The cheaper side of Venice

When planning our week's visit to Venice, there were certain dishes that would be mandatories when eating out - Calves Liver Alla Veneziana for mum, Spaghetti Vongole for me, and Tirimisu for both of us.

We realised quite quickly that although you'll be charged €8 for a coffee on St Mark's Square or €15 for a Bellini at Harry's Bar, there's reasonably priced and wonderfully tasty food to be had throughout Venice.

Bellini

Before enjoying a few dinners out on the town, we decided that the best way to start our trip would be with a homemade (and significantly cheaper) version of the Bellini.

We started by purchasing a bottle of Prosecco from the local supermarket for a bargain price of €4 as well as a couple of white peaches.

When back in our kitchen, we peeled the peaches and mashed the flesh into a thick pulp. This pulp was then pushed through a sieve and into a jug before the Prosecco was poured over the lot. We drank this from our balcony overlooking an amazing view of the Grand Canal.


Tagliatelle Aglio E Olio

Our second homemade effort was Tagliatelle Aglio E Olio (Garlic and Oil) served with a classic Insalata Caprese. This may sound complicated, but there were only about 7 or 8 ingredients in both dishes combined and barely any cooking required!



We used fresh egg pasta which only took a few minutes to cook, which allowed us just enough time to make the "sauce". You could easily use dried pasta but will need to change the timings slightly to allow for a longer cooking time.

A good glug of olive oil was heated in a large frying pan while the pasta cooked, and 4 cloves of garlic along with a good teaspoon of chilli flakes. Once the oil is heated through and the garlic is fragrant, take the frying pan off the heat.

Drain the pasta when ready or "al dente" and put back into the saucepan. Pour the flavoured oil over the pasta so that it coats everything, and then at the last minute stir through some rocket if you have it.


Insalata Caprese


For the salad, we sliced up fresh tomatoes, mozzarella and then layered them on a plate along with the basil. A drizzle of olive oil, some salt and pepper and we were ready to go.

Such a quick and easy meal to make, and it probably cost about €15 to feed 4 of us.