nationality: Zoran Jedrejcic: Slovenian. Sylvia Colombini:  Italian.

He Croatian, born in Split, Industrial Designer. She Italian, born in Trieste, Architect and Designer. Both Design and Architecture Offices are based in Milan, Italy.

A good miscellanea of Dalmatian simplicity and rationality and Italian imagination and elegance.

This professional union and the continuous research and experimentation with materials, colors and proportions and exchanging of different point of views and ideas created theirs new and innovative life/design approach.

Zoran Jedrejcic graduated at ISIA of Florence, he worked as assistant of Hiroshi Morishima and since 1999 he has been involved in the 'Sub-Art' Project, an Experimental Underwater Museum located in Croatia, then collaborated with Arch. Paolo Deganello and for six years he has been a part of Ettore Sottsass&Associates Studio where he supervises the industrial design projects. He designed for Dutch company PHPC, Franch company Guy Laroche, Japanese company Jos Collection and Italian company Industreal.

Sylvia Colombini graduated in Turin at the Polytechnic and there she worked as assistant of Architects Gabetti and Isola; as architect she designed an important project of the Olympics Games '92 into the Anela Olimpica in collaboration with the Arch. Calatrava and his Staff. She designed and built hotels and entertainment locations with all interior designs (Art Hotels, Restaurants, Holiday-Villages, Cofè Shops, Wine Bars, Disco, etc.) and Show Rooms in different parts of Europe, in Italy, Spain, France, Switzerland and in Egypt (El Quseir). Thanks to her specialization she designs also for some Italian and International Banking Groups and Italian High Speed Railway.

Sylvia Colombini & Zoran Jedrejcic designed for BRF Colors, Italy; Magppie, India; United Pets, Italy among others and they works have been exhibited at Museum MART of Trento and Rovereto, 1995; Ozone Center-Tokyo, 2002; Spazio One Off-Milano, 2004; British Council-India, 2005, Cargo-HighTech-Milano 2006, Ambiente-Frankfurt 2006/2007, Salone del Mobile -Milan 2007, Maison&Objet-Paris 2006/2007, Macef-Milan 2006/2007, and published in various design reviews such as Domus, Interni, Modo, Financial Times, BeauxArts, Viewpoint, Casa Idea, La mia Casa, TopFair, CasaStile among others.

Seafood lasagne (serves 6 to 8)

Fresh pasta layers blanket two different sauces which are topped with mixed seafood and sauteed spinach in this colorful and delicious recipe. A great recipe for entertaining!

I find that seafood lasagne too often tastes a little bland. This recipe which adds layers of spinach sauteed with garlic in between the seafood layers certainly is anything but bland. Although a little time consuming, as well as expensive, this dish is perfect for any special event. The presentation is also very pretty, using the colors of the Italian flag, but it is the combination of flavors of all the ingredients that will bring you rave reviews!

Tomato Sauce:
2 (28)oz. Can Tomatoes (I use Pomi strained or chopped tomatoes)
3 Cloves Garlic Minced
1 Small Onion, Finely Chopped
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
5 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Basil
Pinch of Red Pepper Flakes

1 Recipe Bechamel Sauce

Pasta Dough:
4 Cups Unbleached Flour
5 Extra Large Eggs
Pinch of Salt

For The Spinach Layer:
1 Pound Fresh Spinach, Washed And Dried
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Clove Garlic, Finely Chopped
Salt & Pepper

For The Seafood Layer:
1 Pound Shrimps, Cleaned And Deveined
1 Pound Scallops, Washed And Dried
1 (6oz) Salmon Steak Or Fillet
2 Tablespoons Butter
2 Tablespoons Oil

Extra:
2 Tablespoons Butter To Grease The Lasagne Pan
1/2 Cup Romano Cheese, Grated
1 Cup Freshly Grated Mozzarella or Fontina Cheese
Salt & Pepper

To make the pasta, follow the directions in Making Pasta at Home Part One and Part Two. After rolling, cut into 12 inch long strips. Precook in boiling water for 30 seconds, then place in ice water. Dry and set aside on clean kitchen towels.

To make the sauce, cook the onion in the oil the onion until it is tender. Add the garlic and stir well, cooking an additional minute. Finally add the tomatoes, basil and seasonings. Bring everything to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 30 minutes until thickened. Set aside 4 Cups.

To make the spinach, coarsely chop the spinach and microwave until wilted. Mix the oil and garlic into the spinach, and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Coarsely chop the shrimp and scallops, and cut the salmon into 1 inch pieces. Heat 1 tablespoon of butter, and one of oil in a heavy skillet. First add the shrimps, season with salt and pepper, and cook just until pink. Remove from the pan. In the same pan, heat the remaining oil and butter, and cook the scallops, and then the salmon in the same manner. Set aside
 
To assemble the lasagne, first drizzle some tomato sauce along the bottom of the lasagne pan. Place a layer of lasagne noodles in the baking pan to cover, and then spread a thin layer of béchamel. Dot this with the shrimp. Cover this layer with more noodles, and then add a layer of tomato sauce, spinach, and romano cheese. Add the next layer of noodles and more béchamel and then the scallops. Finish the layers in this manner using up all of the seafood and spinach. Once the final layer is in place, cover lightly with either the béchamel or tomato sauce, and sprinkle with some romano and mozzarella cheese.

Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees F. for 45 minutes until bubbly and golden brown. Let sit 10 minutes before serving

Note: This is one lasagne I find does not freeze well, so prepare it the day you plan on serving it. If you prefer, rather than cooking all of the lasagne sheets ahead of assembling, you can cook each layer as you progress.

Buon Appetito!

Seafood soup Trieste style (serves 4 to 6)

This traditional style of seafood soup combines shellfish with other seafood which is simmered in a tomato flavored fish stock. Serve with lots of garlic bread to sop up the tasty broth!

1 Pound Meatly White Fish Cut Into 1 Inch Chunks (Sea Bass Or Grouper Are Good Choices
1 Pound Baby Calamari, Cleaned And Cut Into Bite Sized Pieces
1/2 Pound Medium Shrimp, Cleaned And Deveined
12 Mussels, Scrubbed And Debeared
12 Clams
1 (14 oz) Can Chopped Tomatoes
1 Onion, Finely Chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, Finely Chopped
2 Stalks Celery. Finely Chopped
1/4 Cup Olive Oil
1 Cup Dry White Wine
2 Cups Clam Juice Or Fish Stock
Salt & Pepper
Dash Of Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 Cup, Chopped Fresh Parsley

To Serve: Lots Of Crusty Garlic Bread

In a large stockpot, heat the oil and add the onion and celery. Cook until the onion is translucent, and then add the garlic. Cook for another minute, and then add the white wine, stock, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil and then turn down the heat to medium low. Taste and season with the salt, pepper and red pepper flakes as desired. Add the white fish, and clams, and cook for 1 minute. Add the white fish, mussels and shrimp, and cook another minute, or until the shellfish have opened. Just before serving, stir in the fresh parsley.

Divide the seafood mixture equally in bowls with the broth. Serve garlic bread on the side to sop up the tasty juices.

Buon Appetito!

Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further. So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were God's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon. Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If God allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never fly!

Eating grass

One afternoon, a rich man was riding in the back of his limousine when he noticed a man was eating grass by the road side. He ordered his driver to stop and he got out to investigate.
"Why are you eating grass?" he asked the man. "I don't have any money for food so I am eating grass," the poor man replied.
"Oh, come along with me then," said the rich man.
"But sir, I have a wife with two children!"
"Bring them as well," said the rich man.
So, the poor man got into his car and expressed his gratitude, "Sir, you are too kind. Thank you for taking us with you."
The rich man replied, "No problem, my friend. The grass at my place is about three feet tall and I could use your help!"