Blog - L'amore Italian Restaurant

April 16, 2019 by Kim Abbott

Tips for Traveling on a Budget in Italy

Italy is one of the most visited countries in the world, and for good reason. Italy has everything to offer; ancient monuments, amazing coastlines, and delicious food.

If you’re planning a trip to Italy but are doing it on a budget, here are some tips you can follow to get the most out of your trip to Italy while staying within your budget.

You’ll Need a Kitchen

To save money on food, rent a hotel room or Airbnb that comes with a kitchen. Not only will this help you save money by avoiding eating out for every meal, you’ll also get to go food shopping – in Italy!

Visit the local markets in the community where you’re staying and buy fresh ingredients for breakfast, a packed lunch, and then splurge on dinner, if you want. When you have a kitchen where you can make your own food, your will see your budget slashed in half for this travel necessity. You gotta eat, right!

Carefully Plan Your Itinerary

Before you venture to Italy, make a detailed itinerary of the sights you want to see and the cost associated with each one. With so much to see in Italy, this can be challenging. However, when you pick just a few sites that really peak your interest, you will find yourself not overwhelmed at all. For example, you may want to focus on just one region, like Rome or Venice.

If you’re a huge history buff, carefully choose the ancient sites you want to see. If getting closer inside the culture is your thing, explore the local markets and alleyways near your hotel.

Hire a Cheap Guide

Don’t speak Italian? Never been to Italy before and want to make the most out of your trip? If so, you can always hire a guide to help you explore the countries different regions. Locals know all the ins and outs of touring their own country and will also know the fastest and most efficient ways to get you where want to be. Also, having an Italian speaking guide will save you plenty of time and frustration when it comes to communicating with the locals.

Travel Off-Season

Another way to see Italy on a budget is to travel during the off-season. Not only will this save you money on airfare and costs associated in country, but you’ll also get to skip the large crowds. The peak season is during the summer, when prices are the highest. To save money, consider traveling anytime from November through March.

March 7, 2019 by Kim Abbott

5 Tools You Will Find in an Italian Kitchen

An Italian kitchen is a special place. It’s filled with aromas of delicious Italian food cooking on the stovetop or in the oven, along with colorful ingredients, like green basil and red tomatoes.

However, no Italian kitchen is complete without the essential Italian cooking tools listed below. If you want to turn your kitchen into a place where authentic Italian food is made, consider getting these kitchen tools for yourself.

1. Wooden Spoons

Ah, the wooden spoon. No Italian kitchen is complete without a few of these in all shapes and sizes, with and without holes. Wooden spoons are perfect for stirring pasta sauce, cakes mixes, and pastry cream. The ones with holes are essential when making dishes such as risotto because the holes allow for the rice to freely flow through the spoon.

2. Rolling Pin

Whether you plan to make your own pasta, pizza crust, or cookies, a rolling pin is an essential Italian kitchen tool. There are two styles of pins – rods and rollers. The latter is a thick cylinder with small handles while the former is thinner with tapered batons.

3. Pasta Machine

Looking to become an overnight Italian chef? Then you’ll need to learn how to make your own pasta. It’s easy when you have a pasta machine. With a pasta machine, you can make any kind of pasta, such as linguine, Fettuccine, spaghetti, lasagna noodles, and more. You set the desired thickness or thinness of the pasta you want to make and simply crank the dough out through the rollers. Most pasta machines also include accessories that allow you to make nearly any kind of pasta shape you want.

4. Colander

Also called a strainer, a colander is one of the most important tools for an Italian kitchen. You need to drain your cooked pasta right away so choose a colander that allows for a fast and effective drainage option that also doesn’t allow any food to escape. Since the sink is typically the most dirty place in the kitchen, make sure the sink is completely clean before draining the pasta and avoid having the colander tip over with food spilling out into the sink. Yuck!

5. Wine Opener

An Italian meal must have wine to go with it. Red or white, depending on what dish you’re serving. For this reason, it’s important to have at least one wine bottle opener in your Italian kitchen, though having more is better in case you misplace one.

February 5, 2019 by Kim Abbott

5 Best Italian Vegetarian Dishes

If you’re a vegetarian or are simply looking for veggie recipes to cut back on meat, Italian food is the way to go. There are so many vegetarian Italian dishes to choose from that are delicious, healthy, and filling.

We’ve outlined our five favorites here for you to enjoy at home or during a night out for dinner.

1. Four Cheese Pasta

Love cheese? Then you’ll love this Italian recipe filled with parmesan, brie, cheddar, and emmental cheese. It’s like macaroni and cheese but only better and certainly does not come out of a box! It’s healthy and filling and is best served with a green salad and Italian bread.

2. Grilled Veggie Lasagna

Lasagna is one of the most famous Italian dishes. Typically, this dish comes with meat, but there are many vegetarian options you can use to make this a healthy, filling meal for the entire family. In between layers of lasagna noodles, you can add peppers, broccoli, squash or any other vegetables you love.

Like any other lasagna recipe, add lots of yummy cheese (ricotta and mozzarella) along with your favorite pasta sauce, homemade or not. This tasty treat is perfect for lunch or dinner. Serve with Italian garlic bread on the side to scoop up the pasta sauce and other ingredients.

3. Caprese Salad with Pesto Sauce

This recipe is a version of antipasti filled with fresh tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and pesto sauce. It makes for a perfect appetizer or a lunch dish. Did you know that the colors in this recipe actually represent the Italian flag? That’s right! Green, red, and white. Purely Italian.

4. Eggplant Parmesan

Skip the veal and chicken and grab some fresh eggplant for this filling vegetarian Italian dish. Layer this casserole with lots of tomatoes, parmesan cheese, and eggplant. Serve with a salad for extra vitamins and nutrients, along with garlic bread to scoop up the meal. Then sit back, relax, and digest this healthy meal.

5. Panzanella

This popular summer dish comes from the Tuscan area of Italy but is popular throughout the country. It’s a chopped salad consisting of tomatoes and bread. The bread is stale but soaked and goes perfect with freshly picked tomatoes. Add some onions and basil, along with a vinegar and olive oil dressing. Create a small panzanella as an appetizer or side dish to go along with another incredible vegetarian Italian dish listed here.

January 8, 2019 by Kim Abbott

4 Interesting Things Italians Do Differently Than You Think

lamore italian restaurant cappuccino coffee Pizza, pasta, wine – the list goes on and on when it comes to delicious, authentic Italian foods. However, while most people love to eat these dishes, there are some things you may not know. Are you intrigued by Italian culture and food? If so, you are in the right place. Here you can learn more about Italian food, and even find out a few things you may have never knew. Keep reading to learn more.

1. Italians Don’t Drink Coffee the Way You Think They Do

For most people in America, starting out their day, then ending their day and several times in the middle – coffee is a must. Not just any coffee – milky, sweet, delicious coffee. However, Italians will only drink the popular milky coffee, such as cafe latte or cappuccino first thing when they get up in the morning. Many Italians don’t drink any other coffee throughout the day.

2. Never Walk While Eating

More than 70 percent of Italian people eat meals at home – all meals. They don’t have the typical on-the-go snacks that so many Americans consume on a regular basis. Cooking is something to enjoy and eating a meal is a pleasurable experience for Italians. The act of not eating or drinking while walking is something that is ingrained in children at a very young age. So the next time you visit Italy, don’t walk down the road eating a croissant and sipping coffee.

3. Authentic Italian Pizza is a Lot Simpler than You Think

There are some people who believe that for a pizza to be authentic, it should have a thick crust. However, in Italy, this is not the case. In fact, thicker crust is reserved for a focaccia. In Italy, pizza is a combination of thin dough, toppings, tomato sauce and the right cheese. The main focus is not the bread. This technique makes it possible to taste each of the ingredients that are included. The majority of pizzas served in the states are designed to fill you up with all the bread – after all, this is cheaper than the different toppings. However, this isn’t the case with authentic Italian pizza.

4. Salad Comes at the End of the Meal

The salad, along with the roughage that is found in the salad, will help you digest everything after you eat a big meal. It is all about the digestion process in Italy, and salad really helps with this. You won’t find too many restaurants that even offer a side salad with your regular meal.

When it comes to eating in Italy, there are more than a few things you need to consider. These food rules will ensure you eat the “right” way if you are planning to visit this country.

Tips for Traveling on a Budget in Italy

5 Tools You Will Find in an Italian Kitchen

5 Best Italian Vegetarian Dishes

4 Interesting Things Italians Do Differently Than You Think

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