Category: Organic Food

INSALATA DI MISTICANZA CON BRUCIANTINI AL BALSAMICO

At Toscana restauants in Dublin we love to grow our own fresh organic salads and fragrant herbs from our Wicklow family farm-house. So during the summer season this wonderful salad is very popular at our restaurants. Our recipe is for a great family bowl.

Ingredients

1 head radicchio

2 heads of other mixed green salad

1 tablespoon chopped thyme (no stalk),

1 tablespoon chopped chives,

1 tablespoon flat leaf parsley

2 tablespoons (1fl.oz/30ml) extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons 45g of unsalted butter

1/4 lb (115g) pancetta, cut into thin strips

1lb (115g) Prosciutto di parma, cut to short strips

1/4 cup (60ml) balsamic vinegar

Method

Wash and pat dry all of the lettuce leaves. Cut into bite size and in a bowl mix the chopped herbs and extra-virgin olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

In a pan melt 1 tablespoon of butter over the heat. Sautee the pancetta and the prosciutto until just beginning to crisp (2 minutes). Remove from the pan and allow to soak on paper towels. Degrease pan, then return the pancetta and prosciutto to the pan. Cook a further 2 minutes until crispy. Add the balsamic vinegar to the pan, let it reduce by half, and add the remaining butter and whisk together. Spoon the prosciutto/pancetta mixture over the salad and serve warmed. You may wish to add a favourite, ours is with fresh mozzarella sliced and cubed.

At Toscana, our priority is to go one step further for our customers, linking land to plate in a very real sense by growing as much of our own food, stirring up scrumptious dishes for you using the freshest ingredients available. This is the reason why we love to nurture seasonal vegetables, herbs, salads and fruits at our farm-house in Co Wicklow. We use  our own corn-fed hens eggs to make great filled pastas and delicious low fat and gluten free desserts.  Locally sourced is the new buzz-word amongst Irish restaurants particularly in Dublin this year, But Toscana have been growing their seasonal produce for over a decade. At the heart of Toscana cooking lies a celebration of food that is fresh, local and unpretentious, elevating traditional modern cooking into flavours customers love. We atempt to bring old traditions alive in our cooking by pulling ingriedients from our soil to deliver quality to the plate.

To dine at our restaurant and enjoy our classic menus using fresh herbs and seasonal vegetables pulled from our farm-house for early bird, christmas lunch, dinner, lunch, midweek express and many more at Toscana restaurant in Dublin.

Here we have jotted down the health benefits of home grown produce:

They are a rich source of nutrition ingredient

Fruits and vegetables, during the course of their journey from farm to table, degrade considerably to be left with not much nutrients. On the other hand, our home grown produce is freshly cut, and immediately used for cooking, which helps retain its valuable vitamins and live enzymes. It is a proven fact that the longer it takes for organic produce to travel to our plates, the more vitality is lost on the way, no matter what steps were observed to grow or preserve them.

They offer a range of vital elements and flavours

We grow a variety of seasonal vegetables in our garden so that we can offer you healthy choices of food that are packed with delicious flavours and nutrients throughout the year. By focusing on growing organic products in an array of colours, flavours and varieties we maximize the flavours of food that is served to you at our restaurant in Dublin.

They are natural and organic, devoid of any harmful pesticides

Crop rotation and usage of organic manure in our garden give that balanced nutrition to the crops that cannot be expected of commercial produce. For example, cabbage grown in home gardens is reported to be rich in silica, which strengthens bones, hair and nails, and also checks Alzheimer’s. It cannot be found in cabbages procured from the supermarket.