I recently hosted a 12 person sit down Italian dinner at my house. Menu planning involved me pulling from my childhood memories and my travels to the country that has my heart.

When I was 20 I was lucky enough to study and live in Firenze (Florence, Italy). My mother came to visit/spoil me for a week.  I remember, like it was yesterday, having lunch outside at a neighborhood restaurant. My mother ordered beef carpaccio. I was NOT keen on raw beef, but even then I was adventurous. It was amazing. Simple and delicious….the Italian way.

Here is my interpretation of what I remember tasting that day. It’s an incredibly easy app to prepare for your adventurous guest.

CLICK HERE FOR PRINTABLE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS:

1. 10 ounces of thinly sliced beef tenderloin. Have your butcher freeze and thinly slice the tenderloin
2. Lemon vinaigrette: whisk together 3 part extra virgin olive oil, 1 part fresh lemon juice and a 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt.  Mix 1/2 a cup of this vinaigrette.
3. 2 cups of arugula
4. 6 ounces of aged parmigiano reggiano. A salty Sicilian incanestrato cheese (sheeps milk) also works really well
5. 2 Tablespoons of Maldon Sea Salt
6. 1/2 Teaspoon of ground pepper

LET’S COOK!

1. In a bowl toss the arugula with 1.5 tablespoons of the vinaigrette. Set aside
2. Lay the beef slices carefully on a platter. The slices should be close together, but only slightly overlapping.
3. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the vinaigrette over the beef slices.
4. Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon of Maldon Sea Salt over the beef slices
5. Top with arugula
6. Sprinkle 1/2 tablespoon of Maldon Sea Salt over entire dish
7. Shave about 2 to 3 ounces of parm over entire dish.
8. Sprinkle the ground pepper over the entire dish
9. Enjoy!