- Coming from the coastal town of Rimini, Maurice certainly knows his fish! In this dish, salmon is used to complement the heartiness of lentils - a standard in Italian cuisine - to produce a delicious and healthy meal.
Introducing Maurice
Maurice Maffeo is the Head Development Chef for Strada and is the man responsible for creating all the delicious dishes that appear on the menu. Maurice was brought up in Italy, in the seaside town of Fano on the Adriatic coast and, like all good Italians, he grew up around food - watching his mum and aunties cooking in the kitchen, visiting friends and, on occasion, being subjected to a 10 course lunch or dinner.
At 14 years old Maurice began attending catering school in Pesaro and, after graduating, worked in Italy and Portugal before coming to the UK in 1989. He has worked for several restaurants here including Le Pont de la Tour, Formula Veneta, and Café Royal and has been a development chef since 1995. In 2007 he brought his wealth of experience to Strada and we're very lucky to have him!
Watch Maurice prepare some of his favourite Italian dishes and then impress your friends by recreating them in your own kitchen.
- Pesto is one of those great classic sauces, made of basil leaves, pine nuts, garlic, parmigiano or pecorino cheese and olive oil. Watch Maurice show you how to make this versatile sauce in easy steps.
- A handful of first class ingredients are turned into a mouth-watering dish, which lends itself brilliantly to be shared with family and friends during those long spring and summer evenings.
- Tiramisù is probably one of the best known Italian desserts in the world, and Maurice shows you how to make this heavenly dessert in easy steps. Tiramisù - the perfect way to end your evening!
- This month Maurice shows you the secret of the perfect risotto (hint: it involves lots of stirring). As ever, he takes you through the process step by step and there's also our downloadable pdf recipe sheet too.
- Watch Maurice show you how to make Gnocchi Pomodoro e Basilico from scratch and then go on to show off your newly acquired mastery of Italian cooking to your friends and family. They'll love it!
- This is an Italian classic and a favourite on the Strada menu. Maurice has adapted the recipe for home cooking and uses some fantastic, fresh ingredients to make this a delicious and easy to prepare dish.
- Once you've made your pizza dough you can top it with whatever you like. Maurice is going to show you a take on one of his favourites, the Caprese, a delicious pizza with Mozzarella di Buffala and sundried tomatoes.
- Maurice spent several years working in Italy before heading off to Portugal where he opened Porto's first Italian restaurant for a friend. He used to make several kilos of fresh pizza dough every day so he knows his stuff!
- You can now carry all of our tasty recipes around with you in your pocket by subscribing to our completely free video podcast. Just make sure you don't spill anything on your fancy iPod or iPhone when you're trying them out!
- Maurice Maffeo is the Head Development Chef for Strada which means he's the man responsible for creating all the delicious new dishes that appear on the menu. Click to read more about how he became part of the Strada team.
- We'd love to know what you think of our new recipes section. Maybe you've tried one our dishes and have some feedback, or have a favourite dish of your own that you'd like to see Maurice cook?