3. Geography of ITALY
Italy is a smaller country with many
islands and a boot-shaped peninsula
that juts into the Mediterranean Sea.
Much of Italy is mountainous.
Italy has three distinct geographic
regions
4. Regions of Italy
Northern Italy: Has great
beauty and fertile farming
land. Largest cheese
producing region.
Southern Italy: Olive
trees, grapes and other
fruits and vegetables
thrive in this area.
5. Characteristic Of Italian Cuisine
Italian food, as a whole, is
lively, interesting, colorful
and varied, yet simple
The Italians believe in
keeping the natural flavors of
food, and insist on fresh
ingredients
Herbs and spices along with
many vegetables and fruits
are important to Italian
cooking.
6. Italian Food
The Italian main dishes contain: pork and beef,seafood and
potatoes, rice and pasta (wheat andegg noodles) products.
Pizza is surely one of themost famous exports and in Italy it
is usuallybaked in a wood-fired oven and very thin,
butloaded with fresh vegetables or thinly sliced
ham,salami, artichokes or olives.
The Italian pasta isrenowned worldwide and there are more
than 200different shapes.Italians love their food and many
dishes are basedon fresh vegetables and seafood too.
Thereare delicious sweet cakes in Italy, like thePanettone (a
yeast cake with raisins), Panforte (ahard and flat fruit cake)
and almond pastries likeamaretti.
7. Meals
There are 5 courses to a traditional Italian meal.
1. Antipasto-Appetizer: Marinated olives, bread &
cheese, or wine.
2. Primo-First Course: small portions of pasta, rice, soup
or polenta.
3. Secondo- Main or second course: small portions of
meat, chicken, or fish.
4. Contorno- Side dish: usually a vegetable dish.
5. Dolce- Dessert: bowl of fruit or biscotti.
The main meal of the day is served in the mid-afternoon.
8. Staple Foods
Pasta of any shape or size, cooked to al dente (firm to
the bite)
Seafood of any type is a very common ingredient due
to Italy being a peninsula
Rice
Pork, lamb, beef, sausage and poultry; meat tends to
be expensive
9. Italian Dairy Products
Among the best-known Italian cheeses are Parmesan,
Mozzarella, Romano, Ricotta, Provolone, and
Gorgonzola.
Gelati an ice cream created in Italy is similar to ice
cream in the USA
10. Northern Italy
Meat is available and
fairly priced
Dairy products are
common
Foods not heavily spiced
Cooks use light sauces
for pasta
Northern Italy uses more
butter for its fat
Their pasta is made with
eggs
11. Northern Specialties
• Known for sausage and other pork products
Often serve risottos (creamy rice), gnocchi (potato dumplings)
and polenta (cornmeal porridge) instead of pasta
• Popular dishes include chicken cacciatore and minestrone
soup
12. Southern Italy
Farm land and grazing land
is poor quality, causing meat
prices to be high
Not heavily populated,
people are poor
Meat is expensive and dairy
products except cheese are
rare
Most foods are hearty, filling
and economical.
Southern Italian is what most
Americans are used to.
13. Southern Specialties
Southern Italian cooks serve pasta with rich tomato
sauces
Pasta of all shapes and sizes are used for cooking
Lasagna and spaghetti are very popular dishes
Pizza was created in a southern region called Naples
Spaghetti bolognese
is a traditional pasta
dish.
Pizza with
Tomato,
Mozzarella,
and Mushrooms
16. Italian Meals
They eat a light breakfast and a hearty noon meal.
The noon meal is often the largest and most people eat it at home.
Antipasto or appetizers of salami, olives, peppers, etc. normally
begin a meal
Meals contain a meat or pasta dish followed by fruit and cheese as
dessert
The evening meal is light, often soups, risotto or omelets.
18. Spanish Cuisine
Spanish Cuisine is more on simple in terms of food and has
stong emphasis on fresh ingredients.
On 15th century spain become known as a trading centre for
spices.
Main source of protein are lamb, pmutton, goat and pork.
High qualities of cheese are also produced from cow, goat and
sheep's milk, and even the combination of the three.
Fishing is one of the industries in spain which provides plenty
of quality seafoods.
19. PAELLA
PAELLA • Valencian rice dish • Many non-Spaniards view paella as Spain's
national dish, but most Spaniards consider it to be a regional Valencian
dish There are three widely known types of paella:
– Valencian paella – Seafood paella – Mixed paella
20. CATALAN CREAM
• Most famous dish in Catalonia
•Served on Saint Joseph's Day, March
19 and is flavored with lemon or
orange zest, and cinnamon.
GAZPACHO
• Raw vegetable soup made of hard
bread, tomato, cucumber, bell
pepper, garlic, olive oil, vinegar of
wine, and salt
21. Christmas Season
December 23
Sing, Pray, And eat together at every house
Sing Villacicos (carols) together
Asaltos – surprise visit by groups of friends going from one
house another .
Children ask for Aguinaldo (or small gift)
• December 24 “ LA NOCHE BUENA ”
Everyone Attends midnight mass
Drinks, Dance, open presents eat food such as tamales and
turkey.
22. Christmas Menu Tapas or Appetizers
Jamón, Queso y Chorizo –
Ham, Cheese and Spanish Chorizo
Sausage:. It’s a great way to start the
dinner, served with a nice red wine or
two. There are many good quality
Spanish wines, especially from La
Rioja, Ribera del Duero or Jumilla
regions.
Gambas a la plancha -
(Pan-grilled shrimp)
23. Conchinillo Asado Roast
baby pig, It is fatty outside is crisp and perfect for those who like pork rind, while
its meat is tender and juicy.
24. Primer Plato or First Course
Creamy Spanish Prawn
Soup Recipe –
Sopa de Carabineros, if you prefer a
creamy soup rather than a broth-
based one. It is full of "carabineros"
(large shrimp) and fish, mixed with
fish stock, half-and-half and
tarragon.
25. Primer Plato or First Course
Sopa de Pescado y Marisco
–
Fish and Shellfish Soup: Spanish
Sopa de Pescado y Marisco is a
classic soup for the holidays.
Shellfish is always part of the
menu at any Spanish celebration
and Christmas is no different. This
soup is a wonderful start to a meal.
Serve it piping hot with French
bread slices.
26. Plato Principal - Main Course
Cordero Asado - Roast
Lamb: It is far less work than
roasting a turkey or duck and is much
tastier.
Pollo Campurrian - A dish from
farming country inland from Santander.
Well-powdered with paprika, the
chicken is fried, then cooked with ham
and peppers, and served with rice
27. Plato Principal - Main Course
Caldereta de Langosta (Lobster
Stew): An exceptional Lobster stew,
typical from the Balearic Islands, and
celebrated all over Spain
Marmitako: Marmita translates as
'pot' or 'casserole' in Basque, while the
suffix ko is the genitive case, so that
marmitako literally means 'from the
pot'. Of course, just about everything
in Basque cooking comes 'from the
pot', but only this venerable dish goes
by that name.
28. DESSERT
After a brief pause to catch your breath and clear the
table, dinner continues with dessert or postre. At
Christmas time that means plates of delicious:.
Turrón, Spanish almond candy.
Polvorones or almond cookies
Mantecados or Spanish crumble cakes.
29. Sangria Drinks
Empanadas A meat pie with a soft, flaky
crust that is served throughout Spain.
Spanish Potato Omelet
30. Spanish Daily Meal
Breakfast (EL DESANUYO)
• Before 10am. People usually eat breakfast at a cofee shop rather
than home.
• To start off the day with alittle something in their stomach,
toast, croissant, or "pan tomaca" - a piece of toast with an oil
and tomato spread- are typical picks.
• On weekends or holiday, churros- slightly crispy fried dough-
dunked in a mug of thick hot chocolate or topped with a sugar
is a spanish specialty.
32. Ater Snack (LA MIRIENDA)
Common Mirienda choices include a small sandwhich,
a piece of fruit, or even a nice hot beverages.
33. La Comida – Lunch
Between 2:00 pm & 4:00 pm
While dinner is the main meal in most cultures, "la
Comida" typically holds the title in Spain.
Stores and bussiness do close down and many people
go home to eat the mid-day meal with their families.
34. Dinner (LA CENA)
Typically dosen't start until
9:00pm &10:))pm in the
evening.
During Summer times or
weekends, dinner tome is
pushed even later-in fact, don't
be surpriced if you see people
sitting down for la cena as late
as midnight.
Traditionally quiet a bit lighter
than it's mid-day counterpart,
often consisting of something
as light as salad or sndwhich.
36. The finest in the world?
French cooking has, over the years, become the norm to
which we compare other cuisines.
This is partly
because France's
famous culinary
schools have made
cooking a highly
respected profession.
37. Haute Cuisine
French food is regarded as the
finest in the world. The French
are world famous for their haute
cuisine – the type of cooking done in restaurants and
hotels.
It is rarely practised in daily life, mainly because of the cost
of the fine ingredients and the time it takes to prepare the
dishes properly.
For this reason, French home cooking tends to be simpler,
but can be just as delicious.
38. Nouvelle Cuisine
This style of cooking
began in the 1970s.
It is a more health
conscious style of cooking
with less fat and calories.
Vegetables are served nearly
raw.
Meat, fish, and poultry are often
broiled or poached.
41. Pasta Tuna salad with Aioli
Sauce (made from olive oil
and garlic )
Bouillabaiss seafood stew
Ratatouille
42. • In Eastern France
is the only French region to
have borders with three other
countries: Belgium
Luxembourg, and Germany
Lorraine
43. Quiche Lorraine - is
another French
recipe popular
outside France and
named after the
Lorraine region in
Eastern France
Sausages and hams are eaten – part of the
German influence
LORRAINE FOODs
45. Brittany
• Brittany has poor agricultural
land so much of the local food
comes from the sea. Dishes
made from shellfish such as
prawns and mussels.
• They are also known for their
Crepes.
46. Baked Goods
Croissants – flaky, buttery
yeast rolls.
Brioche – yeast roll that contains
egg
Napoleons – puff pastry separated
in layers by creamy filling.
47. French Sauces
ROUX – flour and butter
VELOUTE SAUCE –chicken , fish or
veal stock added to roux.
BECHAMEL – milk is added to a roux
48. HOLLANDAISE – contains egg yolks, lemon juice and butter
VINAIGRETTES– combining wine, vinegar, oil and seasonings
49. French Cooking is the ultimate in"herby" cooking (as opposed
to spicy). From sultry bay leaves to aromatic lavender, herbs
further define French cuisine. The list is endless—basil,
tarragon, rosemary, fennel, chives, savory, oregano, chervil,
thyme, sage, parsley, marjoram, fines herbs, etc.
51. Le petit Dejeuner ( Breakfast )
This is usually a light meal – roll and café au lait
52. Le Dejeuner – ( midday meal )
Traditionally the
largest meal of the
day consisting of an
hors d’ oeuvres,
soup and main dish,
vegetable, salad and
main dish. The
salad is usually
served after the
main course.
53. The evening meal is light and usually served after 8:00
since business hours are later in France than in the
United States.
