Risotto with Pear, Gorgonzola, & Walnuts
This month’s recipe comes to us from tour leader Enrico Dal Monte who you may have met on tour in Belgium, Italy, France or Spain. Pears are in season so ...
Recipes
A taste for fabulous food runs in the ExperiencePlus! family. Paola’s brother and father both owned restaurants, so we know how to find the best cuisine wherever we travel! On our tours we are always looking for memorable culinary experiences to provide our customers. That’s why so many of our tours include food-related activities and fantastic meals. We carefully chose and catalogued each savory experience on our tours – from your wine tasting in France to your visit to the Balsamic Vinegar cellar in Modena and your meal at a local Trattoria or Taberna. (Just to be sure we’d found the best meals for you, we tasted them all twice!) With ExperiencePlus! your culinary experiences don’t stop when you fly home. On a cold winter night – while you plan your next cycling trip – you’ll warm your heart and stir wonderful memories with a bowl of Aunt Angiolina’s classic bean soup, a super easy bruschetta, or breakfast of authentic crepes.
Vlaamse Stoverij or Belgian Beef Stew
Tour leaders Michele Boglioni and Enrico Dal Monte were recently doing some reconnaissance for our Bicycling Belgium’s Best Brewery tours and stopped in for some authentic Belgian Beef Stew. TheyFull Story
Piadina or Flatbread
Piadina* or Flatbread Ingredients: 5 cups (500 grams) of unbleached flour 2 teaspoons (10 grams) salt 5/8 cup (70 grams) of rendered lard (or scant half cup of olive oil if you prefer) 1 1/2 ...
Josette’s Cherry Clafoutis
Josette’s Cherry Clafoutis Preheat oven to 400F Ingredients: 1/2 pounds pitted Cherries 3/4 cup flour 2/3 cup sugar 3 eggs 1 cup milk or light cream 1/3 cup melted butter 1 teaspoon powdered or brown sugar In a bowl, ...
Strawberry Lasagna with Cream
Serves Four Sponge Cake: 3 egg yolks 1/3 cup sugar pinch of salt 3 egg whites 3/4 cup flour Zest from half an orange The Filling: 1 cup of fresh strawberries 2 tablespoons of lemon juice 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar 3/4 ...
Celebrate Italy’s 150th Birthday
As the ExperiencePlus! Italia 150 bicycling expedition begins May 7th in Marsala, Sicily we thought it would be the perfect time for all of us to acknowledge Italy’s unification. Unfortunately ...
Ramsons or Bear Garlic Soup
Philipp Alexander Schmitt, one of our Tour Leaders in Germany and Spain, recently shared his version of Bear Garlic Soup which some of our travelers will remember fondly from their ...
Interview with Chef Erick Vedel
Photo Daniele Voirin A local Provençal chef tells us about his passion for food and how it has pervaded other areas of his life. Each year he opens his home to ...
Camargue Red Rice with Ginger and Chickpeas
This recipe comes to us from Chef Erick Vedel and was served on the ExperiencePlus! Bicycling through the Best of Provence tour October 2010. Clinical studies have proven that red rice ...
Per la Cena or What’s for Dinner?
An interview with Bea Tassinari who coordinates meals on ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours in Italy. Bea can you tell us a little about the process of deciding what’s for dinner on a ...
Soufflé of Parmesan Cheese
Sformato di Parmigiano or Soufflé of Parmesan Cheese We often receive requests from customers who have eaten something fabulous on tour and are hopeful that we can find or have a ...
Ragú Pasta Sauce
Ragú is comfort food Italian style for the Malpezzi Price family. Simple ingredients combine to form a delicious sauce for your favorite pasta. A dinner mainstay (leftovers are even better!) ...
Beet and Feta Salad with Honey-Oregano Vinaigrette
Beet and Feta Salad with Honey-Oregano Vinaigrette This month Paola invites her colleague, Ellen Brinks, to share her beet recipe. “Beet and Feta Salad works well as a side dish, but ...
Potato Soup with a Mediterranean Twist
The common potato is a simple winter vegetable that makes an innovative, warm and creamy soup if paired with a tangy Mediterranean fruit like the olive. The best type of ...
From Mamma Paola’s Kitchen: Cold Borscht Soup
When Rick and I were in Poland about to begin our Krakow to Budapest bike tour in 2009 I tasted a delicious borscht soup. This recipe reminds me of that ...
Summer Couscous with Seafood
This recipe comes from the kitchen of Paola’s nephew, Claudio Malpezzi and the staff at the Titon Restaurant in Cesenatico, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Some of you may be interested in the ...
Greek Salad
There are as many variations of Greek salad as there are Greeks. We’ve selected our favorite, but feel free to experiment to find your perfect combination. We suggest that you ...
Salame al Cioccolato
(literally translated as Chocolate Salami) ExperiencePlus! is proud to share this recipe from the Agriturismo il Rigo located in Val d’Orcia near San Quirico d’Orcia. ExperiencePlus! stopped there for dinner on ...
Hvarska Gregada (Fish Stew)
Hvarska Gregada or Fish Stew Here’s a recipe from our final dinner in Hvar, Croatia on our Bicycling the Islands of the Dalmatian Coast tour. It’s a traditional Dalmatian fish stew ...
Bavarian Apple Torte
Bavarian Apple Torte ExperiencePlus! Bicycle Tours has a tradition of celebrating birthdays with a dessert from an area that one of our bicycle tours travels through. This month we sampled a ...
Parmesan and Radicchio Salad
Parmesan and Radicchio Salad Radicchio is a very prevalent Italian winter vegetable (mostly grown October through February in north-eastern Italy) and comes in several different shapes and sizes—almost always red and ...
Acquacotta or Tuscan Soup
Acquacotta or Tuscan Soup Literally, ‘acquacotta’ means ‘cooked water’. This is the Tuscan version of ‘Stone soup’. This was once a very humble soup made out of a little tomato, onion ...
Lebanese Hummus
ExperiencePlus! hosted an Open House at our new office last month and our guests requested recipe copies. We thought with the Superbowl this week it’s a perfect time to share ...
Baked Lemon Almond Tart
The past several years, Rick and I have discovered the joys and benefits of almonds. We eat them as a snack, put them in our oatmeal or granola, and add ...
Panforte with Hazelnut & Almonds
“Panforte” means “tough bread” in Italian. It is somewhat similar to a Christmas fruit cake, American-style. Panforte and Panettone are the ultimate Christmas or holiday Italian dessert. Panforte is originally ...
Leche Asada or Chilean Style Custard
Our Leche Asada or Chilean Style Custard comes to us from our Chilean Tour Leader Juan Pablo Mansilla. Juan Pablo tells us that one great thing about most Chilean recipes is ...
Ceviche a la Tica
This traditional dish is served, with different variations, in all Latin American countries with coast on the Pacific (Mexico, Central America, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Chile). It was popular in ...
Beets with Garlic and Walnut Sauce
Beets are root vegetables with edible, leafy green tops. The most common beets are deep red, but there are gold, white and candy-cane striped varieties. I really enjoy the flavor ...
Caffé Sciaccherato
Caffé Sciaccherato means “shaken coffee” and is the Italian equivalent of an iced coffee or “blended latte.” Even when it gets hot outside, Italians still have their espresso – but ...
Peperonata or Pepper Stew
Peperonata or Pepper Stew Here is ...
Spanokopita or Greek Spinach Pie
Spanokopita or Greek Spinach Pie (Makes four servings) A few weeks ago I was at a potluck lunch with ...
Chocolate Mousse, Perfected by Tour Leader Michele Boglioni
Chocolate Mousse, Perfected by Tour Leader Michele Boglioni We have the perfect combination to wow your Valentine this year. ...
“Cacciucco alla Livornese” or Fish Soup, ...
“Cacciucco alla Livornese” or Fish Soup, Livorno Style Here is a recipe that tastes like the Mediterranean and speaks ...
Risotto with Peoci (Risotto with Mussels)
Risotto with Peoci alla Veneta Risotto with Mussels "Veneto" style Here is a tasty, simple recipe that will remind you of the Mediterranean and its special flavors of garlic and seafood. You ...
Spaghetti alla Carbonara (Carbonara Spaghetti)
Spaghetti alla Carbonara Spaghetti with Carbonara Sauce For four people: 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 clove of garlic ...
Lasagne or Lasagna
Lasagne or Lasagna Lasagna was for centuries considered by Italians a ‘rich’ dish, thanks to the variety and the ...
Ciorba – Romanian Soup
Ciorba As the days get shorter and cooler, it is time to think about soups and stews. Our Romanian ...
Pastelitos
Pastelitos (Small Pastries) from Argentina Ingredients: ...
Nonno Bruno’s Crema (Vanilla Custard)
Nonno Bruno’s Vanilla Custard This quick and easy dessert comes straight from Italy ...
Fichi Caramellati or Caramelized Figs
Fichi Caramellati or Caramelized Figs ExperiencePlus! cyclists on tour in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy are treated to ...
Eggplant Mediterranean Style
Eggplant Mediterranean Style During a recent visit to Greece and its islands on our Bike, Walk and Cruise our, I rediscovered, among other things, the great flavor of eggplant with Mediterranean ...
Arugula Salad with Lemon Dressing and Pine Nuts
Arugula Salad with Lemon Dressing and Pine Nuts It’s starting to get hot in Colorado as ...
Baked Fennel
Finocchio al Forno (Baked Fennel) I grew up eating fennel, raw in salads or cooked. When I moved to the States I was surprised to realize that ...
Monica’s Ricotta Mousse
Monica’s Ricotta Mousse If you ...
Homemade Ricotta Cheese: So Easy a Child Could Do It
Homemade Ricotta Cheese: So Easy a Child Could Do It If, like me, you’ve always assumed that making your own cheese is too arcane for normal folks, you should find ...
Pear Clafouti
Pear Clafouti Adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything (Wiley, 1998). Comice Pears - the “Christmas Pear” – Unite Oregon and France ...
Kolokithokeftethes (Greek Zucchini Patties)
Kolokithokeftethes Greek Zucchini Patties This month’s recipe comes to us from Greek tour leader (and olive grower) Yorgos Paraskevopoulos. It’s ...
Rick’s Famous Sardinian Pork Chops
Rick’s Famous Sardinian Pork Chops My pork chop recipe dates back to a trip I took to Sardinia in ...
Keftethakia (Greek Meatballs)
Keftethakia (Greek Meatballs) Meatballs are popular in all of Greece: the small ones are used as appetizers and the bigger ones as main dish. They can be made of beef (preferably) ...
Maccheroni Alla Bersagliera
Maccheroni Alla Bersagliera (Pasta with Ham, Peas and Fontina Cheese) A Historic Recipe For a Historic Trip On their tricycle ride ...
Sopes (Corn Flour Patties)
Sopes (Corn Flour Patties) When we chose Sopes for this month’s recipe, I knew that the folks at my Fort Collins neighborhood’s excellent Mexican restaurant Las Salsitas would be able ...
Grilled Vegetables with Paola’s Mediterranean ...
Grilled Vegetables with Paola’s Mediterranean Dressing With ...
Fragole al Limone, or Strawberries with Lemon
Fragole al Limone (Strawberries with Lemon) Maria Elena noticed at a dinner party last week that her American ...
Tiramisu
cellspacing=”0″ cellpadding=”0″ border=”0″ width=”100%” summary=”"> Tiramisu As one of the major dessert fiends at the Fort Collins office (and that’s saying a lot!!) I was elected to make this month’s recipe ...
Ireland: Move Over, Guinness – When It’s Hot, ...
Ireland: Move Over, Guinness – When It’s Hot, Hard Cider Hits the Spot When I was in Ireland ...
Italy: Polenta
Italy: Polenta Polenta is a simple, even modest dish, yet it occupies an important place in the cuisine ...
Torta Negra Galesa (Black Welsh Cake)
Torta Negra Galesa (Black Welsh Cake) Rick and I recently returned from our ExpeditionPlus! tour in South America from Coast to Coast across Patagonia. It was a great experience, and ...
Sicilian-Style Pizza with Focaccia
Sicilian-Style Pizza with Focaccia This is the most basic way to make a Sicilian-style pizza, but we recommend adding ...
Dios Kalacs (Walnut Roll)
Dios Kalacs (Walnut Roll) Our good friend Donna Bathory, whose family hails from Hungary, has suggested this recipe for ...
Creamy French Pumpkin Soup
Creamy French Pumpkin Soup (A note from Rick Price of ExperiencePlus!) This recipe comes to us from Josette Smyrl, coordinator of our France hotels and restaurants from 1995 through October of ...
Putting on the Pot – Pasta in Brodo
Putting on the Pot – Pasta in Brodo Note: Our book review this month is Elizabeth Robins Pennell’s book, ...
Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage
Hungarian Stuffed Cabbage One of the dishes that Rick raved about from the ExpeditionPlus! trip from St. Petersburg to ...
Dulce Argentino
Dulce Argentino In this recipe, dulce de leche is made using sweetened condensed milk, but it can also be ...
Gazpacho Andaluz
Gazpacho Andaluz This month, Maria Elena Malpezzi-Price, our Director of International Operations brings us a wonderful gazpacho recipe from ...
Mushroom Soup or Zuppa di Funghi or Soupe aux Champignons
Mushroom Soup or Zuppa di Funghi or Soupe aux Champignons As Paola says in her accompanying article on the ...
Mussels in ‘Sauce Poulette’
Mussels in ‘Sauce Poulette’ Josette Smyrl, our French Hotel Coordinator, has sent me this recipe from her home ...
Walnut Bread Recipe – Pane di Noci / Pain aux Noix /
Pane di Noci / Pain aux Noix / Walnut Bread You are sure to find this kind of bread wherever there is an abundance of walnuts, like in some parts of ...
Bagna Cauda (“Hot Bath”) – A ...
Bagna Cauda ("Hot Bath") – A Garlic and Anchovy Sauce Bagna Cauda, which literally translates as "hot bath", is ...
Latin American Caramel Flan
Latin American Caramel Flan Flan is a traditional desert from Mexico and is popular all over South and Central America. It is an excellent finish for a spicy dinner. Emma ...
Roast Pork, Porchetta Style
Roast Pork, Porchetta Style Joeann Gutowski of the Fort Collins office shares a recipe for roast pork, porchetta style. ...
Skordalia (Garlic Spread)
Skordalia (Garlic Spread) Greek tour leader Patricia Hajifotiou shared her recipe for Skordalia with Paola a while back, and now she’s passing it on to the rest of us. Paola says ...
Lentil salad with bell peppers and vinaigrette
Lentil salad with bell peppers and vinaigrette Experienced hiker Julie Horton, Operations Manager at ExperiencePlus!, finally shares her recipe for one of her favorite trail lunches. Lentil salad with bell ...
Angela’s Ciambella or “the Farm Dessert”
Angela’s Ciambella or "the Farm Dessert" A group of cyclists who stopped for lunch at our Italian headquarters on their way from Venice to Florence in mid-May so enjoyed this cake ...
Risotto alla Primavera, from Northern Italy
Risotto alla Primavera, from Northern Italy This is a favorite spring recipe, especially in the Northern regions of Italy, ...
Tarta de Santiago
Tarta de Santiago Strolling down the calles of Santiago, you are bound to be met with a Tarta de ...
Pâte à crêpes salée – ...
Pâte à crêpes salée – Savory Crêpes Recipe provided by John Giebler This month Paola invites John Giebler to share his crêpe recipe. John is our Country Coordinator and Head Tour Leader ...
Classic Italian Minestrone Soup with Pesto
Classic Italian Minestrone Soup with Pesto Every family in Italy makes its own variation of minestrone, which means literally ...
Parmigiano-Reggiano Cocktail Wafers
Parmigiano-Reggiano Cocktail Wafers Our recipe this month comes from Nancy Radke, President of Ciao, Ltd. Nancy has the enviable ...
Luigi’s Limoncello: Lemon liqueur
Luigi’s Limoncello: Lemon liqueur ExperiencePlus! customers on the Amalfi Coast hiking tour in October were treated to tour ...
Ratatouille – A Provençal Specialty
Ratatouille – A Provençal Specialty On the Italian side, when I was growing up in the 50′s and early ...
Gnocchi Alla Romana
Gnocchi Alla Romana Gnocco is a fun word. The first syllable is pronounced like a Spanish ñ in señor. ...
Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread
Whole Wheat Irish Soda Bread With the coming of Fall and cooler temperatures, I start making my own bread in order to warm my soul (and stomach) with freshly-baked bread ...
Fava Bean Salad with Fresh Sage and Lemon
Fava Bean Salad with Fresh Sage and Lemon This month Ellen Brinks, a colleague of Paola’s, shares her fava bean recipe. Here’s a recipe that features the wonderful taste of fresh sage ...
Light and Filling Salade Nicoise
Light and Filling Salade Nicoise Of the many interesting salads offered in France, from those with cheese to meat to more complex combinations, this is one of my favorites. It ...
Mamma Elena’s Recipe for Eggs with Tomatoes
Mamma Elena’s Recipe for Eggs with Tomatoes My mother loved eggs. She liked them fried, soft or hard-boiled. I ...
Mediterranean Fennel Salad Orange Slices, and Walnuts
Mediterranean Fennel Salad Orange Slices, and Walnuts How many of you regularly eat fennel? Here is your chance to ...
Tuscan-Style Baked Cannellini Beans with Rosemary and ...
Tuscan-Style Baked Cannellini Beans with Rosemary and Garlic Baking beans in a covered dish in slow oven heat allows ...
Italian Vegetable Soup à la Farm
Italian Vegetable Soup à la Farm This soup was a favorite of the ExperiencePlus! travelers who stopped by our ...
Greek Christopsomo (Christmas bread)
Greek Christopsomo (Christmas bread) THE RECIPE: Ingredients: 1/2 c.milk ...
Cordero con ajo: Lamb with garlic
Cordero con ajo: Lamb with garlic I found this Spanish recipe in a French cookbook on Mediterranean cuisine. The ...
Rødgrød med Fløde (Danish Red Berry ...
Rødgrød med Fløde (Danish Red Berry Pudding with Cream) Danes love to ask foreigners to say "Rødgrød" because it ...
Sicilian Caponata
Sicilian Caponata Rick and I enjoyed this dish in Sicily last summer, while we were doing the research for ...
Gallo Pinto
Gallo Pinto If you ask any Tico what the national dish of Costa Rica is, chances are they’ll mention ...
Panzanella, a Tuscan Salad
Panzanella, a Tuscan Salad This recipe may sound a bit strange, but the taste is delicious! For six people: 8 pieces or more (or less) of hard Tuscan bread or any dense ...
Zucchini e melanzane sott’olio’ or ...
Zucchini e melanzane sott’olio’ or "eggplant and zucchini marinated in olive oil" Eggplant: ...
Sommerkylling, or Summer Chicken
Sommerkylling, or Summer Chicken A delicious entree submitted by Per Schelde, ExperiencePlus! Tour Leader for Denmark. Ingredients (Serves 4 people) 1 5-7 lb chicken, preferably free range 1 stick unsalted butter 1 ...
Tsatsiki, or Greek Spread
Tsatsiki, or Greek Spread Refresh your palate with the classic Greek flavor of yogurt and cucumbers. 2 cucumbers 4 or 5 ...
Pasta with Kale
Pasta with Kale I have found that the I prefer using the sun-dried tomato pesto, rather than the soaked sun-dried tomatoes themselves, as the original recipe calls for. Your choice. 1/2 cup ...
Baba Ganoush (Eggplant & Tahini Dip)
Baba Ganoush (Eggplant & Tahini Dip) 1 Medium to Large Eggplant 1 to Four Cloves of Garlic (chopped) 2 Tbsp. Tahini ...
Ribollita
Ribollita Ribollita is much better if eaten and ‘re-boiled’ a couple of days after being made. It is also so thick that it can almost be eaten with a fork… ...
Risotto Con Scampi
Risotto Con Scampi One of the secrets for a good risotto is to coat the rice well with the oil or butter, (and the onions) at the very beginning of ...
Galette des Rois
Galette des Rois There are two main cakes prepared for this occasion: a brioche type stuffed and decorated with ...
Panettone, Italian Christmas Bread
Panettone, Italian Christmas Bread My father would bring home at least two or three brightly colored boxes -the color blue dominated – inside a delicious, rounded mound of a cake-like, light ...
Tapenade
Tapenade Olives have been an integral part of France’s Provence region since 600 B.C. when the Greeks first brought ...
Aunt Angiolina’s Bean Soup
Aunt Angiolina’s Bean Soup This soup has been one of my favorites since I was a child. Although I ...
Super Easy Bruschetta
Super Easy Bruschetta This is a quick and easy appetizer that is consistently pronounced wrong by wait staff in ...
French Béchamel Sauce
Ingredients: 3 tbsp butter or margarine 1/3 cup flour 2 cups milk 1/2 cup grated cheese or more salt and pepper to taste la technique Melt the butter or margarine in sauce pan. Add flour and stir ...
An Easy, Fresh Pasta Recipe
An Easy, Fresh Pasta Recipe Former Italy tour leader, photographer, bike mechanic, and web guru extraordinaire, James Pippin, is ...
Chicken Provençal with Olives and Anchovies
Chicken Provençal with Olives and Anchovies This dish uses seasonings and products that are associated with the French region of Provence and the Mediterranean region in general. It is very tasty, ...
