Savoring Italian cuisine doesn’t constantly need to suggest pizza and pasta. Just ask the regular circulate of locals who often stop using On A Bun. While dishes like spaghetti and penne may be protected on the menu, proprietor/operator Mary-Beth Liuzzi’s bread and butter — pun meant — lies within the eating place’s warm, hearty sandwiches.
Heaping portions of veal and chicken Parmesan are the favorites of a few of the eight-sandwich lineup that is rounded out via such different classics as meatball and sausage and onions. “And just because it’s no longer on our menu doesn’t imply we will make it,” notes Liuzzi, who chefs up a big pot of sauce every day — free from preservatives and sugar — and gives such conventional Italian sandwich toppings as peppers, onions, mushrooms, and eggplant.
Looking for something absolutely unique after 25 years as a self-described “IT lady” — operating in management and catastrophe services — Liuzzi jumped at the risk to buy her personal On A Bun franchise three years ago. The flow served as what she noticed as a coming-complete-circle type tale, in view that her first activity as a youngster turned into at an Italian bakery in London. “I cherished it… the concept, the setup, the meals,” said Liuzzi, who, no matter being a part of a chain, has positioned her very own personal mark at the nearby region. “I wager I’ve long past again to my roots.”
Being able to integrate meals and family — first with daughter Julia and now with son Domenic — has made for a much-welcomed 2d profession. And getting to share her innate Italian hospitality on an everyday foundation is an apparent perk. “I love looking anyone talks to every different,” said Liuzzi, preventing to greet some mid-afternoon regulars. “Burlington’s been welcoming. The clients who come right here live with us. They’re extremely unswerving.” In turn, she makes a factor of the usage of local components and has a robust courting with Burlington-based Nickle Brook Brewery.
“What’s better than a chilly beer and a hot sandwich?”
On A Bun does an honest quantity of catering alongside its on-the-cross and dine-in commercial enterprise. The latter is reinforced by using paint nights for adults and kids Friday evenings and Saturday mornings, respectively. Much of the work graces the restaurant’s walls, including to a universal secure, homey sense. “We’ve been very fortunate right here,” stated Liuzzi. “The loyalty’s insane. It makes me very proud.”
When traveling in Italy, you may expect to locate a unique combination of foods that might be nothing like what usually passes for “Italian” in American towns. Chef Boyardee canned spaghetti isn’t always actual. Pepperoni and cheese pizza is not authentic. Even boiled angel hair pasta with a plain tomato sauce is not real Italian delicacies, especially if the noodles are tender and the sauce comes from a can. The foundation of a pure Italian meal is in its substances. Buy fresh and purchase excellent and plan to prepare it the identical day you buy it.
Pasta
You can get away with purchasing boxed pasta for a true Italian meal; however, to absolutely capture the authentic spirit of Italy, you should try to make your very own. You do now not want a pasta maker to do this. Many Italian households make the entirety from spaghetti noodles to ravioli by using hand without the use of a gadget. For ravioli, for instance, honestly, discover a top recipe for the noodles and roll it out on a flat, amply floured surface. Coat the rim of a glass in flour and reduce round-shaped portions of dough. Remove the extra and upload a cheese aggregate of mozzarella and ricotta cheese to the center of the circles. Wet alongside the threshold of 1/2 of the circle and press the two aspects collectively, pressing the edge with a fork to seal. The water will help seal the dough, and the fork impressions will keep the dough from commencing during cooking. Repeat these steps till you run out of cheese mix or dough. If you have got the extra dough, reduce skinny strips inside the flattened dough to make spaghetti noodles.
When cooking pasta, do now not overcook it. Soft pasta isn’t standard in Italy. Instead, Italians prefer “al dente” noodles. Literally, this translates to intend “to the teeth” or “to the bite” because the pasta retains its firmness and needs to be chewed in place of gentle pasta, which breaks down without difficulty. Al dente pasta is especially crucial in food like lasagna, which requires double cooking (boiling the noodles and baking the lasagna).
Garlic
No Italian home is whole without, as a minimum, one strand of garlic placing inside the kitchen. Fresh garlic is used in lots of meals and even dried and ground to make garlic powder. The cloves stay wonderful clean for lengthy intervals when kept within the bulb and used as needed. Italian delicacies use fresh garlic in lots of recipes.
Bread
Homemade fresh bread is a vital part of any Italian meal. Bread may be served simply with butter for dipping in the meal sauce, whether a white Alfredo-style sauce or a purple tomato or meat sauce. Bread is also often covered in sea salt or dipped in olive oil even as still heat.
