Italian cuisine |
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Italian meal structure is typical of the European Mediterranean region and differs from that of Northern, Central, and Eastern Europe, although it still often consists of breakfast (colazione), lunch (pranzo), and supper (cena). [1] However, breakfast itself is often skipped or is lighter than that of non-Mediterranean Europe. [2] Late-morning and mid-afternoon snacks, called merenda (pl.: merende), are also often eaten. [3]
Full meals in Italy contain four or five courses. [4] Especially on weekends, meals are often seen as a time to spend with family and friends rather than simply for sustenance; thus, meals tend to be longer than elsewhere. During holidays such as Christmas and New Year's Eve, feasts can last for hours. [5]
Today, full-course meals are mainly reserved for special events such as weddings, while everyday meals include only a first or second course (sometimes both), a side dish, and coffee. [6] [7] The primo (first course) is usually a filling dish such as risotto or pasta, with sauces made from meat, vegetables or seafood. [8] Whole pieces of meat such as sausages, meatballs, and poultry are eaten in the secondo (second course). [9] Italian cuisine has some single-course meals (piatto unico) combining starches and proteins. [10]
The most popular breakfast (colazione) is sweet, consumed at home or at a café. If the breakfast is consumed at home, it consists of coffee (espresso or prepared with a moka pot), milk or caffè latte accompanied by baked goods such as biscuits, for example shortbread, or by slices of bread spread with butter and jam or with honey or gianduja cream, made with chocolate and hazelnuts. Milk is sometimes replaced by fruit juice. [11] [12] On some special occasions, such as Sundays or holidays, there may also be more baked goods, such as cakes, pies, pastries, or other regional specialties.
If breakfast is consumed at a café, espresso coffee predominates, together with cappuccino or latte macchiato , accompanied by a cornetto, bombolone , or other pastry; [13] however, the choice of breakfast desserts is varied, some of which are often present only in certain regions or cities. In recent decades, other types of coffee drinks have also spread, such as mocaccino and marocchino . [14] [15]
Much less frequent, but not completely unusual, is the savory breakfast (although much lighter and frugal than other European savory breakfasts), often consisting of focaccia (of different types and depending on the region) or even just toasted homemade bread seasoned with extra virgin olive oil, tomato or sliced salami. [16]
However, many Italians only drink coffee for breakfast and no food. [17]
Lunch (pranzo) is generally considered the most important meal of the day. The full version is composed of four courses: [18] [19]
Lunch is always served with bread.
Meals, particularly lunch, are generally concluded with a cup of espresso or coffee prepared with a caffè moka , sometimes followed by the so-called ammazzacaffè , consisting of a glass of local liqueur, bitter or sweet (of which there is wide choice). [26] [27]
On special occasions, such as holidays and anniversaries, there are also two other courses:
Wine is often a part of the meal, especially during lunch and dinner. [32] [33]
A merenda (from the Latin merenda) is a snack in the mid-morning (around 10 o'clock a.m.) or mid-afternoon (around 5 o'clock p.m.). It is usually a light meal, consisting of panini or tramezzini , fruit alone or bread and jam, if not a dessert and, in summer, possibly gelato. It is common for children, and also eaten by adults. [34]
Supper is the other main meal of the day. The supper (cena) scheme has the same courses as lunch, but with dishes and foods that are usually lighter. [35] [36]
Exceptions are richer dinners (cenoni) eaten for festivities such as New Year's Eve, Christmas Eve and the Carnival period. [37] [38]
Unlike lunch, supper, when consumed among close family members, does not necessarily include a first course based on starchy foods (such as pasta or polenta) or cereals (such as rice), so sometimes supper consists of the equivalent of a second course (a meat or fish-based preparation), with or without a side dish, or a single dish, such as a soup or a light soup, and including bread. [14] [39] [40]
A structure of an Italian meal in its full form, usually used during festivities: [4] [41]
Cappuccino is an espresso-based coffee drink that is traditionally prepared with steamed milk including a layer of milk foam.
Espresso is a concentrated form of coffee produced by forcing hot water under high pressure through finely ground coffee beans. Originating in Italy, espresso has become one of the most popular coffee-brewing methods worldwide. It is characterized by its small serving size, typically 25–30 ml, and its distinctive layers: a dark body topped with a lighter-colored foam called crema.
Brunch is a meal, sometimes accompanied taken sometime in the late morning or early afternoon – the universally accepted time is 11am-2pm, though modern brunch often extends as late as 3pm. The meal originated in the British hunt breakfast. The word brunch is a portmanteau of breakfast and lunch. The word originated in England in the late 19th century, and became popular in the United States in the 1930s.
Italians are well known for their special attention to the preparation, the selection of the blends, and the use of accessories when creating many types of coffees. Many of the types of coffee preparation known today also have their roots here. The main coffee port in Italy is Trieste where there is also a lot of coffee processing industry. Italian coffee consumption, often espresso, is highest in the city of Trieste, with an average of 1500 cups of coffee per person per year. That is about twice as much as is usually drunk in Italy.
A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café, is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve iced coffee among other cold beverages, such as iced tea, as well as other non-caffeinated beverages. A coffeehouse may also serve food, such as light snacks, sandwiches, muffins, cakes, breads, donuts or pastries. In continental Europe, some cafés also serve alcoholic beverages. Coffeehouses range from owner-operated small businesses to large multinational corporations. Some coffeehouse chains operate on a franchise business model, with numerous branches across various countries around the world.
Risotto is an Italian rice dish cooked with broth until it reaches a creamy consistency. The broth can be derived from meat, fish or vegetables. Many types of risotto contain butter, onion, white wine, and Parmesan cheese. It is one of the most common ways of cooking rice in Italy. Saffron was originally used for flavour and its signature yellow colour.
Café au lait is coffee with hot milk added. It differs from white coffee, which is coffee with cold milk or other whiteners added.
Illycaffè S.p.A. is an Italian coffee company specializing in espresso, headquartered in Trieste. Illy markets its coffee globally in silver and red pressurized, oxygen-free cans; operates a network of cafes on shopping streets, in museums, and in airports; and, since 2009, has marketed a line of coffee-flavoured energy drinks as illy issimo.
Serbian cuisine is a Balkan cuisine that consists of the culinary methods and traditions of Serbia. Its roots lie in Serbian history, including centuries of cultural contact and influence with the Greeks and the Byzantine Empire, the Ottomans, and Serbia's Balkan neighbours, especially during the existence of Yugoslavia. Historically, Serbian food develops from pastoral customs that involved the keeping of sheep in mountain highlands, in a climate and regional context that favoured animal husbandry over vegetable farming; Serbian food is therefore traditionally richer in animal products and basic grains—corn, wheat and oats—than fresh vegetable dishes. Following the abandonment of widely practiced pastoral lifestyles, Serbian food emerged through the Middle Ages heavily dependent not on lamb or mutton, but on the keeping of pigs for the annual cull and the production of various cured meats, such as sausages, bacon and ham products.
Italian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine consisting of the ingredients, recipes, and cooking techniques developed in Italy since Roman times, and later spread around the world together with waves of Italian diaspora. Significant changes occurred with the colonization of the Americas and the introduction of potatoes, tomatoes, capsicums, maize, and sugar beet—the latter introduced in quantity in the 18th century. It is one of the best-known and most widely appreciated gastronomies worldwide.
Affogato, known in full in Italian as affogato al caffè and gelato affogato al caffè, is an Italian dessert comprising a scoop of gelato or ice cream, either plain milk-flavored or vanilla, topped with hot espresso. Some variations add a shot of amaretto, bicerin, Kahlúa, or other liqueur.
Merienda is a light meal in southern Europe, particularly Spain, Portugal and Italy (merenda), France (goûter), as well as Hispanic America, the Philippines (meryenda/merienda), North Africa, and Brazil. Usually taken in the afternoon or for brunch, it fills in the meal gap between the noontime meal and the evening meal, being the equivalent of afternoon tea in the English-speaking world; or between breakfast and lunch. It is a simple meal that often consists of a piece of fruit, bread, biscuits, yogurt, and other snacks accompanied by fruit juice, milk, hot chocolate, coffee, spirits, or other beverages.
Latte art is a method of preparing coffee created by pouring microfoam into a shot of espresso and resulting in a pattern or design on the surface of the caffè latte, cappuccino or hot chocolate. It can also be created or embellished by simply "drawing" in the top layer of foam. Latte art is particularly difficult to create consistently, due to the demanding conditions required of both the espresso shot and milk. This, in turn, is limited by the experience of the barista and quality of the espresso machine.
Lunch is a meal eaten around the middle of the day. It is commonly the second meal of the day, after breakfast, but before dinner, and varies in size by culture and region.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to cuisines:
A meal is an occasion that takes place at a certain time and includes consumption of food. The English names used for specific meals vary, depending on the speaker's culture, the time of day, or the size of the meal. A meal is different from a snack in that meals are generally larger, more varied, and more filling.
Uovo sbattuto, is a common Italian breakfast item. Similar to zabaione, uovo sbattuto consists of egg yolk and sugar, ingredients readily available in most villages and farms.
Spella Caffè is a coffee shop in Portland, Oregon, United States. Andrea Spella started the business as a cart in 2006, before opening a brick and mortar space in downtown Portland in 2010. The business has garnered a positive reception, and has been cited as an influence for other coffee company founders.
Breakfast, the first meal of the day eaten after waking from the night's sleep, varies in composition and tradition across the world.