A Taste of Southern Italy: A Meal of Recipes

A holiday season does not go by without Adam and I trying to bring some of his Italian heritage into our kitchen. My favorite is the recipes stemming from meals in Southern Italy and the coastal cuisine! For our small break between Christmas and New Years we made a night at home to cook a delicious meal together similar to ones Adam and I have had when visiting his dad's family. We had a blast making it, and the leftovers were just what we needed to last until we left for our next adventure.

Oyster Linguine

Instructions:

• Linguine
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
• 16oz Medium Shucked Oysters
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• ¼ cup White Wine
• Capers
• Italian Seasoning
• Parmesan Cheese
• 2 Tbsp Butter
  

Directions:

• Heat olive oil in a skillet on medium-high heat
• Rinse oysters
• Add in oysters and cook them for about 5 minutes
• Season with Italian seasonings, and salt and black pepper to taste
• Boil and strain pasta
  
• Add 2 Tbs of butter to the bottom of a mixing bowl. Put pasta in on top and set aside
• Add in lemon juice and white wine, and cook at a simmer until sauce becomes less watery
• Add in capers, and continue to cook an additional 4-6 minutes
• Mix in the linguine pasta, and add fresh parmesan cheese to your liking ​

Flounder and Asparagus

Ingredients:

• 4 Flounder Fillets (frozen)
• ​2 Frozen Steam-fresh Bags Asparagus
• Panko Bread Crumbs
• Olive Oil
• Crushed Walnuts
• Parmesan Cheese
• Salt & Black pepper
• ​Walnut Oil

Directions:

• Thaw flounder fillets and asparagus and preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
• ​Microwave steam the asparagus as instructed on the package
• On a large baking sheet, lay out the flounder fillets and spread out the asparagus around the fillets, making sure not to stack any of the fish or asparagus
• Drizzle olive oil across all of this
• Sprinkle with salt, pepper, panko bread crumbs, and parmesan cheese
• Pour the desired amount of crushed walnuts over everything
• Drizzle everything with walnut oil
• Bake in preheated oven for about 20 to 25 minutes or until fish is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork

Butter Bread

Ingredients:

• Spreadable Butter
• ​Garlic and Herb seasoning
• 1 loaf fresh Italian Bread
• Tin Foil
• Non-Stick Spray

Directions:

• Lay out a piece of tin foil large enough to wrap entire loaf of bread in
• Spray it with Non-Stick Spray and place the loaf of bread on it
• Cut splices half way through the bread (making sure not to separate any from the loaf) 1 inch apart
• Coat each exposed area of sliced bread with butter (in between pieces as well as over the top)
• Sprinkle garlic and herb seasoning over the top
• Wrap the loaf in tin foil and bake at 400F for 10 minutes

While we finished this meal with a tiramisu and a cup of espresso, we did not make the tiramisu ourselves. We are hoping to try our hand at it in the near future, so be looking out for a recipe post sometime this spring!