Menu Speciality Food Ltd (FKA) IB Food Ltd

Fine Italian ingredients for chefs

Menu Speciality Food Ltd

Suppliers & importers of high quality Italian and
Mediterranean ingredients for discerning chefs

Wild Porcini Mushrooms

by

  Once again the season of wild mushrooms is here with heart warming winter dishes using Porcini wild mushrooms (edible boletus). Their distinctive woody flavour blends itself with various recipe ideas and can create wonderful innovative combinations that could otherwise be bland.

Wild Porcini Mushroom Soup

Ingredients for 8 portions:

– 400g Porcini del Boscaiolo
– 28g Fondo Bruno
– 1 Garlic Clove
– 1 Tbs Freshly Chopped Parsley
– Salt and Pepper
– 2 Lt Vegetable Bouillon (22g / 1t water)
– 1 Tbs Flour
– 28g Butter
– 30ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Finely chop the onion and garlic and fry gently in the oil and butter until golden and soft, then add the porcini and stir.

Mix the flour with the fondo and a little of the stock until smooth then add to the porcini. Cook for a few minutes then slowly add the remaining stock stirring constantly. As it comes to the boil add the parsley, salt and pepper to taste.

Serve at once. Garnish with warm savoury croutons.
(Please note that if you prefer a more creamery soup, just add a couple of tablespoons of double cream)

 

Quails with Porcini and Truffle

Ingredients for 4 portions:

– 8 Deboned Quails
– 160g Porcini Preparati
– 3 Shallots
– 1 Clove Garlic
– 100ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
– 30m Dry White Wine
– 50g Tartufata Truffle Paste
– 100g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 100ml Milk
– 1 Tbs Freshly Chopped Parsley
– Salt and Pepper

Finely chop the shallots and garlic, gently fry in a little of the oil until golden and soft.
Chop the porcini and mix with the shallots, add the parsley, salt, and pepper to taste.
Put the remainder of the olive oil in a roasting tin. Take the quails and stuff with the porcini mixture. Seal with a wooden toothpick and place in a tin. Splash with white wine and place in a medium
preheated oven for approximately 15 minutes until cooked. Baste while cooking with the juices in the pan.
In the meantime, place the 5 cheese sauce, milk and truffle paste in a saucepan and slowly melt
until amalgamated into a creamery sauce
consistency.
Remove the quails from the oven. Strain the juices
and add to the sauce. Place a little sauce on the plate, 2 quails on top and serve at once.

Porcini Del Boscaiolo

by

 Rustic theme for the coming autumn with the distinctive flavours. Porcini mushrooms (edible boletus) adapt themselves wonderfully in the preparation of both traditional and innovative recipes.
The king of the wild mushrooms has its own exceptional flavours that combined with a variety of ingredients stands out and giving that extra special aroma making the dish unique.

All is needed is a few days of rain and nature creates this wonderful funghi.

Pesce in Cartoccio con Porcini
Baked Fish in Parcel with Porcini

Ingredients for 1 portion:

– 1 Whole Fillet of Sea Bream (or John Dory or SeaBass)
– 80g Porcini del Boscaiolo
– 40g Baby Artichokes in Oil & Herbs
– 20g Sundried Tomatoes
– 5g Fish Fumet
– 10ml La Nonna Extra Virgin Olive Oil
– Black Pepper to Taste

In a baking tray line with silver foil and baste with the extra virgin olive oil. Place the Porcini on the foil and the fillet on top. Sprinkle with a little of the fish fumet and freshly ground pepper.
Drizzle some olive oil on top. Place the artichokes and the sundried tomatoes to one side.
Close the foil around the fish so that it looks like a parcel and bake in a preheated hot oven (200’) for approximately 15 minutes until the fillet is cooked.
Remove from the foil and serve at once with the artichokes and sundried tomatoes as a garnish.

 

Gnocchi with Porcini Gratin

Ingredients for 8 portions:

– 1 Bag Gnocchi Powder
– 450g Porcini del Boscaiolo
– 100g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 50ml Milk
– Salt & Pepper to Taste
– 1 Clove Garlic
– Freshly Chopped Parsley
– 50g Freshly Grated Parmesan
– 20g Butter

Prepare the gnocchi as per the instructions on the bag (i.e. mix with 1 litre of cold water and knead to a dough, shape and cut to size one desires).
Heat the porcini with the garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Add some of the freshly chopped parsley.
In another saucepan melt down the 5 cheese sauce with the milk and butter. Cook the gnocchi in salted boiling water until they rise to the top and strain. In a baking dish, that has been buttered, place a layer of the gnocchi, add a few tablespoons of the mushrooms and a little of the 5 cheese sauce. Alternate another layer with the Gnocchi, porcini and cheese sauce. Sprinkle the freshly grated Parmesan on top and Bake in the oven until golden.
Serve at once.

Savoury Tartes

by

 Delicious savoury tartes that can be made with a variety of our ingredients and served warm as a starter. A wonderful substitution for vegetarian recipes.

Torta Salata con Carciofi
Artichoke sauce savoury tarte

sauce, 5 cheese sauce, salt and pepper to taste.
Add the egg yolks. Beat the egg whites until stiff and then slowly amalgamate with the mixture.
Pour into the pasty case and place in a preheated oven at 120’ for approximately 1 hour.

Serve alone or warm with some 5 cheese and
truffle sauce.

Torta Salata alle Noci
Savoury walnut sauce tarte

Ingredients for approx. 6 portions:

– 1 packet of puff pastry rolled out
– 3 Eggs
– 430g Pumpkin sauce
– 100g 5 Cheese sauce
– 100g Walnut sauce
– 30g Parmigiano reggiano grated cheese
– Salt and pepper to taste
– Whole walnuts to decorate

Line a buttered 20cm dish with the puff pastry.
Prepare the mix by heating slowly the pumpkin sauce, 5 Cheese and the walnut sauce, salt and pepper to taste.
Remove form heat and add the 3 whole eggs and the parmigiano reggiano.
Pour into the pastry case, decorate with whole
walnuts and place in a preheated oven at 120’ for approximately 1 hour.
Serve alone or warm with some 5 cheese and
walnut sauce.

Flavours for the Christmas Festivities

by

 Here comes the long awaited Christmas festivities celebrated with lunches and dinners all pre organised to enjoy each other’s company.

The time to enjoy different recipes, flavours, aromas of various traditional cuisine’s that can all combine together with the Mediterranean theme: – diversifying from the usual

Roast Turkey….

Risotto alla Campagnola
(Risotto with Ceps and 5 Cheeses)

Ingredients for 6 portions:

– 400g Condimento Porcini Sauce
– 35g Buon Brodo (Vegetable Bouillon)
– 500g Vialone Nano Rice
– 1 Shallot Finely Chopped
– 50ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
– 28g Butter
– 50ml White Wine
– 60g 5 Cheese Sauce
Agnello ai Carciofi
(Lamb with Artichokes)

Ingredients for 6 portions:

– 6 Giudia Artichokes
– 6 Lamb Stincottos
– 100g Pancetta (Bacon)
– 1 Onion Finely Chopped
– 1 Clove Garlic Crushed
– 50ml White Wine
– Freshly Chopped Parsley
– 50ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
– Salt and Pepper

Fry the garlic, onion and diced pancetta (bacon) in the olive oil until golden then add the lamb until slightly browned. Add the white wine and allow to evaporate. Salt and pepper to taste.

Once the lamb is nearly done, (approximately 20 minutes), cut the giudia artichokes into quarters and add to the lamb with the parsley.
Heat throughout.

Serve at once.

Pumpkin Sauce

by

  Pumpkin, soft and sweet, warm and inviting in colour, is one of the most versatile vegetables that has never been used to its fullest due to the laborious task in preparing the flesh for use.
Menu’ has done all the hard work and has left us with a puree’ of pumpkin that can be used in numerous ways from savoury to sweet recipes. With a little imagination wonderful Mediterranean and International dishes can be created.
.

Pumpkin Risotto

Ingredients for 10 portion:

– 430g Pumpkin Sauce
– 22g Buon Brodo (makes 1lt Veg. Stock)
– 1 kg Vialone Nano Rice
– 2 Onions Finely Chopped
– 60 ml La Nonna Extra Virgin Olive Oil
– Salt & Pepper
– 150g Walnut Sauce
– 100g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 2 Glasses Dry White Wine
– 100g Freshly Grated Parmigiano Reggiano

Gently fry the onions until golden, add the rice to toast slightly and got transparent. Add a little wine and then slowly add the vegetable stock, a little at a time as the rice absorbs the liquid.
Half way through cooking, when the rice is still slightly hard, add the pumpkin sauce, walnut sauce and the 5 cheese sauce. Salt and pepper to taste.
Add the remainder of the wine.
Slowly finish the cooking the risotto until well
amalgamated and al dente. Add the parmigiano reggiano stir and leave to rest for a few minutes then serve.
You can trickle a little extra virgin olive oil on the portion of risotto that you are serving.
Please note, that if you are preparing the risotto in advance, after you have added the ingredients and the rice is still slightly hard, remove from heat and cool down quickly. Place in the refrigerator until
required. When ready to use, take the portion
required and finish off with the remainder of the stock and serve at once. This procedure allows you to serve a risotto in 5 minutes rather than keeping the customer waiting with excellent
results.

Pumpkin and Potato Gnocchi in a Tomato Sauce

Ingredients for 10 portions:

– 700g Gnocchi Powder
– 430g Pumpkin Sauce
– 1 Lt Water
– Salt & Pepper
– 600g Pomodorina
– 100g 5 Cheese Sauce

 

Mix the powdered Gnocchi with the pumpkin sauce and water. Knead well into a dough making sure there are no lumps. (Add a little flour if the dough is slightly wet). Roll out into long sausages and cut into 1/2 inch cubes.

Prepare the pomodorina with the 5 Cheese sauce and leave to one side. Add the salt and pepper to taste. Drop the gnocchi into salted boiling water. As soon as they rise to the top, remove with a strainer and toss in the sauce. Serve at once.

Walnut Sauce

by

 As Christmas is coming closer what better than to put on your menus delicious recipes using the Walnut Sauce! This will not only make your menus interesting to your clientele but also offer superb dishes for the ever increasing vegetarians. ( Please note that you must mention that this sauce is not suitable for nut allergy suffers).

Coralli in a Walnut & Rosemary Pesto

Ingredients for 4 portions:

– 250g Coralli
– 3 tbs Fresh Rosemary
– 120g Walnut Sauce
– 60g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 100 ml Milk
In a blender add the fresh rosemary to the walnut sauce. Cook the pasta in salted boiling water till al dente. Just before straining the pasta add a little of the cooking liquor to the walnut sauce, 5 cheese sauce and milk that has been slowly heating through for a creamy consistency.

Drain the pasta and toss in the sauce.
Serve at once.

 

Maccheroni al Pettine with Walnut &  Mushrooms Sauce

Ingredients for 4 portions:

– 250g Maccheroni al Pettine
– 200g Cocktail of Wild Mushrooms
– 1 Clove Garlic
– Freshly Chopped Flat Leaf Parsley
– 100 Walnut Sauce
– 50g 5 Cheese Sauce ( an option)
– 100g Milk
– Salt and Pepper to taste
Cook the pasta in salted boiling water till al dente.
In the meantime panfry the clove of garlic and the cocktail of wild mushrooms.

Remove the garlic and add the 5 cheese sauce, walnut sauce, milk, salt and pepper to taste. Drain the pasta and toss in this delicious sauce, add the flat leaf parsley and serve at once.

 

Radicchio Sauce

by

A wonderful delicate ingredient made with Italian Radicchio Trevigiano cooked in olive oil, white wine, onion, butter, salt and a touch of balsamic vinegar. The latest trend/ flavour served in a risotto or pasta dish sweeping the restaurants in Italy.

Risotto al Radicchio

Ingredients for 10 portions:

– 1kg Vialone Nano Rice
– 800g Radicchio Sauce
– 150g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 50g Butter
– 60g Freshly Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
– 150ml White Wine
– 1 Finely Chopped Onion
– 44g Buon Brodo (Vegetable Bouillon)
(making 2 litres of vegetable stock)

Fry the onion in butter until golden, add the vialone nano rice and stir for a few minutes. Add the white wine and let it evaporate over a low heat, then pour the stock a little at a time allowing the rice to slowly absorb the liquid until cooked “Al Dente”.
The stock must always be kept on the stove so that it remains constantly hot.
After 20 minutes, add the radicchio sauce, 5 cheese sauce, freshly grated parmigiano reggiano, and continue to cook adding the stock when
required , stirring constantly. (The secret in
achieving a wonderful risotto is never to saturate the rice with stock to the point of boiling in the
liquid, it must slowly absorb a little at a time).
With this special rice, it take approximately 30
minutes to have the risotto nearly cooked as the vialone nano remains “al dente”. Once the risotto has reached this stage, remove from heat and place in a large baking tray so that it can cool down very quickly.
Once cool place in a refrigerator until required.
To reheat the risotto, place the portion required in a saucepan adding a little boiling vegetable stock and stirring constantly until ready, approximately 5
minutes.
Et Voila’!

Gnocchi al Radicchio

Ingredients for 2 portions:

– 500g Gnocchi
– 200g Radicchio Sauce
– 50g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 80g Walnut Sauce
– 100ml Milk

 

Walnut Sauce

by

As Christmas is coming closer what better than to put on your menus delicious recipes using the Walnut Sauce! This will not only make your menus interesting to your clientele but also offer superb dishes for the ever increasing vegetarians. ( Please note that you must mention that this sauce is not suitable for nut allergy suffers).

Coralli in a Walnut & Rosemary Pesto

Ingredients for 4 portions:

– 250g Coralli
– 3 tbs Fresh Rosemary
– 120g Walnut Sauce
– 60g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 100 ml Milk
In a blender add the fresh rosemary to the walnut sauce. Cook the pasta in salted boiling water till al dente. Just before straining the pasta add a little of the cooking liquor to the walnut sauce, 5 cheese sauce and milk that has been slowly heating through for a creamy consistency.

Drain the pasta and toss in the sauce.
Serve at once.

 

Maccheroni al Pettine with Walnut &  Mushrooms Sauce

Ingredients for 4 portions:

– 250g Maccheroni al Pettine
– 200g Cocktail of Wild Mushrooms
– 1 Clove Garlic
– Freshly Chopped Flat Leaf Parsley
– 100 Walnut Sauce
– 50g 5 Cheese Sauce ( an option)
– 100g Milk
– Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water till al dente.
In the meantime panfry the clove of garlic and the cocktail of wild mushrooms.

Remove the garlic and add the 5 cheese sauce, walnut sauce, milk, salt and pepper to taste. Drain the pasta and toss in this delicious sauce, add the flat leaf parsley and serve at once.

 

Pumpkin Puree

by

Some other delicious ideas for pumpkin dishes that are delectable, delicious, finger licking, want some more recipes.

Pumpkin Souffle with 5 Cheese Sauce & Balsamic Vinegar

Ingredients for 8 portions:

– 1000g Menu` Pumpkin Puree`
– 4 Whole Eggs
– 200g Single Cream
– 50g Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
– 150g White Bread (Crusts Removed)
– Salt and Pepper to Taste
– Freshly Grated Nutmeg to Taste

For the sauce:

– 450g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 450ml Milk
30ml Aggazzotti Gold Label Balsamic Vinegar (or you can use the traditional)

Butter and flour the souffle` dishes.

In a mixer blend all the ingredients until they become an amalgamated dense creamy mix. Fill the souffle` dishes to three quarters and cook in the oven in a bain-marie for approximately 40 minutes at 180’. Melt the 5 cheese sauce with the milk, pour a little on each dish, add the cooked souffle` then drizzle some balsamic vinegar around and serve.

Tagliatelle with Pumpkin and Rucola

Ingredients for 4 portions:

– 250g Dallari Tagliatelle
– 1 Small Bunch Wild Rucola (Rocket)
– 300g Pumpkin Puree`
– 100ml Single Cream
– Salt and Black Pepper
– 100g Freshly Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Heat the pumpkin sauce with the single cream, salt and freshly ground black pepper and parmigiano reggiano to get a nice creamy sauce.
Cook the egg tagliatelle in salted boiling water until al dente. Drain and toss in the sauce, adding the rucola torn into pieces. Serve at once.

Artichoke Hearts Sauce 

by

A wonderful sauce made with artichoke hearts chopped and cooked in sunflower oil and herbs making a delicious sauce for risottos, pasta, meat and fish dishes, bruschetta and savoury tartes. If one adds lemon juice to keep the colour it can be used on canapé’s. An all season product but especially nice in Spring and Summer.

Tagliatelle in an Artichoke Sauce

Ingredients for 6 portions:

– 500g Dallari Egg Tagliatelle
– 400g Artichoke Heart Sauce
– 50g Butter
– 250ml Cream
– 80g Grated Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese
– 3 Eggs
– Salt and Pepper
– 1tbs Freshly Chopped Parsley
– 1 Clove Garlic

Pan fry the garlic in the butter, then add theChef artichoke heart sauce. Add half the cream and heat slowly. In a bowl beat the eggs with the parmigiano, rest of the cream, salt, pepper and parsley.

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water until al dente.

Strain, toss in the frying pan and stir with the sauce, then add the mixture from the bowl. Amalgamate and serve at once nice and hot.

** Here one could add some panfried pancetta to give more flavour but it not longer is a vegetarian option.

Artichoke Risotto

Ingredients for 10 portions:

– 1kg Vialone Nano Rice
– 810g Artichoke Hearts Sauce
– 150g 5 Cheese Sauce
– 50g Butter
– 60g Freshly Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
– 150ml White Wine
– 1 Finely Chopped Onion
– 44g Buon Brodo ( Vegetable Bouillon)
(making 2 litres of vegetable stock)

Fry the onion in butter until golden, add the vialone nano rice and stir for a few minutes. Add the white wine and let it evaporate over a low heat, then pour the stock a little at time allowing the rice to slowly absorb the liquid until cooked “Al Dente”.

The stock must always be kept on the stove so that it remains constantly hot. After 20 minutes, add the artichoke hearts sauce, 5 cheese sauce, freshly grated parmigiano reggiano, and continue to cook adding the stock when required, stirring constantly.

( The secret in achieving a wonderful risotto is never to saturate the rice with stock to the point of boiling in the liquid, it must slowly absorb a little at a time).

With this special rice, it takes approximately 30 minutes to have the risotto nearly cooked as the vialone nano remains “al dente”. Once the risotto has reached this stage, remove from heat and place in a large baking tray so that it can cool down very quickly. Once cool place in a refrigerator until required. To reheat the risotto, place the portion required in a saucepan adding a little boiling vegetable stock and stirring constantly until ready, approximately 5 minutes. Et voila!