ITALIAN AMERICAN: July 2022

Saturday, July 16, 2022

Voted Best Travel Guide Positano Amalfi Coast Italy

POSITANO The AMALFI COAST

TRAVEL GUIDE / COOKBOOK

DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE

AMAZON.com

Positano The Amalfi Coast Cookbook - Travel Guide is like no other book that has been written on Positano, Naples, and the Amalfi Coast. It’s not just a travel guide. It’s a cookbook / travel guide with essays qne delightful stories of Positano, Capri, and the Amalfi Coast of Italy. The book is designed to educate, inform, and inspire the preparation of your trip to Positano, or anywhere on the Amalfi Coast and its surrounding area, an area that has unmatched beauty anywhere in the world, and one of the primary reasons that millions see a trip to Positano and the Amalfi Coast as the ultimate dream vacation and romantic local for the ultimate Honeymoon or the vacation of a lifetime. It’s also a book that makes you drea, and of dreams that come true.Bestselling Italian Cookbook Author Daniel Bellino Zwicke has crafted this book with stories, recipes, advice, and information on how to prepare for the most memorable vacation trip of your life, whether this is the 1st, second, third, or your tenth time going to this The Divine Coast of Amalfi, Capri, or Napoli. Daniel is no newcomer to the area. He made his first trip to Positano, Capri, and the Amalfi Coast of Italy way back in the Summer of 1985, and has been returning ever since. He has gained a wealth of knowledge of Naples, Capri, and The Amalfi Coast, of which he imparts his wisdom to the readers of this book through the travel guide information, and delightful stories that entertain, inform, and inspire. And as Daniel is a bestselling Italian Cookbook author he has included over 100 regional recipes of Naples, Positano, Sorrento, and the Amalfi Coast. The recipes that he’s gathered (written down) over 35 years, and has put down on paper within the walls of this book, in order for the reader to recreate their most cherished memories of dishes they’ve eaten in Naples, on Capri, at Da Vincenzo, Chez Black, or La Cambusa in Positano.

Would you like to recreate that charming seafood lunch in the small fishing village of Cetara? You can. You will be able to cook the favorite dish you had on the coast, in Naples, on Capri. The recipes will educate you on the food of the region, nourish you and help you to relive those special memories back home.

So if you’re looking to plan a trip to the Amalfi Coast, cook the food when you’re back home, and to be inspired by the food, the restaurants, hotels, Ancient Roman Ruins, the natural beauty, and warmth of the Italian people, this just might be the book for you. We hope that it is, and would love to tag along on your Special Journey, whether it’s in Positano, Capri, Sorrento, or anywhere in this stunningly beautiful area. “Adiamo” !!!

Note : There are no pictures in this book, just stories, recipes, and a wealth of information. But if you want Beautiful Pictures of Positano & The Amalfi Coast? We have created a Companion Website for this Book with Hundreds of Beautiful Pictures of Positano, Capri, and the Amalfi Coast @ Positano-Amalfi-Coast.com …

Just Google “Positano Amalfi Coast

Daniel Bellino”Bio - Daniel Bellino Zwicke is the Bestselling author of 8 books. He has been a restaurant and Italian Wine Professional in New York for more than 35 years, and has been traveling back and forth to Italy just as long. His book Sunday Sauce was the # 1 Best Selling Italian Cookbook (on Amazon Kindle) for more than two years (also in Paperback).

Along with being the Wine Director at Barbetta (NYC) and Maitre’d at Da Silvano (NYC), Daniel created America’s 1st ever Venetian Wine Bar “Bar Cichetti” in 1997, where he was the Chef, Wine Director, and managing partner. Daniel lives and writes in Greenwich Village, New York, NY, and is currently working on several new projects.

Thursday, July 7, 2022

Drinking Sambuca

SAMBUCA ROMANA

Most Popular in America

Those "In The Know" Drink Sambuca Molinari

HOW to Drink SAMBUCA

Technically speaking, there is no right or wrong way to drink sambuca. Although there are a number of Italian customs that can be observed when drinking sambuca, you can discover your own way to enjoy it.

Typically, sambuca is rarely enjoyed neat and it will be accompanied by a coffee bean at the very least as we will describe below. Occasionally, it can be enjoyed on the rocks with ice.

Alternatively, sambuca may be slightly diluted with ice water in a similar way to absinthe or pastis. On some occasions, you may observe a louche or “ouzo effect” where the drink becomes cloudy. Interestingly, this cloudiness is an indicator of the sambuca’s anise content.

Finally, sambuca is emerging as an excellent cocktail ingredient to produce some original and exciting flavours. Check out our guide to the best sambuca cocktails to learn more.

Botanicals of Sambuca

Sambuca is produced using a pure and neutral base alcohol distillate derived from either grain or molasses. In some cases, the alcohol base is distilled locally but it may also be imported.

Typically, sambuca’s ingredients consist of the alcohol, star anise, and sugar. Occasionally, green anise is used instead. Additionally, sambuca may also include other botanicals including elderflower, fennel, and liquorice.

Overall, the process is not dissimilar to producing akvavit in that the ingredients are simply added to the alcohol to create its unique flavour. However, akvavit steeps the botanicals while sambuca introduces the ingredients as essFinally, the ingredients are combined and left to rest for just under a week in large steel tanks. Once the mixture has settled, it is always filtered at room temperature as chill-filtering would cause a louche effect and remove the essential oils.

Sambuca Alcohol Volume Percentage

Sambuca has a legal minimum ABV of 38%. While on some occasions, brands will abide by this to the letter, the majority of producers will retail sambuca of at least 40% and sometimes slightly more at around 42% ABV.

What Is Black Sambuca?

Black sambuca or dark sambuca is the most common alternative sambuca flavour. Indeed, some brands may produce a variety of flavours including apple, raspberry, banana, or even coffee.

While a typical clear or white sambuca is flavoured with anise, elderberries, and sugar, black sambuca consists of witch elder bush and liquorice. Usually, it will also contain anise too. However, its presence is far less prolific in black sambuca.

Unlike white sambuca, black sambuca is also served neat and often in a snifter glass rather than a shot glass. Additionally, black sambuca is rarely totally black. In fact, it tends to have hues of dark blue or violet, which resembles ink.

Occasionally, people may refer to red sambuca too, which tends to consist of some of the alternative flavourings listed above.

Firstly, demineralised water is heated to around 70°C (150°F) and is combined with the sugar to produce a syrup. Sambuca contains a significant amount of sugar, which equates to an average of 350 grams per litre or 47 ounces per US gallon.

Afterwards, the star anise is blanched and then crushed before its essential oils are extracted through steam distillation. However, most sambuca producers will often import the star anise from China as an essential and will rarely undertake the process themselves.

DRINKING SAMBUCA with ESPRESSO

It Italy, sambuca is most commonly enjoyed with coffee. In most cases, it will be served as what is called an ammazzacaffè.

An Italian take on the formal dinner practice of passing through to a different room to smoke and drink cognac, an ammazzacaffè is traditionally practised with grappa. However, sambuca is also sometimes used. Its objective is to dull the coffee’s taste as well as the caffeine’s effect.

Alternatively, the sambuca can be added directly to the coffee in place of sugar, which is referred to as a caffè corretto.

In some cases, a few drops are added by a waiter before the coffee is taken to the customer. Otherwise, the sambuca may be presented in an accompanying shot glass so that the drinker can add their desired portion.

Finally, a dash of sambuca may sometimes be added to a finished espresso cup to “clean” it, which is then knocked back as a shot.