Try a touch of Italian flair, with Tom Bridge

Having not dined there for several months, I thought the only way to answer this question was to go there myself and try the recipe. My cousin Brian enjoys the food so much at the Casa that he and his wife Dot dine there on a regular basis!

I myself like spicy sauces, and Casa Bruno has been one of the few restaurants that I know that uses a fresh stock.

Remember the gravy story from a couple of weeks ago when I hit out at a Bolton restaurant? Well, this is one restaurant I know uses only the finest ingredients in his sauces.

I asked Angelo, chef/proprietor of Casa Bruno, for his secret sauce recipe. He told me I had no chance of getting his famous sausage recipe, which he makes with fresh pork and several spices. But for his sauce he uses a little garlic, butter, diced onion, red and green pepper, chilli powder, sliced mushrooms and tinned tomatoes, that have been crushed in a blender.

After cooking for three minutes, he then adds the cream. The sausage is cooked in a frying pan, then added to the sauce for three minutes and then served.

What a fantastic recipe, thanks Angelo I will have a go myself -- but my advice to readers is to go and taste the original at this restaurant!

A great fun-guy who knows his mushrooms from his truffles, is my old mate Antonio Carluccio. His passion for sauces has got him his own television series with the Beeb.

He said to me "Tom, the choice of ingredients is as much influenced by personal taste as by what is available. Generally speaking the better the person's sense of taste, the better the sauce." Thanks for that! So what is my point?

Well, use whatever flavours you enjoy, no matter that they are.

I love Buffalo Cheese with fresh Italian tomatoes drenched in quality olive oil and balsamic vinegar, with the flavour of freshly shredded basil -- without doubt the king of Italian herbs.

Then I highly season with rock salt and freshly milled black pepper. (No sauce there you're saying!).

Let's look at the ingredients again, tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, basil and seasoning.

That is a classic sauce used every day in Italian kitchens.

Simply add a little garlic, Tabasco, chillies, sliced onions or shallots and some mushrooms (Ceps, Morels or Chanterelles) thinly sliced.

Heat gently, spirited with a little red wine and some proper veal stock, and you turn into a true Italian chef.

I adore Italian food, and nothing combines better than chicken and the flavours of Italy.

Try this selection of famous Italian foods. Chicken Cacimperio THIS is the Italian version of the Swiss fondue, and is one of the special dishes of Turin.

INGREDIENTS

225g/8 oz Fontina cheese soaked in milk

75g/3 oz butter

4 egg yokes

4 tbsp cream

salt

freshly milled black pepper

450g/1 lb cooked chicken breast cut into cubes

METHOD

Place the butter in a saucepan or a fondue pan and heat, chop the cheese and add this to the pan, stir the cheese, add a little cream at a time but do not boil. When the cheese is completely dissolved, remove the saucepan from the heat, slowly whisk the egg yolks, add the rest of the cream.

Place the saucepan back onto the heat and stir until it becomes thick and creamy.

Place the saucepan on a breadboard in the middle of the table and serve with cubes of Italian bread.

Chef Tip: Try adding a little Grappa and using cubes of cooked chicken served with a glass of ice cold white wine. Pollo Alla Diavola THIS very simple but exquisite chicken dish is very popular in Florence. It's the traditional dish eaten at the fair of the Impruneta.

INGREDIENTS

4 chicken breasts

4 skewers

olive oil

chopped basil

1 onion chopped

1 freshly minced ginger

salt

freshly milled black pepper

Gas 6/200C/400F/crictherm 190

METHOD

Lightly oil a baking sheet, skewer the breasts lengthways and place onto the baking sheet.

Place six to eight tablespoons olive oil into a bowl, add the rest of the ingredients and blend thoroughly.

Baste the breasts with the mixture and place in the centre of the oven for 10 minutes. Turn the breasts over and repeat the process twice.

Serve with a fresh summer salad. Chicken Lasagne Verde TODAY you can buy a pre-cooked Lasagne from most major stores, otherwise follow the instructions on the packet you purchase.

(serves 4 to 6)

INGREDIENTS

Meat sauce

25g /1 oz butter

450g/1 lb minced chicken

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

1 stick celery, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

25g/1 oz plain flour

300ml/10 fl oz chicken stock

150ml/5 fl oz white wine

salt

freshly ground black pepper

1 tbsp parsley

1 tsp marjoram

1 tsp basil

2 tbsp tomato puree

250g/14 sheets of no pre-cooking Lasagne

Cream sauce

75g/3 oz mozzarella cheese

METHOD

Heat the butter in a large frying pan and brown the minced chicken. Add the onion, celery and garlic and cook for three minutes.

Sprinkle with flour and cook for one minute, add the chicken stock and wine, season well and add the parsley, marjoram and basil.

Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the tomato puree, season to taste and simmer for a further five minutes.

Set the oven to Gas 5/190C/375F.

Lightly butter an oven-proof dish and cover the base with a layer of Lasagne leaves. Spoon over a layer of chicken sauce, then white sauce. Arrange a layer of Lasagne on top of the cream sauce and repeat the process twice, finishing with a layer of cream sauce.

Sprinkle with the cheese and bake in the centre of the oven for 25 minutes. Chicken Risotto a la Milanese THIS famous dish is known throughout the world, and it is perhaps the best known of all Italian risottos although there are many others.

INGREDIENTS

100g/4 oz butter

900g/2 lb chicken meat, thinly sliced

1 large chopped onion

450g/1 lb Italian rice

225g/8 oz fresh sweet peas

150ml/5 fl oz white wine

1 pint chicken stock

5ml/1 tsp crumbled saffron

salt

freshly milled black pepper

50g/2 oz grate parmesan cheese

METHOD

Put 50g/2 oz of butter into a deep frying pan, and when hot add the chicken meat, chopped onion and cook until golden brown, then add the rice, stir well, cooking for 15 minutes.

Add the peas, boiling stock, the white wine, saffron, salt and pepper, and mix it well. Simmer gently for 20 minutes stirring occasionally.

Let it settle and just before serving add a little more stock and simmer for a further 10 minutes. Just before serving sprinkle with the grated parmesan cheese and 50g/2 oz of melted butter. Rustic Chicken with Pancetta and Tarragon INGREDIENTS

4 tbsp olive oil

450g/1 lb diced potatoes

8 shallots, peeled and quartered

2 cloves garlic, chopped

450g/1 lb chicken meat, cut into strips

85g/3 oz Pancetta or bacon diced

3 tbsp sun-dried tomatoes

8 black olives, pitted and chopped

150ml/5 fl oz dry white wine

2 tbsp freshly chopped tarragon

3 tbsp double cream

salt

freshly milled black pepper

METHOD

Heat the olive oil in a large non-stick frying pan, add the potatoes, onion and garlic and cook for four minutes. Add the chicken and cook for a further six minutes.

Sprinkle with the Pancetta, sun dried tomatoes and olives, cook for a further four minutes, add the wine and tarragon and cook on a high heat until the wine has reduced to one tenth, add the cream, taste and season. Italian Chicken Spirals STEAMING allows you to cook without fat, and these little foil parcels retain all the natural juices of the chicken while cooking conveniently over the pasta while it boils.

(Serves 4)

INGREDIENTS

4 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts

25g/1oz/1 cup fresh basil leaves

15g/ oz/2tbsp hazelnuts

1 garlic clove, crushed

250g/9 oz/ 2 cups wholemeal (whole wheat) pasta spirals

2 sun-dried tomatoes or fresh tomatoes

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp capers

60g/2oz/ cup black olives

salt and pepper

METHOD

Beat the chicken breasts with a rolling pin to flatten evenly.

Place the basil and hazelnuts in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Mix with garlic, salt and pepper.

Spread the basil mixture over the chicken breasts and roll up from one short end to enclose the filling. Wrap the chicken roll tightly in foil so that they hold their shape, then seal the ends well.

Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil and cook the pasta until tender, but still firm to the bite.

Place the chicken parcels in a steamer basket or colander set over the pan, cover tightly, and steam for 10 minutes. Meanwhile dice the tomatoes.

Drain the pasta and return to the pan with the lemon juice, olive oil, tomatoes, capers and olives. Heat through.

Pierce the chicken with a skewer to make sure that the juices run clear and not pink, then slice the chicken, arrange over the pasta and serve.

Variation -- Sun-dried tomatoes have a wonderful, rich flavour, but if you can't find them use fresh tomatoes.