HOT PEPPERS - Grow a Few and Heat Things up in the Kitchen

              I cannot imagine my kitchen
                      without hot peppers.

All photo Copyright - ©2011 - La Casa e Il Giardino - picasaweb

My turkey burgers would be bland

without the zing of hot peppers.

 

           Would my pasta and peas dish have the peppery taste without the red liquid gold?

What would a Pancetta be

without hot pepper flakes?

              Or my antipasto without peperoncini

              in vinegar (sotto ceto)?

Today you can find a rainbow of peppers in a variety of shapes and sizes at any farmers’ market. Supermarkets carry such standards as Jalapeno an Serrano peppers all-year round.

Our source of peppers is our home garden and March is the perfect month to sow seeds indoors for summer harvest.

Seeds from Italy

Growing chiles whether you like the burn of bird peppers or a slight sizzle of the poblanos, hot peppers make delicious additions to gardens. We grow our own plants from seeds, beginning indoors, eight weeks before the last frost. Seeds should germinate in seven to fifteen days. Transplant into garden when nighttime temperatures are consistently above fifty-five degrees and in full sun.

Our garden

Avoid over- watering by spreading mulch over roots.

 A low nitrogen fertilizer should be applied every three weeks.

Start planting and this summer enjoy some food with firepower.

Spicy Peppers and Weight Loss

According to a new research at the UCLA Center for Human Nutrition, eating your chili peppers may reduce your waistline. Supposedly, the heat generated by the hot peppers can cause your body to burn calories.

Horn Italian peppers (our favorite)

My husband just picked the hot peppers, strung them and hung to dry.

Strung (incrollati) peppers hanging to dry

Once the peppers dry naturally, we make pepper flakes.

Semi-dried red hot peppers

CIPOLLATA

    Cipollata is connected to the Italian word for onion "cipolla". It’s known as an onion and tomato soup, but the name describes different dishes in different parts of Italy.

                            

Ingredients - peppers, onions and tomatoes

           Being from Abruzzo, this particular cipollata recipe calls for onions, green hot peppers and tomatoes as a base.   Having an abundance of tomatoes, onions and peppers in the garden, I preserve this cipollata, like I preserve salsa. In the winter, just pop a jar open, warm up and add eggs sunny side-up.

Cipollata ready to be served

Ingredients - 2 persons

2 medium onions sliced

4 eggs

5 hot or sweet green frying peppers sliced

1/3 cup olive oil

2 chopped tomatoes or 1 small can chopped tomatoes

Salt and pepper

In a hot iron pan, add oil, and saute' onions until golden.  Remove the onions and set aside

In same pan fry the peppers.  (If there is a need for a little more oil add before frying the peppers.)  Remove the peppers and set aside.

In the same pan, add the tomatoes, salt and pepper and simmer gently for 15 minutes.

Add the fried peppers and onions to the cooked tomatoes.

With a fork, create 4 holes.  In each hole, place an egg.  Cover for a few minutes until the egg whites are firm and serve.

Great with Italian crusty bread.