Lasagna rolls with ricotta and spinach

Lasagna rolls with ricotta and spinach, a tasty and creamy version of baked pasta! Fresh pasta rolls are similar to lasagna and can be prepared in a short time. A first course on Sundays and for special occasions such as parties, lasagna rolls with ricotta are also perfect to prepare in advance and if you use all fresh ingredients, they are practical to freeze and to keep ready directly to bake. The swivels or swallow's nests or romanelle, yes in Rome they are called that, but I don't know why I'm honest. Anyway I said that the ricotta lasagna rolls can be prepared in many ways and with the ingredients you like best, with meat or with vegetables and with cold cuts and cheeses, fresh pasta rolls are a tasty and hearty first course You can also make vegetarian lasagna rolls by preparing them only with vegetables and cheese just like these that I propose but instead of spinach you can use the Favorite vegetables, oh I forgot! Even salmon during the holidays! In short, get busy, there are so many ideas! In the meantime, let's see how to prepare the rolled lasagna that I propose, gourmets follow me! Let's see how to make lasagna rolls with ricotta and spinach! And if you try them... let me know!

INGREDIENTS

4 lasagna sheets

500 g spinach

400 g ricotta cheese

1 egg

parmesan

nutmeg

salt

For the béchamel sauce

500 ml milk

50 g butter

50 g flour

salt

nutmeg

Preparation

First prepare the béchamel sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan. When it is well melted, add the flour and mix quickly. Add the milk a little at a time, stirring constantly. Stir the béchamel sauce over moderate heat until it is thick, add a pinch of salt, a sprinkling of nutmeg if you like, and set aside. Clean and wash the spinach well. Blanch them in a pot with water. When they are soft, drain them and leave them in the colander for at least 1 hour, so that they cool down and have lost all the excess water. Transfer the spinach to a bowl and chop with kitchen scissors. Add the ricotta, egg, Parmesan cheese, salt and nutmeg. Mix well with a fork. If you prefer, you can also chop the filling with a hand blender. Put a pot with plenty of water on the stove. As soon as it boils, dip the lasagna sheets one at a time. Leave them in boiling water for a few seconds and drain them with a slotted spoon. Place them on a cloth or a sheet of parchment paper. Overlap the lasagna sheets so that the edges come together. Spread the surface with the ricotta and spinach filling. Add a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese. Roll the dough on itself in order to obtain a lasagna roll. Cut the lasagna rolls with ricotta and spinach with a sharp knife. Sprinkle the bottom of a baking dish with more béchamel sauce. Place the ricotta and spinach lasagna rolls on top. Complete with another ladle of béchamel sauce and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese. Bake the ricotta and spinach lasagna rolls in a preheated static oven at 200°C for about 25 minutes. Take them out of the oven and enjoy them hot!

 

Chocolate Cheesecake 🥰😋

Chocolate cheesecake is a delicious and easy-to-make dessert, ideal as a spring,summer and autumn dessert. Chocolate cheesecake is a delicious and easy-to-make dessert, ideal to serve as a dessert in spring, summer and autumn. This oven-free dessert will really win everyone over thanks to its freshness. The ingredients you need are few and simple: the base is made up of cocoa biscuits, while the cheesecake is prepared with cream, gelatin sheets and vanilla extract Pod. In its simplicity it is a real treat! But what makes this cheesecake really delicious is a generous pour of chocolate cream for which adults and children will go crazy! I wanted to give a touch of color by decorating the no-bake cheesecake with diced strawberries, but of course we leave room for imagination! We replace the strawberries with bananas, peaches, apricots or tufts of cream, meringues or dried fruit, thus creating a cheesecake that is always different! Let me know in the comments how you'll decorate it!

Ingredients

200 g Cocoa biscuits

100 g butter

500 g Cream cheese

400 ml Fresh cream

250 ml for the base and 150 ml for the cover

125 g powdered sugar

Icing Sugar

10 g Gelatin sheets

5 g vanilla extract pods

Vanilla Bean Extract Paste (1 teaspoon)

150 g dark chocolate

strawberries to decorate

Preparation

Let's start by preparing the base of the cheesecake. We put the cocoa biscuits inside a food bag. Crumble them with the help of a meat mallet or a rolling pin. Put the crumbled biscuits in a bowl, stir in the melted butter and mix the ingredients well. Line a springform pan with a diameter of 20 cm with parchment paper, both on the bottom along the sides, and pour the crumbled biscuits into it. Compact the biscuit base with the back of a spoon or with a meat mallet. Place the base in the fridge just long enough to prepare the cheesecake cream. Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water for 10 minutes to rehydrate well. Heat 50 ml of cream in a saucepan (taken from the total dose of the recipe) until it almost boils, then turn off the heat and add the well-squeezed gelatine sheets. Stir with a spoon, dissolving the gelatine completely. Let's put this mixture aside for a moment. In a large bowl, whisk the white cheese with the icing sugar and the teaspoon of vanilla bean extract until smooth. Add the melted gelatine to the white cheese, then, a little at a time, the remaining fresh cream, always working with the whisk. The cheesecake cream should not "whip" but be well blended and free of lumps. Pour the mixture over the base, then let the cake rest in the refrigerator for at least 4 – 5 hours. After the resting time in the refrigerator, prepare the chocolate coating. Heat the cream until it almost boils, then pour it over the chopped chocolate. Stir the mixture for a couple of minutes until the chocolate is completely melted and you get a smooth and homogeneous cream. The freshly made cream in pastry jargon is called ganache. Let the ganache cool down a few minutes before using it. Take the cake out of the fridge and pour half of the newly made ganache over it. Rotate the cheesecake in all directions until the chocolate cream is evenly distributed, then put the cake back in the fridge for another ten minutes. After 10 minutes, take the cheesecake out of the fridge, take it out of its mold and put it on the serving plate. Garnish it with strawberries or other fresh fruit of your choice.

 

Butterfinger cheesecake with chocolate ganache!🥰😋

Chocolate cake is a quick and easy recipe that is perfect for special occasions such as birthdays but also for breakfast. Today I propose a delicious pistachio variant, filled with homemade egg-free and gluten-free cream. And to finish a drizzle of ganache with cream, just like that, so we don't miss anything. Today I'm definitely going to introduce you to one of my favorite cakes, then you know how it is... As a pistachio lover easy game. Raise your hand if you consider yourself a true pistachio lover? Well, when you taste this cake you will brush it for its infinite goodness. I think it's one of the best cakes I've made. I'm not the guy who offers you super scenic cakes with a great visual impact, but if I propose a dessert I want it to be delicious and to take you, that you would do anything to taste it. Well, I guess this one meets all the credentials.

THE BASE...

The dough is that of a classic chocolate cake, or rather, better to specify, cocoa, so that at least we make the dough a little lighter but it will still be extraordinary. A little butter in the dough, not too much anyway, and off you go with the whipping. I also put a bit of vanilla to give it that extra touch that is always there. The base is very easy to prepare and in less than 20 minutes your dough is ready to be baked. A dome will most likely form on the surface, but I'll tell you I don't mind at all. And anyway, I'll tell you a trick to make sure that it softens a bit: when the cake is ready to be baked, put it upside down in contact with the plate. You will see that in this way the dome will be more regular and will not create problems.

THE CREAM...

Now let's come to the cream, the poetry of this dessert. I'll tell you right away that I also used a bit of pistachio spread that you can find ready in supermarkets but because this one manages to create a perfect amalgam, so I recommend it 200%. Pistachio paste would be even better but unfortunately this is not easily found in the most common supermarkets but trust that the result will be extraordinary also because we enrich the cream with pure pistachio, better than this.

FINALLY...

The ganache is obviously essential to give the shiny and more "occasional" look to a cake like this (even if you don't need any occasion to prepare this cake). Warm cream, honey to give the couverture more shine and dark chocolate. It will be an iconic moment to see it drip over the cake still covered with a little pistachio Chantilly cream. It's a nice and good cake that I've been making for quite a while. 

 

ZEPPOLE WITH RICOTTA CREAM Chocolate and Jam 🍷👍 

Baked or fried zeppole with ricotta cream, chocolate and jam, ideal for St. Joseph's Day, Father's Day, prepared with choux pastry or cream puff pastry and filled with delicious sweet ricotta cream, chocolate chips and black cherry jam, raspberries or flavor to taste. This year I changed a bit and I made the zeppole di San Giuseppe with a different variant, in fact I didn't fill them with the usual custard (a classic for zeppoline) but I dared to fill them with a sweetened ricotta cream like the one used for Sicilian cannoli, I decorated each zeppola with chocolate chips and jam of raspberries because I had an open jar in the fridge, but the ideal would have been to garnish them with sour cherry jam to remember the original recipe for zeppole which includes the classic black cherry. The recipe you see in the photo is the baked zeppola that I stuffed both inside and on the surface to make it delicious, you can also make them fried or cook them in the air fryer and garnish them only on the surface to make them lighter, the choice is yours. Zeppole are very easy to prepare, follow my recipe in the various steps.

Ingredients

Doses for about 12 zeppole.

1 serving of choux pastry

500 g ricotta cheese (dry)

150 g icing sugar

50 g dark chocolate (shavings)

50 g jam (sour cherries, raspberries or flavour to taste)

Preparation

To make zeppole stuffed with ricotta cream, first prepare the choux pastry following my recipe in detail. Once the puff pastry is prepared, choose the cooking method: you can make zeppole in the oven, fried zeppole or even cook zeppole in the air fryer. The recipe I chose for you today I prepared it with zeppole baked in the oven. While your zeppole di San Giuseppe are cooling, take care of preparing the ricotta cream, it will only take you 5 minutes. Put the dry ricotta in a container (I recommend sifting it in a colander or draining it by squeezing it with a cloth if there is liquid), add the icing sugar and mix the two ingredients with a spoon. Put the ricotta cream in a piping bag with a star-shaped spout, cut the zeppole into two horizontal parts and fill the zeppole with a couple of rounds of cream, then close with the cap. Finish filling with more cream in the hollow of the upper part, distribute dark chocolate shavings and finish with some jam decorations (I used a simple kitchen syringe). Your zeppole with ricotta cream, chocolate and jam are ready to be enjoyed. Happy St. Joseph's Day!

Florentine Steak, Ribeye or Boneless/Ribeye? That's the dilemma...

The Steak debate is truly destined for the history books: each cut has its own unique flavor and texture profile; Big meat eaters love to spend hours arguing about what the best cut is without ever coming to a conclusion. Quiet! Whether you're hosting a home-cooked gourmet steak dinner or just want to know what type of meat to choose, by the time you're done reading these lines, you'll have no problem. The main differences between Fiorentina, Rib-Eye, come down to fat and bone content. The Florentine steak contains a "T" shaped bone, while the Ribeye can be bone-in or boneless type. The T-bone comes from the cut along the cow's upper rib cage, closer to the hind limbs. A part of the animal's body characterized by little muscular effort in movement. It consists of two different cuts, the fillet along one side and the sirloin on the other, has a large central bone and is at least 3 fingers high. Its thickness makes cooking on the griddle or in a pan less suitable but not impossible: I advise you to ask for cuts not exceeding 500/700 g others which it is strongly recommended to turn on the grill or BBQ unless you use the Reverse Searing technique which allows you to cook taller steaks even in the cast iron pan. For an excellent yield, it is recommended to take the steak out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before cooking and massage it with extra virgin olive oil. Adult beef bone-in steak is meat that is generally slaughtered after a year and a half. It is a cut of meat made from the loin, the animal's back. The color is a beautiful deep red and is usually rich in fat and protein, which is why rare cooking is preferred.

So what is the Best Cut of Steak?

Well, it depends on your taste! You'll want to try them out to decide which steak is right for you. After all, variety is the spice of life. Have a nice day.

NUTRITIONAL PROPERTIES

Steak, as well as beef in general, contains noble proteins, minerals (such as iron, potassium, zinc and sodium). It also contains vitamins, especially A (great for healthy teeth, skin, bones and eyes), PP and B vitamins. For this reason, it has beneficial effects on metabolism, the immune system and has antioxidant properties.

COOKING TIPS

Adult beef steak is cooked in a variety of ways. The most used one is certainly the grill, but not everyone has this possibility, so we often resort to frying pans. The advice is to use only metal or cast iron ones and not non-stick. This ensures that right crunchiness that makes the meat special. Depending on taste, cooking times are different, for those who want it rare, 5 minutes is enough. On the other hand, those who prefer medium cooking increase the minutes to 6, three on each side. Those who love it well cooked need 8/9 minutes.

CURIOSITY

As for the origin of the name "steak", some claim that it derives from the English word "beef steak" which means "ox rib". With regard to the particular type of cut, however, a distinction must be made between ribeye and Florentine steak, which are very different. The first is obtained from the front of the loin, while the second from the back.

PRESENTATION

Grilled steak with onion rings is a quick and easy-to-prepare main course for a "gourmet" evening with friends. The tasty sauce that accompanies the meat and the simple but original seasoning will certainly satisfy your guests.

INGREDIENTS

4 beef steak

2 onions

Oregano leaves to taste

1 teaspoon Paprika

1 clove of garlic

Half a glass of red wine

Flour to taste

1 glass of sparkling water

Oil for frying to taste

EVO oil to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

PREPARATION

In a bowl, combine garlic, oregano, two tablespoons of oil, salt and pepper. Make the simple batter for the onion rings: add the cold sparkling water to the flour and then the paprika. Chop the onions, dip them in the batter and fry in the boiling oil. As the onions turn golden, remove them from the oil and place them on a plate on which you have placed paper towels. Season the fried onions with salt and in the meantime heat a pan for the meat. Cook the meat for a minute on both sides with just a drizzle of oil. Deglaze with red wine. Add the previously prepared sauce. Finish cooking the meat (leave 3 to 5 minutes on each side). Serve the steaks hot with onions and a few oregano leaves.

 

Fillet of sole with meunière sauce 

Sole fillets with meunière. Sole is my favorite fish. I usually prepare it steamed or grilled, but today I was in the mood for a classic: the  meunière. My way though! The version of the original recipe calls for cooking the  meunière with butter (possibly clarified) which undoubtedly gives more flavor and "lightness" to the dish, but, for health reasons, I preferred to start cooking the sole fillets using extra virgin olive oil and complete, at the end, with butter for an equally perfect result and a healthier dinner... Here is a Piedmontese recipe to eat delicious sole fillets alla mugnaia, in a quarter of an hour you will have this specialty on the table.

Ingredients

4 sole

50 gr clarified butter

30 gr butter

1 lemon juice

parsley

flour

salt

white pepper

Preparation

Prepare the fish for cooking by removing the skin from 4 clean soles of about 300 g each. Make a small cut from the part of the pale skin to the base of the tail, grasp the flap of skin, using a towel and gently tear it towards the head, until it is completely detached. Use the same procedure to remove the dark skin on the other side. The operation is easier if you do it under cold running water. Once cleaned,place the soles under cold water and dry them. Sprinkle the fish with a pinch of salt, dip them in a thin layer of flour then shake them gently to remove the excess. In the meantime, put 50 g of clarified butter (or a mix of butter and oil) on the stove in a large pan and melt it until it has stopped foaming. Place the fish in the boiling sauce without overlapping them and brown them on one side for 2 or 3 minutes. Then turn the soles over with one or 2 scoops, depending on whether they are more or less large, being careful not to break them, then brown them on the other side keeping the heat high. Drain them with a perforated scoop and place them on a serving plate, keeping them warm in the oven at 80° C. Clean the pan with paper towels, melt 30 g of butter in it, add the juice of 1 filtered lemon, beat with a whisk, pour the sauce over the fish, sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve in fillets. If you want, you can flavor your sole alla mugnaia with freshly ground white pepper. Alla mugnaia (or meuniére) indicates the method of preparation of sole fillets: floured, cooked in butter and flavored with a sauce of lemon and parsley. For filleting raw fish. After removing the skin, cut the meat of the fish along the central bone with a small knife, then insert the blade between the bone and the flesh and detach one fillet at a time, sliding the knife outwards, working downwards. Turn the fish over and do the same on the other side. For filleting cooked fish. Detach the head and side fins. Insert the knife between the meat and the bone and lift the fillets gently: it's very easy!

Potato Parmigiana 

Potato parmigiana is definitely for you if you are looking for a single dish, tasty as a pie but more reminiscent of a preparation similar to parmigiana. We are used to the classic eggplant parmigiana and all its variations, such as the zucchini flower parmigiana, the version with zucchini or the delicious variant with anchovies, but even this variant has it all: inviting layers of potatoes and in the middle delicate cooked prosciutto and stringy provolone, all wrapped in a creamy béchamel sauce. Quick and easy to make, parmigiana can be the perfect solution both for a last-minute lunch and to set a festive Sunday table even if your time is short: you could even think of assembling it a few days in advance and cooking it at the moment, it will be a delight. You can't go wrong with potato parmigiana, try it to believe it!

INGREDIENTS

Potatoes 1 Kg

Cooked prosciutto 160 g

Sweet provolone cheese 350 g

Grana Padano (to be grated) 100 g

Fine salt to taste

Black pepper to taste

FOR THE BÉCHAMEL SAUCE

Whole milk 500 g

Butter 50 g

Flour 25 g

Nutmeg to taste

Black pepper to taste

Fine salt 1 pinch

PREPARATION

To prepare the potato parmigiana, start with the béchamel sauce. Pour the butter into a pan and let it melt, then add the sifted flour and stir so as not to create lumps. Add the hot milk slowly and keep stirring to thicken the mixture over low heat. Flavour the béchamel sauce with grated nutmeg and add a pinch of salt and pepper. Continue to stir with the whisk until the béchamel has reached a creamy consistency, turn off the heat and let it cool in a bowl. Peel the potatoes, blanch them for 10 minutes in water to soften them slightly, they should not flake but remain intact, the cooking time may vary depending on the size of the potatoes. Drain them and let them cool slightly, then cut them into 5 mm thick slices Then cut the provolone into slices about 5 mm thick. Take a 28x18 cm rectangular baking dish, spread a layer of béchamel sauce on the bottom, using the back of a spoon. Place half of the potato slices, overlapping them a little. Season with salt and pepper then spread another layer of béchamel sauce on top, then place half of the slices of provolone cheese. Now cover everything with half a dose of cooked prosciutto. Then start with another layer: spread the béchamel sauce, sprinkle with grated cheese and place the remaining potato slices on top. Cover everything with more béchamel sauce, then spread the remaining slices of cooked ham, continue with the béchamel sauce and the remaining provolone cheese and to finish, sprinkle the surface with grated cheese. Bake for 40-45 minutes in a static oven preheated to 180°C. After the necessary time has elapsed, you can check the cooking by inserting a toothpick: if you can easily skewer the potatoes, your potato parmigiana is ready to enjoy

PRESERVATION

You can assemble the parmigiana up to 2 days before baking, storing it in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap. Once cooked and cooled, store it for 3 days in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Freezing is recommended, in the same mode.

ADVICE

You can add the cured meat and cheese of your choice to the potato parmigiana: try mortadella and emmental, for example! To give the dish an extra edge, alternate the layers with chopped walnuts and arugula!!

Veal escalopes with fresh green pepper

Who hasn't heard of fillet with green pepper? Even if you haven't lived through the unforgettable 80s, which left us with the memory of improbable looks and hairstyles and evergreen recipes such as the shrimp cocktail or pennette with salmon and vodka, the fillet with green pepper remains a classic that still gives great satisfaction today, especially to meat lovers! The fillet is a fine cut of beef, which must necessarily be of the highest quality as the main ingredient of the recipe, it is served with an enveloping sauce flavored with green peppercorns, which gives creaminess and roundness to the dish. Just the sauce, made with cream and Dijon mustard, reveals the French origin of this recipe with a sophisticated touch. The apparent simplicity of the preparation actually hides some pitfalls, but by following my instructions I assure you that you will get a workmanlike result: the rare cooking allows you to enjoy this dish at its best, but if you are not a lover of raw meat I recommend that you at least leave the inside well pink. Perfect for both a romantic dinner and a holiday menu, perhaps for Christmas lunch, the fillet with green pepper is confirmed as a second course with a modern taste with a deliciously retro style!

INGREDIENTS

Veal tenderloin (4 fillets) 1 Kg

Green peppercorns in brine 20 g

Fresh liquid cream 80 g

Dijon mustard 40 g

Meat broth 100 g

Brandy 25 g

Clarified butter 20 g

Salt to taste

Flour 

PREPARATION

To make the fillet with green pepper, first prepare the meat broth following the instructions in our recipe. In the meantime, remove all the ingredients from the refrigerator to make sure they are at room temperature, especially the meat: otherwise, it would risk remaining cold and raw at the core. Take some kitchen twine and tie the fillets so that they hold their shape better during cooking: cut a fairly long piece of string, fold it in half and wrap it around the fillet, then pass the two ends of the string you hold in one hand through the loop you have in the other hand. At this point, separate the two ends and use them to make another turn around the fillet, then secure the string with a knot. After tying them, pour the flour into a container and place the fillets inside taking care to flour only the top and bottom sides. Now take a frying pan, add the butter and let it melt over high heat. When the butter is hot, place the fillets in the pan, blanch them for a few moments over high heat, then lower the heat slightly and let them cook for 1-2 minutes without touching them so that the first 6-7 mm of the fillet become golden. At this point, turn up the heat again and turn the fillets to the other side using a pair of tongs or two wooden spoons, without piercing the meat. Sear for a few more seconds, then cook for another 1-2 minutes over lower heat. Finally, turn the fillets on their side and by raising the heat again, roll them in butter, so that the entire surface is sealed. At this point, deglaze with the brandy, paying attention to any splashes of butter. Immediately tilt the pan to flambé the brandy, or use a lighter, and let the alcohol evaporate. As soon as the flame is extinguished, lower the heat and add the green pepper, which you have previously drained from the brine, a pinch of salt and mustard. Rotate the pan to distribute the sauce, then pour in 50 g of fresh cream and 50 g of broth and turn up the heat again. Move the pan again to mix everything and continue cooking for a couple of minutes, continuously covering the surface of the meat with the cream using a spoon. Then turn them over and do the same thing on the other side as well. For perfectly rare cooking, touch the surface of the fillet with your finger to make sure it is soft. If, on the other hand, you prefer meat that is a little more cooked, prolong the cooking slightly, possibly adding a little broth, Once the fillets are cooked, transfer them to serving plates, remove the string and let them rest. In the meantime, take the pan with the cooking juices, add the remaining 50 g of broth and 30 g of fresh cream, season with salt if necessary and let the sauce thicken over high heat for 1-2 minutes, moving the pan. You will recognize the right consistency when, by drawing a line with the spoon, the cream on both sides will slowly rejoin. At this point, take the plate with the fillet, sprinkle with a tablespoon of cream and serve your fillet with green pepper immediately!

PRESERVATION

It is recommended to consume the green pepper fillet as soon as it is ready. You can store it in the refrigerator, closed in an airtight container, for up to a day.

ADVICE

If you don't have brandy you can replace it with cognac or whiskey, but you will also get a good result by using white or red wine, port or marsala. If you prefer to avoid the passage of the flaming, just wait for the alcohol to evaporate in the pan. Instead of pickled green pepper, you can also use dried pepper. Ground pepper, on the other hand, is not recommended for this recipe.

  

Vanilla tart with wild berries 

Fruit tarts are one of the typical desserts of summer and autumn, when there is a wide variety of fruit on the stalls and the limit to prepare it is only the imagination. In this recipe I offer you the berry tart, very simple in the final composition, the important thing will be to make the cream and shortcrust pastry well. The berry tart is a very popular fresh dessert, a real delicious and elegant classic, which everyone really likes. This tart, is excellent to serve as a dessert or as a snack, it is formed by a bed of fragrant shortcrust pastry filled with an exquisite custard. But what makes this tart really special and irresistible? The secret is precisely the pleasant contrast that is created between the sweet taste of the cream and the fresh and slightly sour taste of the berries, which can also be tried in the tiramisu version. Just one slice will be enough and you will be pleasantly surprised by its goodness!

INGREDIENTS

Cold butter 85 g

1 egg yolk

Flour 170 g

Lemons 1/2

Powdered sugar 70 g

FOR THE CUSTARD

Whole milk 200 Ml

Cornstarch 25 g

Yolks, egg yolks 3

Sugar 70 g

Fresh liquid cream 50 Ml

Half vanilla bean

FOR THE COATING

Wild strawberries 125 g

Blackberries 125 g

Redcurrant berries 125 g

Blueberries 125 g

Raspberries 125 g

Mint 5 leaves

PREPARATION

To prepare the berry tart, start with the shortcrust pastry, starting with sandblasting: in a mixer, place the sifted flour and the butter just removed from the refrigerator, cut into small pieces. Blend everything until you get a sandy, floury mixture, then pour the sandblasting on a work surface (or in a bowl) and add the sifted icing sugar; Create the shape of a fountain and place the grated lemon zest in the center. Add the egg yolk as well, then knead the dough briefly, just long enough to compact it so that the pastry does not heat up too much with the heat of your hands and remains crumbly. Form a dough and flatten it well; Wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to let it firm. In the meantime, prepare the custard. Put a large pot with milk on the stove and liquid cream; Then take the vanilla pod, cut it with a small knife and extract the seeds by scraping it. Add both the seeds and the vanilla bean to the milk and cream mixture and turn on a low heat. When the mixture has almost boiled, turn off the heat and let the vanilla infuse for at least 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks in a large bowl and add the sugar. Mix everything with an electric mixer (or a hand whisk) to obtain a smooth cream and then add the sifted cornstarch, stirring constantly to mix well with the rest of the mixture. After 5 minutes, remove the vanilla bean that you had left to infuse in the milk and cream. At this point, add the beaten eggs with the sugar and cornstarch to the mixture, mixing well with a whisk. Turn on the low heat again and stir constantly to thicken the mixture for a maximum of 4 minutes. When the custard is thick, turn off the heat and pour it into a low, large bowl, immediately covering it with cling film to prevent the formation of the annoying crust; Let it cool first to room temperature and then in the refrigerator for at least an hour. In the meantime, grease and flour the 35x11 cm tart mold (alternatively you can use a round mold with a diameter of about 20 cm); After 30 minutes, remove the pastry from the refrigerator and remove the plastic wrap. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface, then roll out the shortcrust pastry with a rolling pin to a thickness of about 1 cm and measuring about 35x11 cm. Wrap the base on the rolling pin and unroll it on the rectangular mold; Once well rolled out, always with a rolling pin, press on the edges of the mold in order to remove the excess side parts, finally, with the tines of a fork, prick the surface without piercing the dough. 

PRESERVATION

If you want, you can prepare the custard and shortcrust pastry the day before and assemble the tart an hour before serving. You can store the berry tart in the refrigerator covered with plastic wrap for up to 5 days. For the shortcrust pastry: store it in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap, for a couple of days at most; You can freeze it wrapped in plastic wrap or in a freezer bag for up to 2-3 months. You can keep the custard in the refrigerator for 2-3 days at most, covered with plastic wrap; You can freeze it for a month.

ADVICE

If you want to complete your cake with an extra finishing touch, I recommend covering the berries with cake jelly.

Vegetable Roll

The vegetable roll is a rich and very tasty dish thanks to the vegetables and its cheese and ham filling that make it really appetizing. Similar to an omelette, it is cooked in a pan and then stuffed. Easy to prepare, it appeals to both young and old. Ideal as an appetizer or as a main course. Carrots are rich in beta carotene, which is transformed by our body into vitamin A. Both are essential for our physical well-being, especially for night vision, in addition, they fight free radicals and increase the immune system. They contain very little sugar, are rich in vitamin C and mineral salts. While zucchini is rich in vitamins B and C, it is anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. And they are also rich in mineral salts. So both are a real panacea for our body.

Ingredients

2 carrots

2 zucchini

2 eggs

40 g potato starch

2 slices cooked ham

salt to taste

extra virgin olive oil to taste

sesame to taste

50 g grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 fresh spring onion

Preparation

To prepare the tasty vegetable roll, start by peeling the zucchini, spring onion and carrots, removing the ends and washing them well under water. Then with a vegetable grater grate the carrots, the spring onion and finally the zucchini, which will be squeezed energetically with your hands, to make them lose excess water and put them in a salad bowl. Then with a fork, mix everything well. In the meantime, grease a non-stick pan of 26 diameters and heat. When the oil is hot, pour our dough and smooth it over the entire surface with the help of a fork or kitchen spatula. Cook for about 5 minutes over low heat and with a lid, then with the help of the lid, turn to the other side and cook again for another 5 minutes, always over low heat and with the lid. Once cooked, place the slices of cheese. Then those of cooked ham in order to cover the entire surface and transfer everything on parchment paper. At this point, with the help of the parchment paper, roll it up to create a roll. Let it rest for one or two minutes and finally, remove the parchment paper and place it gently on a serving plate. Sprinkle with sesame, garnish to taste and finally serve... Enjoy! 

 

Pasta and zucchini with pepper and parmesan 

Pasta with zucchini and cream cheese is a very quick and very inviting first course. It is an ideal recipe especially in summer or autumn, when zucchini are tasty and rich in vitamins. It is a very simple recipe and is ready in 5 minutes, while the pasta water is boiling. You can use the pasta shape you like best, however, a short pasta shape is better.

INGREDIENTS

180 g pasta

2  Medium zucchini

1 garlic clove

2-3 basil leaves

2 tablespoons of cream cheese

1 tablespoon of grated parmesan cheese

extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

PREPARATION

Wash the courgettes and grate them with the special grater with large holes. In a frying pan, brown the garlic with 3 tablespoons of oil. Remove the garlic and add the grated zucchini, a little salt, the basil and cook over medium heat for about 7-8 minutes. Once cooked, add the two-three tablespoons of cream cheese and mix everything together. Turn off the heat and let the dressing sit. Drain the pasta and add it to the zucchini mixture, add a good spoonful of grated parmesan cheese, a pinch of pepper and stir gently. Serve and eat immediately!

Broken pasta with green beans with tomato sauce and cacioricotta cheese 

Pasta with green beans with tomato sauce and cacioricotta cheese is a typical first course of Puglia that combines lightness and taste! I used broken pasta but you can choose the shape of pasta you prefer. The spaghetti will also be perfect. A full-bodied and fragrant tomato sauce will envelop the green beans and pasta and everything will be embellished with cacioricotta cheese that will give that pleasant flavor. The delicious and unmistakable scent of basil could not be missing. This simple recipe is the epitome of "healthy eating", without sacrificing taste. I also used wholemeal pasta which, in addition to having a great flavor and a pleasant texture, are also very rich in fiber.

Ingredients

400 g pasta

600 g green beans

600 ml tomato pulp

1 clove garlic

chili pepper

extra virgin olive oil

cacioricotta (salted ricotta)

basil

salt

Preparation

Let's start the preparation of the pasta with green beans with tomato sauce and ricotta cheese. Let's take care of the green beans: trim the ends and rinse them thoroughly under water. We then proceed to boil them in salted water for about eight to ten minutes. Once cooked, drain them with the help of a slotted spoon and set them aside. Peel the garlic clove. Cut it in half and remove the central germ (the core, the most indigestible part of the garlic). Crush it with a garlic masher and brown it for a few moments in a large pan with a little oil and a few pieces of fresh chili. Then add the tomato pulp and a cup of water. Season with a pinch of salt and a few basil leaves. Let it cook for about ten minutes over low heat. When the sauce begins to shrink, add the green beans and more basil. Let them flavor with the tomato, stirring occasionally, and taste everything to check if more salt is needed. Grate the cacioricotta with a grater with large holes and set aside. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water. Drain the pasta al dente (about 1-2 minutes before the recommended cooking time) and add it to the green beans and tomato sauce. We also add a ladle of their cooking water. Hold them for a few minutes, mixing everything carefully. We can then turn off the heat and continue to stir the pasta by adding a generous handful of grated cacioricotta. The pasta with green beans with tomato sauce and cacioricotta cheese is ready. Finish by adding, directly to the individual dishes, another handful of cacioricotta and more fresh basil.

Low apple pie

Low apple cake, an easy recipe without butter or milk, with a particular softness. I preferred to make a low cake a little more than a tart to feel more the apples, I used the red apples, leaving the peel to make the cake more beautiful. You can use our good and beautiful apples on the market, of which our beautiful Québec has a rich production. The low apple cake will make breakfast and snacks delicious and rich, every moment of the day when you want to delight yourself with a slice of cake with a delicious scent!

Ingredients

200 g flour

120 g sugar

2 eggs

60 ml water

3 apples

Half a sachet baking powder for cakes

walnut kernels to taste

powdered sugar to taste

Preparation

Start whipping the eggs with the sugar, using a whisk or stand mixer, until they become light and fluffy, add the water in a trickle. Continue with the flour and sifted baking powder, the dough must not be too liquid but nice and frothy and homogeneous. In the meantime, grease and flour a baking sheet, if you want to avoid this step, you can use parchment paper. Wash and dry the apples, cut in half and into slices lengthwise, leaving the skin. Pour the mixture into the pan, add the apple slices in a radial pattern or as you like using your imagination, it is important that the part of the peel remains on the outside, if you want you can add walnut kernels. Bake in a preheated oven at 170° for 30/35 minutes, adjust the cooking with your oven. Before serving, sprinkle with powdered sugar. 

 

Tagliatelle with sea scent 

I have always cooked spaghetti or linguine with fish sauce, but today I also wanted to try with fresh tagliatelle and so I immediately kneaded and prepared them by hand. It is a dish that is a bit articulated in the preparation, making fresh pasta, preparing the fish base for the sauce, a few steps, but in the end the success of the dish is exceptional, the fish sauce binds well with the tagliatelle and here is a very good and tasty first course of tagliatelle with the scent of the sea. It is a recipe that is good for any season, but also excellent for Christmas parties, the intense scent of the sea will conquer your diners making a good impression!

Ingredients

450 grams of fresh tagliatelle

350 grams of clams

200 grams of leek

5 tablespoons of dry white wine 

1 pinch of saffron

Butter to taste

Parsley to taste

Procedure

This is a recipe that can be a pleasant variation on traditional fish dishes. First of all, let's start by cleaning the clams, removing any residue. In a large frying pan, melt the butter; When it becomes hot at the right point, brown the finely chopped leek, cleaned and coarsely chopped for about 3 minutes. Add the clams, which we leave to flavor for another 3 minutes, then sprinkle with saffron and cook for another minute. Pour in the white wine and bring it to a boil. Cover with a lid and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes. In the meantime, boil the tagliatelle in plenty of salted water. We can easily buy ready-made ones, but if we have the time to make them at home, the result is much better. Drain them, put them back in the pot, pour over the sauce, stir gently, to evenly distribute the contents, finally serve, garnishing with chopped parsley. We accompany with a Fiano di Avellino. Enjoy your meal!

Those who have been following me for a long time know that I love so much genuine homemade things as well as fresh pasta, the recipe fresh egg pasta is a traditional pasta based on flour and eggs for different shapes of pasta such as: lasagna, tagliatelle, pappardelle, ravioli and many other types of simple and stuffed pasta. Egg pasta requires a bit of patience and dexterity, but once you get used to it, it will be easy to prepare and will repay you with its extraordinary aroma and flavor. The real Emilian dough was rolled out by hand with a rolling pin, a lot of strength and dexterity for a beautiful thin but rough and porous sheet, today instead advantaged by modern kneading machines to roll it out and cut it, everything becomes faster and easier. My recipe follows the traditional rule of an egg of about 60 gr. per 100 g. of flour, which leads to excellent results, but is not good for stuffed pasta, in which case a much smaller number of eggs are used and a little water is added. The quantities vary according to the moisture content of the flour and the size of the eggs. If the egg is smaller, remove a little flour or add a little water. Fresh spinach can also be added to this basic dough, just replace 1 egg, to obtain green dough. Here are some tips for a good fresh pasta knead by hand: Wet your hands often while kneading and keep the pastry board floured. Knead away from drafts that can cause the dough to dry out. The dough should be kneaded for at least 10 minutes, beating it occasionally on the pastry board to make it more elastic. Let the dough rest at least half an hour before making any shape, it is very important for the success of egg pasta because it allows the ingredients to mix in the best possible way. If you want to add a pinch of salt to the dough, I put very little, use very fine salt. Fresh pasta cooks in a few minutes, 5 to 6 minutes, depending on the thickness. To prevent it from sticking during cooking, add a few tablespoons of oil to the water. Fresh pasta can be kept in the fridge wrapped in a towel for a few days or frozen. For the dough I recommend the  Soft Wheat Flour for Fresh Pasta or the re-milled semolina, the choice of wheat that composes it is particularly suitable for the most varied types of fresh pasta: tagliatelle, cappelletti, tortelli, lasagna, gnocchi. The grain size of this flour is thicker and its stronger color distinguishes it, giving an inimitable finished product. If you prefer a thinner sheet, I recommend flour with a finer grain size.

 

Ingredients

500 gr. flour for pasta 

5 eggs

1 pinch of salt

Procedure

If you use a stand mixer or thermomix: Put the eggs in the container, turn on the machine, then add the salt and always slowly kneading the flour, until you get a good homogeneous dough.

For the dough by hand: pour the flour into a well on a pastry board or work table, break the whole eggs in the center, add salt and knead the ingredients well with your hands. Knead the dough with your hands to refine it a little, continue to knead it until it is smooth. Make a ball and let the dough rest covered with a cloth or cling film, after resting the dough is even smoother and you work better. Take the dough, roll it out with a rolling pin, flouring it from time to time so that it does not stick, knead it and roll it out evenly until you get a large sheet and the desired thickness. The dough is ready for the desired pasta shape, from here you can make large strips for lasagna, or for stuffed pasta to be stuffed as desired and make tortelli, ravioli, etc. For tagliatelle, tagliolini, pappardelle, roll the sheet on itself, flour it well and then cut it with a good knife, varying the centimeters required for the shape of pasta. Then roll them out on a floured surface to dry. 

Wine experts think this Southern Italy White wine would be a match made in heaven with this dish. Bon appétit!

Mastroberardino

Fiano Di Avellino Vignadora

Tasting note

Flinty mineral, smoke, yellow pear, toasted hazelnut and acacia aromas follow over to the elegant medium-bodied palate along with meyer lemon, mature yellow apple and saline. A note of chestnut honey wraps around the finish while fresh acidity keeps it balanced.