potentially helping to lower blood pressure. Additionally, mushrooms have a low level of sodium, so using them in recipes that call for saltier ingredients can reduce your sodium intake, which in turn helps with blood pressure.

Boost immune system

The anti-inflammatory effect of mushrooms has been shown to greatly improve the efficiency of the immune system. Mushrooms contain high amounts of selenium, vitamin D, and vitamin B6, Copper, Thiamin, Magnesium, Phosphorous,  Selenium can help prevent cell damage in our bodies, vitamin D helps with cell growth, and vitamin B6 helps our bodies form red blood cells. All of these nutrients in mushrooms help to maintain a healthy immune system.

Mushroom Nutrition

Mushrooms are a rich, low-calorie source of fiber, protein, and antioxidants. They may also help to lessen the risk of developing serious health conditions, such as Alzheimer’s, heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.

Wellbeing and cooking are interconnected

but this does not only translate into healthy eating, but rather into a circularity between the choice of raw materials, the attention and care in preparing meals and the pleasure of sharing food with others. These three elements together create the chef’s overall cooking philosophy

we always find ingredients chosen with care and attention. the cuisine is made up of “natural raw materials, not processed at all or very little in advance”, with the awareness that “the time spent preparing them, preferring them to ready-made food, represents a direct and indirect investment in our health and that of those around us”.

Among the essential ingredients of Mediterranean vegetable cuisine, extra virgin olive oil stands out, known not only for its unique aroma and flavor, but also for its numerous health benefits. Essential in the preparation of his dishes are also aromatic herbs and spices, nuts, oil seeds, vegetables, and seasonal fruits, all elements that enrich the dishes and provide essential nutritional properties for a balanced diet and for the correct functioning of our body.

Furthermore, the careful selection of raw materials is also “an act of preservation of the environment in which we live, together with the many local productions of excellent fruit and vegetable varieties that bring unique flavors, aromas and scents to the kitchen that are incomparable to those of the standardized production of industrialized food supply chain markets”.

Mediterranean culinary traditions in the kitchen

A cuisine that has its roots in ancient Mediterranean gastronomic practices, from which many recipes handed down over time derive, representing a true historical treasure.

“Mediterranean culinary traditions are the beating heart of daily passion – a celebration of the authenticity and simplicity that characterize the food culture of the Mediterranean. “

However, a chef does not neglect the opportunity to update traditional recipes, using modern preparation techniques and more balanced dosages, to ensure a contemporary approach to Mediterranean cuisine.
A continuous research, with passion and tenacity

Promote healthy and delicious cuisine, where well-being and taste meet in perfect harmony

🍷 FLORENCE,  Where to find Le BUCHETTE and their History

Ok, you are in Florence, one of the most fascinating cities in the world. The cathedrals, the museums, the history. Yes, all incredible. But there’s something that almost no one tells you about, a hidden gem right in the heart of this city: the wine windows. Wait, are you about to jump out of your seat? Not yet. First let me explain: we’re talking about small windows that look directly out onto the streets. But they’re not just beautiful vintage decorations, they’re the most Florentine answer possible to retail and delivery… in the 17th century.

Imagine the nobles of the time, like the Antinoris and Frescobaldis (names that today scream “100 euro glasses” at any elegant dinner). Well, these guys certainly didn’t have time to waste with the innkeepers or, worse, the tavern keepers who swiped a slice of the profit. No, these gentlemen decided to sell their wine directly from the walls of their buildings. The solution? The wine windows. It’s brilliant, pure circular economy ante litteram.

Now, fast forward to 1634. The plague is around and we’re not talking about the usual seasonal flu. Florence? Decimated. Infections everywhere. The anti-contagion solution? Those same little holes. “Hey, do you need some wine? Here’s your Chianti, pass the money and get out of the way before we exchange germs too!” It was social distancing ante litteram, without the need for infamous apps to order or incomprehensible QR codes.

And then… Time passes, the little holes fall into disuse. Florence evolves, but these little windows resist, a little forgotten, a little destroyed, like old friends forgotten in the attic. Until now, in 2024, boom, they are here again, screaming their existence, becoming protagonists of a gastronomic and social rebirth that no one expected. Say it out loud, it’s a return that feels like a slow revolution.

But who do we thank for this revival? The Buchette del Vino Cultural Association, which literally saved this tradition from oblivion, censusing every hole, with a precision that would make a private investigator envious. Without them, you’d still be wandering around Florence with your empty glass. And you don’t want that, do you?

Now, where can you experience this little piece of history firsthand? Trust me, there are places in Florence where you can still order a glass right from these little windows, and it’s an experience that will make you feel part of the city like never before.

Want to know where?

📍Osteria Delle Belle Donne (Via delle Belle Donne, 16R) – It seems like an innocuous place, but wait until you see what happens when you order from the buchetta.

📍DiVin Boccone (Via delle Caldaie, 20) – They serve wine here, but if you close your eyes, you’d swear you’re back in the 17th century.

📍Osteria San Fiorenzo (Borgo dei Greci, 1r) – A sip of wine, a piece of history. And you’ll feel incredibly cultured.

📍Il Latini (Via dei Palchetti, 6r) – One of the temples of Florentine cuisine. Here too, the buchetta is served.

📍Ristorante Pietrabianca (Piazza dei Peruzzi, 5R) – Excellent cuisine, excellent wine .

📍Cantina de’ Pucci (Via de’ Pucci, 4) – For those who love history and wine in equal measure.

📍Babae (Via Santo Spirito, 21r) – Want to take the perfect photo for Instagram? Babae has you covered.

📍Fiaschetteria Fantappiè (Via dei Serragli, 47) – The name says it all, just bring your thirst.