Christmas gingerbread cookies

Typical of England, North Europe and North America, gingerbread cookies are traditionally baked during the Christmas season. With their colorful decorations and different shapes they bring a funny and arty touch to your holidays tea or coffee break. They can also be hanged for the sweetest and most delightful Christmas tree or be packed into small boxes or bags for a lovely homemade gift. Making these cookies takes a playful afternoon, ask your friends or children to help you...Have fun and Merry Christmas!  

Gingerbread cookies 

(this recipe is taken from giallozafferano.it  Makes around fifty cookies)

350 g white flour (type 00)

150 g butter

100 g cane sugar

150 g honey

1 egg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon powdered nutmeg

1/2 (half) teaspoon powdered  cloves

2 teaspoons powdered ginger

2 teaspoon powdered cinnamon

a pinch of salt 

For the decorations:

food colors

1 egg white

200g icing sugar

Sift flour with sugar in a large bowl, add the spices, baking soda and a pinch of salt, lastly the cold butter cut into little pieces. Add honey and work till you get a compound like crumbs. Add the egg and knead for some minutes to create a ball. Wrap the paste in film and let it cool in the fridge for at least an hour. Roll out the dough to 4 mm thick and cut the cookies using the cookie cutters you like. Put the cookies on a plate covered with baking paper and bake them in preheated oven at 180 ˚C for about 10 minutes. Take them out of the oven and let them cool down. Prepare the frosting by beating the egg white until stiff, adding little by little the icing sugar. Separate the frosting in many little bowls, adding in every one a different food coloring. Use a sac à poche to decorate the cookies as desired.

Thanksgiving memoirs...the Pumpkin pie!

I can't believe it's almost Christmas...I am so late with my blog posting...so just a little note to tell you I recently baked my first pumpkin pie and it was really delicious! It made me think about the first Thanksgiving I celebrated in my life, last year in New Jersey with part of my family there...what a great dinner we had with all the traditional Thanksgiving recipes, the turkey, the sweet potatoes, the cranberry bread...and as a dessert a wonderful pumpkin pie...This terrific cake with its sweet spicy fragrance reminds me of the great time I had in New York, not only on Thanksgiving, but on Halloween and my birthday as well. It was my unforgettable Autumn in New York...so I take this occasion, inspired by the spirit of Thanksgiving, to thank all my family in New York/New Jersey for those magic moments! I miss you guys!

Pumpkin pie 

(this recipe is taken from www.shakeandbake.it {using less sugar} Makes 8-10 servings)

To make the dough:

490 g  white flour (type 00)

150 g sugar 

225 g soft butter

3 eggs

1 and a half lemon grated peel

a pinch of powdered vanilla extract 

To make the filling:

100 g cane sugar

1 tablespoon corn flour

1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon

1 teaspoon powdered ginger

1 teaspoon powdered nutmeg

2 eggs

750 g steamed and blended pumpkin pulp

225 g condensed milk 

First prepare the dough working together all the ingredients, the eggs and sugar, then butter, the aromas and lastly the sifted flour. Wrap the paste with film and let it rest for about half an hour in the fridge. To make the cream first sift the spices and the flours, add the eggs (lightly beaten), the blended pumpkin pulp and the condensed milk. Mix well. Preheat the oven to 190 C. Roll out the dough to 3 mm thick and lay it on a buttered 26 cm cake mold. Pour the pumpkin cream in and level it with a palette knife. With the rest of the dough create a sort of frame to add to the rim of the cake mold. Brush the rim with a little egg or egg white and bake the pie for 20 minutes at 190 C. Reduce the oven temperature to 180 C and bake for another 20 minutes. If the surface gets too brown cover with an aluminum foil, riddling it with a fork (to let steam go out).

When ready let the cake cool a bit. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve warm with whipped cream, topped with a touch of cinnamon.

Pumpkin feelings...Ginger-spiced Pumpkin Muffins

Here we are, another piece of my "muffinmania". I love Fall with its yellow and red leaves covering the streets like soft carpets and the orange of pumpkins delighting our kitchens and... keeping away vampires during Halloween. In this recipe, the sweet pumpkin pulp is enriched by the intriguing touch of exotic spices, like cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg, leaving a wonderful natural spicy fragrance all over the house. Here the recipe of these delicious Ginger-spiced Pumpkin Muffins for your autumn breakfast or "good little moments"...^_^

Ginger-spiced Pumpkin Muffins

(this recipe is taken from cuochepercaso.blogspot.com - makes 12 muffins)

350 g white flour
200 g pumpkin pulp
50 g sugar
50 g cane sugar
3 eggs
150 g butter
1 sachet baking powder
100 ml milk
1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
a pinch of nutmeg

Line muffin pans with paper liners. Cook or steam the pumpkin pulp and mash it with a fork. Melt butter and let is cool. Add sugar and work till the compound gets frothy. Add eggs, flour, baking powder, the mashed pumpkin pulp. Lastly add the spices and milk, stirring gently. Pour the mixture into the paper liners until 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 180 C until the muffins reach the right consistency. Let them cool.

Pastry lesson n.4: Apple strudel

Here I am talking about Apple strudel, one of the most traditional pastry of Northern Italy, in particular of Trentino Alto Adige, Friuli Venezia Giulia and Veneto, regions that once belonged to the Austro- Ungarian empire, where the strudel originates from. It is indeed called Apflelstrudel in German, "strudel" meaning "whirpool" from the shape given to the cake, a layered pastry with a sweet filling inside, mostly made of apples, sugar, cinnamon, raisin and bread crumbs. It can be considered the Austrian national cake, together with the equally famous chocolate Sacher torte. To make a good strudel it's very important to choose the right type of apples, which must be crisp, tart, with a fragrantly juicy flesh, like Pippin (Renette in Italian) or Winesap apples. I'm very happy to have learnt how to make this delicious cake, actually one of my favorites, at my 4th and last pastry lesson, so thank you teacher Gabriella! This recipe is part of her familiar culinary background since is her Mom's personal strudel recipe, "lo strudel di mele della mia mamma" in Italian. I love the spicy aromatic filling, the cinnamon touch, the fine sweetness of the butter, the delicate flavor of the toasted pine nuts, the fresh and scented aroma of cooked apples!  Enjoy it when still warm just sprinkled with powdered sugar or well matched with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, custard or vanilla sauce. Here the recipe of Gabriella's Mom Apple strudel! 

Apple strudel

(makes 8 servings)

To make the dough:

250 g white flour type 00

1/2 (half) tablespoon sugar

5-6 tablespoons water

50 g butter

a pinch of salt

To make the filling:

1 kg Pippin (Renette) apples

100 g raisin 

70 g pine nuts

5 tablespoons bread crumbs

100 g sugar

1 teaspoon powdered cinnamon

1 lemon grated peel

butter

Rum liqueur 

Prepare the dough by mixing all the ingredients (first flour, then sugar, salt, butter, and at last water little by little). Let the dough rest under a warm pot for about 30 minutes. Peel and cut the apples in little pieces. Soak  raisin in water and rum until they get soft. Toast the bread crumbs in a pot with warm butter until they get gold. In another pot toast the pine nuts in the same way. Roll out the dough as thin as possible and lay it on a clean dishcloth. Brush it with melted butter. Spread over the toasted bread crumbs, then apples, raisin (squeezed) and pine nuts. Mix 100 g sugar with  the lemon peel and cinnamon and spread the compound over the filling. Close the ends of the dough towards the inside and roll up the strudel with the help of the dishcloth. Cover a baking tray with oven paper and place the strudel over it.  Brush with abundant melted butter. Bake at 180 C for about 30 minutes. When half cooked brush again with melted butter. Let the strudel cool a bit. Serve warm sprinkled with powdered sugar. 

Pastry lesson n.3: Limoncello cream meringue pie

This Limoncello cream meringue pie was my "homework" after the third pastry lesson I recently attended. Gabriella taught us how to make meringues for different purposes: as a cake base, as a topping, as biscuits, for decorations, etc. We made a delicious Meringata cake and this extraordinary pie, that I made again at home. In this dessert, the meringue topping is not baked, but left soft, only the surface can be browned using a kitchen torch (I don't have it). The result is a wonderful combination between the crunchy base and an incredible "wrapping" experience offered by the fragrant lemoncello cream enriched by smooth waves of meringue. Very sweet...not indicated for diabetics...:-) For the others...here the recipe of my Limoncello cream meringue pie! 

Limoncello cream meringue pie

(the recipe is taken from my class cookbook written by Roberta Molani - makes 8 servings)

To make the dough base:

300 g white flour

100 g sugar

150 g butter

1 egg

salt

To make the meringue - Meringa italiana veloce: 

100 g egg whites

200 g sugar

To make the Limoncello cream:

450 g milk

50 g cream 

100 g sugar

75 g yolks

45 g corn flour

1 grated lemon peel 

vanilla extract 

50 g Limoncello (lemon liqueur)

Prepare the dough by mixing the flour with a pinch of salt and the cold butter cut into little cubes. Work quickly till you get a sandy compound, like Parmigiano cheese, add one egg and work again quickly (don't let the butter overheat). Wrap the paste with film and let it rest for about half an hour. Roll it out in a buttered cake mold and riddle the bottom with a fork. Bake the base at 180 C for about 20 minutes. Boil the cream with milk, vanilla extract and lemon peel. Pour the mixture on the yolks previously beaten with the corn flour and cook till the cream gets thick. Let it cool and add the Limoncello liqueur. Put in the fridge. To make the meringue, mix sugar with egg whites in a pot with a whisk. Cook until the compound reaches 60 C, always stirring. Place in a bowl and whip it up with an electric whisk till the meringue gets thick and shiny. Now you can assemble the cake: spread out well the limoncello cream on the cake base and decorate with the meringue using a sac à poche. If you have it, brown the surface with a kitchen torch.

Fast cooking...Smoked swordfish Carbonara spaghetti

This recipe was part of a "fast cooking" lesson I recently attended. The Carbonara is a classic Italian dish, coming from the culinary tradition of Latium, an evolution of a very rustic preparation made of cacio cheese and eggs, "cacio e ova". The name Carbonara refers to the fact that it was originally consumed by the "Carbonari" (the members of the secret revolutionary society founded in Italy in the early 19th-century),  who used to carry it in their food bags and eat even cold the day after it was cooked, only with their hands. The classic Carbonara recipe is based on eggs, cheese (Parmigiano or better Pecorino), bacon and black pepper. In this more delicate and lighter version, yet still tasty, we used smoked swordfish instead of bacon, and no cheese. The ideal wine to pair should be a fresh white wine, with a good smoothness and structure, lightly aromatic, like a Chardonnay, a Pinot grigio or a Sauvignon from the Collio or Colli Orientali del Friuli. Even a white blend could be fine, or a sparkling wine, like a Metodo classico Oltrepò Pavese. Here the recipe of the "fast" and easy Smoked swordfish Carbonara spaghetti. Enjoy it!

Smoked swordfish Carbonara spaghetti

(the recipe is taken from my class cookbook written by Roberta Molani, makes 6 servings)

320 g spaghetti

60 g smoked swordfish (cleaned and cut into little strips)

20 g braised chopped onion 

1 egg plus 2 yolks

2 tablespoons liquid cream

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

fresh chopped parsley

pepper

Braise the onion in a pan with two tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. Add the swordfish and brown it till it gets crunchy. Do not salt, just pepper. Cook the spaghetti and drain them with a ladle of their cooking water in the pan of the swordfish. Stir well for one minute. Whisk the egg and the yolks with the cream, add the mixture to the spaghetti and stir only one time. Let the egg cream thicken in the pan with the spaghetti for 30 seconds without stirring.  Serve and decorate with some fresh chopped parsley and, if desired, with some pink pepper grains. 

Pastry lesson n.2: Millefoglie with soft fruit cream

The second lesson of the pastry class I attended was all dedicated to making puff pastry and  related cakes. We also learnt to make sponge-cake, so we could "build" a delicious Diplomatica (a typical Italian cake made with layers of puff pastry and sponge-cake filled with chantilly cream) and a rolled dough filled with chocolate cream. I did my homework trying to repeat the magic of my teacher Gabriella, who taught us the technique to make a perfect puff pastry. With that I wanted to create a Millefoglie with soft fruit cream as seen in a dessert book. My attempt turned to be a great success, but not without "technical  hitches". Indeed, I had some already prepared deep-freezed puff pastry ready to be used in case of need...What happened is that the butter was too warm due to the hot weather and began to come out of the dough, so that it was impossible to work it anymore. I was about to declare my failure when I remembered Gabriella told us we could put the dough in the freezer and finish to work it another time in case we had some other commitment. That's what I did, and the day after everything was so much easier thanks to the defrosted but still cold dough. This was another important lesson...never give up! And when in trouble, don't panic, instead, if time allows, "freeze" the problem, don't think about it for a while, and face it after a good night sleep or some other distraction...you'll be surprised how the solution will easily come! Making my first Millefoglie was a great life experience...This is the recipe, enjoy it!

 Millefoglie with soft fruit cream

(The recipe is taken from the book Dessert -  McRae Books, Italian edition 2008 by briolibri- makes 6-8 portions)

To make the puff pastry:

250 g white flour type "00"
250 g butter at room temperature
100 g cold water
5 g salt
icing sugar

To make the cream:

150 g fresh raspberries
150 g fresh strawberries
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
250 g mascarpone cheese
3 tablespoons sugared whipped cream

Make a soft dough with 200 g flour, 5 g salt and 100 g water. Cover and let it rest for 20 minutes. With the remaining 50 g flour and 250 g butter make a pat. After 20 minutes, on a lightly floured board, roll out the dough to a thickness of 1 cm, place the butter pat on the dough and wrap the ends of the dough to enclose the butter pat in an envelope. Roll out the dough envelope in the shape of a rectangle and fold in thirds like a business letter. Roll again in the opposite direction and fold in thirds again. Refrigerate 45 minutes and repeat the process twice for a total of six foldings. After the sixth folding, the dough is refrigerated once more and then it will be ready for use. Just roll it and cut it into many little squares (more or less 10 cm x 10 cm). Cook it in the preheated oven at 200 C until golden and raised (10-15 minutes). Let the puff pastry cool a little and sprinkle with icing sugar. Make the cream by blending the strawberries and raspberries in a bowl. Add vinegar and sugar, mix well and let it rest for about 20 minutes. Work the mascarpone and the whipped cream in another bowl with a whisk, then mix with the fruits. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Assemble the cake at least 1 hour before serving. Put three layers of puff pastry filled with two layers of cream. Sprinkle with additional icing sugar and decorate as desired.

Apricot almond muffins

I have finally declared my "muffinmania"... as you can see from the labels I added to my blog. So, this is another of the series, a very simple and delicious recipe that well mix the sweet and "sunny" taste of dry apricots with the delicate fragrance of almonds and the raw touch of cane sugar. Even if you are not "addicted" like me...hope you will enjoy these Apricot almond muffins! 

Apricot almond muffins

(the recipe is taken from Muffin and cupcakes, a book from Cucina Moderna, Italy. Makes 12 muffins)

150 g self raising flour

50 g white flour type "00"

salt

30 g finely chopped almonds

125 g softened butter

150 g cane sugar

1/2 teaspoons vanilla essence

2 big eggs, lightly beaten

1,25 dl milk

90 g dry apricots cut into little pieces

25 g almond flakes 

Preheat the oven to 170 ˚C (centigrade). Line muffin pans with paper liners. Sift the two types of flour with a pinch of salt in a bowl. Add the chopped almonds.  In another bowl, beat butter, sugar and vanilla on medium – high speed until a cream is obtained. Add eggs, one by one, stirring a bit. Lower speed at minimum and mix the dry ingredients with milk. Add dry apricots and almond flakes stirring with a spoon. Pour the mixture into the paper liners until 2/3 full. Cover the top of the muffins with some additional almond flakes as a decoration. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the muffins reach the right consistency. Let them cool completely. 

The perfect recipe to relax...Black Forest Cheesecake

We had such a hot weather here in Italy last week and I've been a little lazy cooking, especially baking...Well, the temperature suddenly dropped down in the last two days, we're having a lot of rain :( but a nice coolness...perfect to relax at home or in your (still wet, but refreshed) garden with your favorite book in one hand and a cup of coffee/tea in the other...that you can nicely pair with a slice of  this Black Forest cheesecake I recently made. The name is certainly inspiring...a forest...why not a rain forest with big cherries and cocoa trees all over and me exploring the wild environment and enjoying the adventure...not so relaxing actually....well let's go back to the safe garden and to the kitchen. This cake is really creamy and tasty, combining the fresh taste of cherries (with their acidity that cleans the mouth) with the sharp and persistent bitter aroma of dark chocolate. If you prefer a glass of wine instead of coffee or tea, I suggest a Moscato Rosa from Alto Adige or Friuli Venezia Giulia. One I know very well is the IGT Moscato Rosa from Marco Felluga, in the Collio Doc area. Perfect to pair with dark chocolate and red fruits desserts, with its hints of strawberries, cherries and raspberry syrup. Ah, and for an even more relaxed atmosphere I suggest listening  to the great soft guitar sound and warm voice of Jack Johnson ("the surfer"), who performed live yesterday in Rome. Lucky the ones who were there! For the others, like me, I posted a video I found on YouTube, where Jack sings Better together live.  Happy relax! Here the recipe of my Black Forest cheesecake.

Black Forest Cheesecake

(the recipe is taken from the Italian Guida Cucina magazine, year 2011, n.3. Makes 6 servings)

125 g chocolate shortbread cookies

75 g melted butter

500 g soft ricotta cheese

75 g sugar

2 eggs

200 g melted dark chocolate
170 g chopped cherry (or raspberry) cereal bars
425 g pitted fresh or frozen cherries

Crumble the cookies to dust and mix with the melted butter. Pour the compound in a 24 cm cake mold and press it to let it thick well. Cover and put in the fridge to cool for at least half an hour. Work together ricotta and sugar with electric whips, add the eggs one by one, stirring well. Add the melted chocolate, cereal bars and  cherries stirring with a wooden spoon. Spread out the compound in the cake mold over the cookie base and bake the cake at 180 C for 50 minutes. When ready, remove from the oven and let it cool. Cover the cheesecake with kitchen film and refrigerate for at least  three hours before serving. Decorate with white chocolate curls, made with a potato peeler. 

Here the video. Jack Johnson, Better together

It's pastry time!...Strawberry Bavarian Cream

I'm at class again...this time it's about pastry making. I've always admired the art of making cakes, the creation, the marriage of flavors, the sweet geometry of tastes, the painting of decorations. The wonder and magic of a dessert, the guessing of flavors from the cake's name,  the happy faces staring at the delicious appearance, the melting in your mouth surprise. Yes, I'd love to be a pastry chef in my sweetest dreams...so here I am learning the basic with my teacher Gabriella and her assistant Agnese.  At the first (of four) lessons we prepared a very simple strawberry Bavarian cream, that I made at home again, perfect for a fresh summer dessert or snack. We also made some cream puffs, that Gabriella used to create a Croque en bouche, a cream puff pyramid covered by a rain of caramel...a real magic! And we made the puffs fly...in the shape of swans...Since I sometimes (quite often indeed) leave reality for fantasy I added at the end of the post a video of a young Italian artist, whom I recently listened live, Raphael Gualazzi. He's a great pianist, who brought back the true jazz vibe in Italy...I would like to share this little "trip" with you. Before that, the recipe of the strawberry Bavarian cream. Buon appetito e buon viaggio! (Enjoy the flight!)

Strawberry Bavarian Cream

(the recipe is taken from my class cookbook written by Roberta Molani - makes six servings)

500 g strawberries 

1 lemon juice 

120 g sugar

12 g leaves isinglass (gelatin)

500 g lightly whipped cream 

Blend strawberries with sugar and lemon juice. Soak gelatin leaves in cold water for about 5 minutes. Drain and let them dry over a clean dishcloth. Divide the strawberry shake into 3 parts. Cook one part in a kettle till it begins to boil. Remove from fire and add gelatin stirring quickly. Mix this syrup again with the rest of the strawberry shake and with 500 g lightly whipped cream. Refrigerate for at least three hours. Decorate with fresh strawberries, additional whipped cream and a mint leaf. 

Here's the official video of Raphael Gualazzi performing the song Reality and Fantasy, which gives the name to his album and live tour. Mitico!

Learning to brunch...Pan-cooked pizza with sun-dried tomatoes, black olives, provola cheese and champignons

This is a very easy pizza to prepare. The trick is to cook the dough in a pan instead that in the oven. Then, after the pizza is stuffed with your favorite ingredients (in this case sun-dried tomatoes, black olives, provola cheese and champignons) you have just to put it in the oven to grill for a few minutes. The taste is very rich and the pizza is so crunchy, but still with the thready cheese I like. We did it at a brunch cooking lesson I recently attended. I learned that brunch is not only about pancakes, French toast, eggs and coffee, and when there's an Italian touch it might become even more interesting. Besides pizza, we prepared a salad with oranges and grapefruits, a potato Italian omelette, a marinated salmon, a cous cous with roasted vegetables and feta cheese, a mozzarella bread, a Taboulè cous cous (typical of Lebanon), a corn bread, Boquerones (a Spanish style fresh marinated anchovies), grilled grapefruits and two types of  muffins, one with rice and the other one with apples and carrots.  I have to say, this was the best brunch I have ever had, so thank you Americans for having invented brunch...and thank you Italians for pizza and the art of cooking!!!  Enjoy  this tasty pizza  with a fresh glass of beer or an easy sparkling white wine, like a Prosecco. 

Pan-cooked  pizza with dry tomatoes, black olives, provola cheese and champignons

(the recipe is taken from my class cookbook written by Roberta Molani, makes 6 servings)

300 g self raising flour

1 tablespoon Provencal herbs

water

salt

500 g basil and garlic tomato sauce

10 sun-dried tomatoes in oil

basil leaves

150 g sliced  champignon mushrooms

200g smoked provola cheese (cow's milk cheese typical of Southern Italy) or mozzarella cut into little pieces.

2 tablespoons pitted black olives

extra virgin olive oil

Mix the flour with the water (about 2 dl), a pinch of salt and the Provencal herbs in order to obtain a soft and flexible dough. Roll it out in the shape of a disk on a pastry board.  Oil a pan and cook the pizza on both sides for about 4-5 minutes each. Place the cooked dough disk in a baking tray and stuff it, when still warm,   beginning with tomato sauce, then with sun- dried tomatoes, basil,  mushrooms, provola cheese or mozzarella,  black olives, more basil leaves, and lastly, add a  sprinkle of extra virgin olive oil. Put in the oven to grill until the cheese is melted and thready.

Lemon poppy seeds muffins

Thinking about holidays? So, do I. I'm dreaming of white sand, blue sea and marvelous blazing sunsets...Summer is time of adventures and journeys. When preparing yours, don't forget to pack your favorite recipes and treats to delight your travelling experience. Here's what I suggest, bring these delicious lemon poppy seeds muffins with you! 

Lemon poppy seeds muffins

(the recipe is taken from Muffin and cupcakes, a book from Cucina Moderna, Italy. Makes 12 muffins)

150 g self raising flour

50 g white flour type "00"

salt

30 g finely chopped almonds

30 g poppy seeds

125 g softened butter

140 g sugar

2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

2 big eggs, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons filtered lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 170 ˚C (centigrade). Line muffin pans with paper liners. Sift the two types of flour with a pinch of salt in a bowl. Add almonds and poppy seeds. In another bowl, beat butter, sugar and lemon peel on medium – high speed until a cream is obtained. Add eggs, one by one, stirring a bit. Lower speed at minimum and mix the dry ingredients, add  milk and lemon juice. Pour the mixture into the paper liners until 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the muffins reach the right consistency. Let them cool completely. Ready to go!

Cherry Clafoutis

Cherries are a beauty and health elixir. They are low in calories and have plenty of substances, above all quercetin and ellagic acid,  that help fight inflammation and cancer. They also have antiviral and antibacterial properties and are full of anthocyanins (what gives their bright red color), that are credited to lower the uric acid level in the blood, thus reducing a common cause of gout, and are also precious to reduce the risk of colon cancer. Moreover, cherries help lower risk of heart attack and stroke, and with their high iron content are also used as a remedy for anemia. When they are in season, they should be eaten daily, added to smoothies, yogurt, oatmeal or used to prepare wonderful jams and cakes, like the one I made, a classic French dessert from the Limousin region, the cherry clafoutis.  This time I used frozen cherries which retain 100 percent of their nutritional value and are already pre-pitted. However, in the traditional French version cherries are left unpitted, because pits are said to give a very nice almond flavor. Without pits the flavor is milder, but still delicious (and easier to eat). This cake leaves a wonderful cherry scent while baking. Enjoy it when still lukewarm with a sprinkle of icing sugar. Here the recipe.

Cherry Clafoutis

(the recipe is taken from the book Dessert (McRae Books), Italian edition 2008, makes 5 servings)

500 g pitted cherries

0,6 dl kirsch or dark rum

75 g white flour

75 g sugar 

2 big eggs

3dl milk

4 tablespoons melted butter

1/2 tablespoons icing sugar

Place cherries in a bowl, add two tablespoons kirsch (cherry brandy) and let them rest for an hour. Mix flour with sugar, add two egg yolks, milk and three tablespoons melted butter, stirring carefully. Drain cherries and add the juice with kirsch to the batter. Beat the egg whites and mix them in the batter. Preheat the oven to 190 C. Butter a 24 cm oven dish (or small single portions) with the remaining melted butter. Place cherries on the bottom and cover wi the batter. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the cake is puffy, golden brown and firm in the middle. When ready, remove from the oven and sprinkle with the two remaining tablespoons of kirsch. Let it cool for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve immediately. 

Make cous cous, not war...Fish cous cous

I copied this nice slogan from the Cous Cous Fest, the international festival of cultural integration featuring cous cous recipes  from all over the world, which will be held from 20th to 25th September 2011 in San Vito Lo Capo (province of Trapani, Sicily). For the 14th year, a panel of expert judges will declare the "best cous cous 2011" among a multitude of cous cous dishes from Algeria, the Ivory Coast, France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia, etc., all those countries where cous cous is considered part of the culinary tradition. Cous cous (kind of steamed granules of semolina) is  native of North Africa, the name deriving from Berber seksu, meaning "well rolled", "well formed", "rounded". In most African countries, like Libya, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, it is traditionally served with a meat or vegetable stew, while in Italy is a staple  food particularly of the western Sicily's province of Trapani where it is served with a mixed fish soup (usually poor fish of the area, like hogfish, grouper, etc. with some shrimps and scampi).  The "Cuscusu di pisci al Siciliano", so called in the dialect language from Sicily,  distinguishes itself also for the use of cinnamon and almonds and for the long traditional cooking method of the semola, which is incocciata, that means worked in a terracotta recipient, called mafaradda, and then steamed. I would really love to attend the Cous Cous Fest to learn everything about this delicious dish, which can be prepared in so many different ways, each way telling a story of different colors, people, places, cultures. I like that food can bring people together in a peaceful competition full of values...Yes, make cous cous, not war! 

The fish cous cous I made was part of a "fast cooking" lesson I recently attended.  I used the precooked cous cous, very easy and quick to prepare. The recipe includes a mix of spices, which gives the cous cous  a wonderful exotic aroma. The wine to pair should be a dry, fruity, fresh white wine, with a mild structure, in order not to predominate over the delicacy of fish.  I would suggest a wine from Donnafugata, one of the most appreciated Sicilian wineries located in the province of Trapani, that it's a must to visit if you travel to that part of Sicily. My favorite Donnafugata whites are Lighea, a dry version of Zibibbo (Moscato d'Alessandria), and Vigna di Gabri, a blend with base Ansonica, both very elegant, fruity, with a nice mineral finish. This second wine was indeed suggested me as a perfect match for the Siciliano cous cous from Baldo Palermo, Marketing Manager at Donnafugata, whom I interviewed at the recent Vinitaly fair in Verona. Read the interview in Just a Good Little Wine...stay tuned!

Fish cous cous

(the recipe is taken by my class cookbook written by Roberta Molani, makes 6 servings)

1/2 chopped red onion

1 finely chopped clove or garlic plus one to flavor oil

hot pepper

ground cinnamon, cumin and coriander (I used a organic mixed of spices ready for cous cous)

250 g precook cous cous

30 g butter

vegetable (or fish) broth

mixed fish fillets (I used cod, salmon trout and bass)

a small sack of clams (to clean clams, put them in a terrine with salted water for at least 1 hour) 

1 lemon

extra-virgin olive oil

chopped parsley 

salt

pepper

Cook the cous cous as indicated on the package using vegetable (or better fish) broth. Stew the onion with hot pepper in a pan with two tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. Add garlic. Add spices (pepper, cinnamon, cumin and coriander) and toast them. Add a knob of butter, the precooked cous cous and the juice of 1/2 lemon. Aside cook the fish fillets in a pan with some olive oil flavored with a clove of garlic for 3/4 minutes. Salt and pepper. To open the clams cook them in a covered pan. Place the cous cous on a big dish, lay over the fish fillets and the clams (I preferred to cut the fillets into little pieces and mix them in the cous cous). Dress with extra-virgin olive oil and some chopped parsley. 

Knocking on summer's door... Strawberry yogurt muffins

Here in Italy the weather is getting hotter with beautiful sunny days. People's pale skin is gradually revealing itself through shorter, lighter and brighter clothes. Summer is in the air, and marketplaces are "dressing" themselves too with  more colorful  fruits and vegetables. Shades of red, pink, orange, yellow...the colors of the sun. 

There's nothing more summery for me that a basket of fragrant ripe strawberries.  No doubt that, in a juicy summer fashion show, I would give my preference to those nice red pois dresses... That's why I could't resist buying the first strawberries of the season, even though they are not yet so tasty. I used them to make these muffins with a yogurt dressing. Indeed, red and white are a really good color combination...word-of "fruit" designer...

Strawberry yogurt muffins

(the recipe is adapted from Muffin and cupcakes, a book from Cucina Moderna, Italy. Makes 12 muffins)

180 g self raising flour

salt

125 g softened butter

100 g sugar

1 teaspoon grated lemon peel

2 big eggs, lightly beaten

125 g white yogurt (I used lemon yogurt)

250 g strawberries cut into little pieces

1 tablespoon honey

Preheat the oven to 170 ˚ (centigrade). Line muffin pans with paper liners. Sift flour with a pinch of salt in a bowl. Beat butter, sugar and lemon peel on medium – high speed until a cream is obtained. Add eggs, one by one, stirring a bit. Lower speed at minimum and mix the dry ingredients with 60 g yogurt. Add strawberries, then pour the mixture into the paper liners until 2/3 full. Bake the muffins for 20-25 minutes until they reach the right consistency. Let them cool completely.

Prepare the yogurt dressing by mixing the remaining yogurt with a tablespoon honey. Distribute the cream on the muffins and decorate with some strawberry.

Risotto with wild asparagus, pumpkin, speck and thyme

This is my second recipe with asparagus. This time I used the wild type, which is thinner and smaller than the cultivated one, but much more tasty. The taste of the wild asparagus is sharp and sometimes a little bitter,  what makes it particularly suitable for the preparation of omelettes and risotto. Here the pumpkin gives a smooth and sweet touch to the risotto, creating a very nice pulpy orange cream. Speck (the smoked ham typical of Tirolo, N Italy) enriches the taste with its salty and spicy character and thyme gives a wonderful scented flavor, perfectly matched with all the ingredients.

The ideal wine for this dish should be a smooth, fresh, fruity and aromatic white, with a good structure, like a Sauvignon blanc, a Ribolla gialla or a Gewürtztraminer. I tried a Sauvignon from the Collio Doc, which was perfect.

Risotto with wild asparagus, pumpkin, speck and thyme

(the recipe is taken from the blog www.peccatidigolaediamicizia.com, makes 6 servings)

350 g  rice, Vialone nano type

1 bunch of wild asparagus

1 thick slice of speck, cut into little cubes

150 g pumpkin, cut into cubes

1/2 chopped onion

1 l vegetable stock

1/2 glass white wine

50 g grated Parmigiano cheese

extra virgin olive oil

a knob of butter

dried thyme

salt

pepper

Clean the wild asparagus, leaving out the woody ends of the stalks, cook with steam for a few minutes. Cut the stalks into little pieces, leave the heads entire. In a pan put a tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and brown the onion for a few minutes. Add the speck and the pumpkin and cook for a couple of minutes. Put salt and pepper (do not salt too much, because speck is very salty). Add rice and toast it till it gets shiny. Add wine and simmer until evaporated. Sprinkle with a touch of thyme. Cook rice adding vegetable stock little by little (the cooking time for Vialone nano is 16/18 minutes). At half cooking, add the pieces of wild asparagus, only the stalks. When the rice is cooked and slightly underdone, stir in a knob of butter and Parmigiano (if someone like it without cheese, just leave it on the table for self-serving).  Decorate with the asparagus heads and serve.

Mars cheesecake

I made this cheesecake to celebrate Mother's Day. It is dedicated to all the mothers in my family, the oldest, the youngest, and especially to my "Big one", "la mia mamma" as we say in Italy. She is not a queen in the kitchen (just a Master in lasagne), but she has always fed us with all the love she has. She is the most generous and supportive person in the world. Grazie mamma e auguri!

Mars cheesecake

(the recipe is taken from the Italian Guida Cucina magazine, year 2011, n.3. Makes 10 servings)

250 g chocolate shortbread cookies

150 g melted butter

2 tablespoons cane sugar

20 g butter

300 ml liquid cream

50 g milk chocolate 

3 teaspoons gelatin

60 ml water

500 g soft ricotta cheese

90 g sugar

180 g Mars bars cut into little pieces

Crumble the cookies to dust and mix with the melted butter. Pour the compound in a cake mold and press it to let it thick well. Cover and put in the fridge to cool for at least half an hour. Cook in a pan at low flame 20 g butter with 2 tablespoons cream and 2 tablespoons cane sugar till the sugar is melted. In another pan, still at low flame, melt milk chocolate with 2 tablespoons cream. Melt gelatin in a bain-marie, let it cool for 5 minutes. Work together ricotta and sugar with electric whips, in another bowl whip the remaining cream. Mix delicately the lukewarm gelatin with the ricotta cream, add Mars pieces and lastly, the whipped cream. Pour half compound in the cake mold, half butter cream and half melted chocolate, stir to create a variegated effect. Finish pouring another layer of the remaining ingredients, cover the cake with kitchen film and let it cool in the fridge for at least  three hours before serving. Decorate with chocolate curls, made with a potato peeler. 

Happy Birthday Little Sister! Lemon meringue pie

We have a lot to celebrate this week: my "little" sister's birthday, now 26, and  her degree in Economics (she discussed her graduation thesis last Friday). These "micro" celebrations come with  a "macro" feast,  the  beatification of Pope John Paul II in Rome yesterday, May 1st.

Since my sister loves the fresh scent and taste of lemon, I thought to prepare a lemon meringue pie for her birthday party. Auguri!

Lemon meringue pie

(the recipe is taken from the Italian magazine Confidenze, makes 8 servings)

130 g white flour "0"

2 g vanilla baking powder

80 g butter

10 g  leaves isinglass (gelatin) 

200 g sugar

1,2 dl lemon juice

4 eggs

1 egg white

2 organic lemons

240 whipped cream

salt

Mix flour with a pinch of salt, baking powder and cold butter cut into little cubes. When the compound gets sandy, add 35 g cold water and work everything quickly. Wrap the paste with film and let it rest for about half an hour. Roll it out  in a 24 cm cake mold. Brush the surface with a little egg white and riddle the bottom with a fork. Bake the cake at 180 C for 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 170 C and bake for another 10 minutes. In the meantime soak gelatin in cold water, squeeze it and leave it aside in a covered bowl. Separate the egg whites from the yolks; cook the yolks at low flame with 100 g sugar and lemon juice, stirring until the cream gets thick. Add 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel and the soaked gelatin. Let it cool. Cook the other 100 g sugar with a tablespoon of water, bring to boil and cook the syrup until you see bubbles. Whip the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff, pour the hot syrup continuing to whip. Mix the meringue with the cold lemon cream and 240 g whipped cream,  pour into the brisée base. Let it cool in the fridge for two hours before serving. Decorate with additional whipped cream and lemon slices, or, as I did, with a sprinkling of crumbled Amaretto cookies and grated lemon peel. 

Pan brioche with poppy seeds

I made this bread for the most traditional Italian picnic on Easter Monday. We in Italy usually say "Natale con i tuoi, Pasqua con chi vuoi", that means "Christmas with your loved ones, Easter with anyone you like". Anyway, on Sunday it is more common to celebrate Easter with your family, while on Monday big groups of friends gather together to spend the whole day outdoors eating, drinking, dancing, playing sports, having a lot of fun. I really will never forget some Easter Monday picnics I had when I was younger: all was very organized, everyone had to bring something to eat or to drink or, as an alternative,  to pay a fee for the party. I remember it was an occasion to meet a lot of new people, and, sometimes... beer playing its part, some new loves bloomed...

This pan brioche is good for breakfast too, spread with your favorite jam, butter, or cream cheese. You can also  replace poppy seeds with sesame or a mixture of both. 

Pan brioche with poppy seeds

(the recipe is taken from the Italian Guida Cucina magazine, year 2011, n.3. Makes a loaf mold)

1 egg

300 g white flour "0"

1 sachet dried brewer's yeast

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 touch of ground cinnamon 

200 g warm cream

75 ml warm water

40 g melted butter

1 teaspoon honey

2 tablespoons poppy seeds

Butter the mold and keep it warm. Beat the egg yolk with two drops water and leave it aside. Mount the egg white until soft. Mix flour, baking powder and dried brewer's yeast in a previously warmed bowl. In another bowl mix salt, cinnamon, cream, warm water, melted butter, honey and add to the the flour strongly stirring in order to let air be absorbed into the compound and soften it. Add the mounted white and pour the batter into the mold. Brush the dough with the beaten egg yolk and sprinkle with the poppy seeds. Cover with protective film and a hot moistened dishcloth and let it rise for 1 hour at warm temperature.  In the meantime preheat the oven to 180 C. Put  a kettle with steaming water at the bottom of the oven, place the  mold on the second shelf from the bottom and cook the cake for about 35 minutes. If the surface should get brown too quickly, cover it with an aluminium  foil. Let it cool before serving. 

Happy Easter! Nutella semifreddo

I think I am on Nutella overdose...I've just eaten and licked the plate of the Nutella semifreddo I photographed. My teeth hurt, but  I'm at peace with the world ...this is pure ecstasy I tell you! Ester is all about chocolate here in Italy (and Colomba as well, the traditional Easter cake): everybody exchange wishes with chocolate eggs. You can find eggs of all sizes and colors, and look what happened...I received a little pink sugar egg and a pink chick came out twitting Happy Easter!!! (yes, I am really doped....). I have to say one serious thing, anyway, I am very sorry that Pietro Ferrero, Ceo of the homonymous group, father of Nutella and many other deliciousness (Ferrero Rocher, Tic-Tac and Kinder brands), died unexpectedly last week in a biking accident in South Africa. Ferrero is one of those firms, whose contribution to the made in Italy around the world has been exceptional. Goodbye and thank you Mr Ferrero.  Maybe  you are revealing the secret recipe of the most famous nutty chocolate cream up there... Can paradise be even a happier place? With Nutella, yes, I think so. Here the recipe of the Nutella semifreddo, my Easter lunch dessert. So easy, so good!!!!

Nutella semifreddo 

(the recipe is taken from my class cookbook, www.peccatidigola.info, makes 10 servings)

500 g cream

750 g Nutella 

Whip cream to 70%. Soften Nutella in a bain-marie and add it to the cream, creating a variegated compound. Keep in the freezer for at least three hours before serving.