Strawberry roll with cream 

The strawberry roll with cream is a delicious dessert for a snack and even better after dinner. If you have strawberries at home and do not know what to do with them, put them in the custard, prepare a quick sponge cake and the dessert is done. Difficult to find someone who refuses a dessert so good and fresh. Let's get busy and see what it takes to prepare it.

INGREDIENTS

For the roll

5 eggs

120 g sugar

120 g flour

1 sachet of vanillin

For the filling

1/2 l milk

5 tablespoons flour

8 tablespoons sugar

4 eggs

200 g strawberries

icing sugar

1 lemon

PROCEDURE

Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. In another bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until the mixture is more toasty and clear. Add the sifted flour and slowly incorporate the whipped egg whites. Stir with slow movements, so that the egg whites do not disassemble. Turn the mixture into a baking tray lined with baking paper, level it with the help of a spatula and bake in a preheated oven at 180 C for about 12 minutes. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with granulated sugar and line with plastic wrap. Separately in a saucepan, heat the milk with the lemon zest. Then in a high bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar and add the flour and stir. Once the milk has reached the stamp, incorporate the mixture, remove the lemon zest. Stirring constantly, boil for three minutes. Then let it cool. Remove the plastic wrap from the sponge cake and roll out the prepared cream, stuffed with pieces of strawberries. Roll gently and wrap it in plastic wrap. Let it rest for an hour in the fridge. Serve with icing sugar and chopped strawberries.

Citrus roll

Here is the recipe for a delicious and easy to make snack: The citrus roll. If you ever know you have guests for dinner and little time available, here is the recipe for you, it will be ready in less than an hour and you can serve a delicious and very elegant dessert! The ingredients are very easy to find, the preparation does not require special skills and in a short time of work you will amaze your guests who will ask you where you bought it!

INGREDIENTS for 4 people

Dough

5 eggs

140 gr caster sugar

100 gr flour

Cream

500 ml milk

140 gr sugar

70 gr flour

3 eggs (2 yolks and 1 whole)

3 lemons

1 orange

PREPARATION

Pour the milk into a saucepan, add the peels of citrus fruits obtained with a potato peeler, being careful not to take the white part, and heating over low heat. In a bowl whip 2 egg yolks and a whole egg (it will make the cream less yellow and more velvety) with sugar. Add the sifted flour, little by little, always whipping until you get a velvety batter. Pour the milk, filtering it through a strainer, over the freshly prepared batter and mix quickly. Transfer the mixture to the saucepan and put it back on low heat, stirring often until the cream has thickened. Remove from heat and pour the cream into a low and wide container, cover with plastic wrap and allow to cool completely. Pour the 5 eggs with the sugar into the bowl of the stand mixer and beat until doubled. Slowly add the sifted flour and mix it with a wooden spoon and with movements from bottom to bottom. Line a square or rectangular baking sheet with parchment paper and pour the mixture, level with a spatula to a height of 1 cm. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C degrees for about 10 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven, sprinkle the surface with a little sugar and cover with plastic wrap, closing each side so as not to let air through. It will cool without drying out and will not break when rolling it up. When cold, turn the dough upside down on the countertop lined with a sheet of parchment paper or a clean cloth. Remove the baking paper, pour the cream, level it with a spatula and leave an empty edge of about 1 cm. per side. Slowly, with the help of parchment paper or cloth, roll the dough completely, until it forms a roll. Wrap the roll tightly in film, closing the ends tightly, and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. Take out the roll from the refrigerator, sprinkle it with powdered sugar, transfer it to a serving plate with a rectangular shape, cut into slices of about 2 cm. and serve. Turn dessert into a fantastic snack? Melt in a bain-marie a little leftover chocolate from the Easter eggs in a large and low bowl. Soak one side of the slice of cake and place it to dry on a sheet of parchment paper... an indescribable delight!

 

Mortadella ciabatta sandwich

Who said mortadella sandwich? How many trips out of town, how many recreations, how many dinners on the fly has saved this legendary sandwich? How can you not love it? Today I propose, however, a special version of the simple mortadella sandwich, crunchy, tasty, but with a creamy filling that smells of Italy! A classic combination that everyone likes: mortadella and pistachio, enriched by the unmistakable taste of provolone cheese. Let's see what I used?

Ingredients

a sandwich or part of a baguette

Semi-seasoned provolone (about 30 g, but depends on the size of the sandwich)

2 slices of mortadella

3 tablespoons  pistachio pesto 

Procedure

The process is simple, like any sandwich, otherwise where is the beauty? Cut the sandwich in two, spread the pesto at the bottom and at the top. If you really can't get pistachio, use hazelnuts or almonds, but I think the pistachio fits perfectly and is the perfect ingredient in this "recipe". 🙂 Grate the provolone cheese through the wide holes of the grater and let it adhere to the pistachio pesto at the bottom of the sandwich. Finally, add the mortadella. We crush the bread well so that everything is compacted. The ideal bread to make this sandwich is a loaf of durum wheat, but if you can't find it or it's not the bread you have at home, any other sandwich will do. The mortadella sandwich can be carried around and will appease even the most ravenous appetites! Here it is finally ready!

 

LOAF OF HOMEMADE BREAD

The homemade bread loaf is a very soft and light homemade bread recipe. Highly digestible thanks to the use of only 1 g of yeast. In this period in which finding brewer's yeast is almost a miracle, being able to prepare bread at home using only 1 g of yeast, allows us to bake 25 times using a single cube of fresh brewer's yeast. What do you say, it can be done?! For the preparation of homemade bread I used the method of double dough and double leavening at room temperature. In this way you get a bread as light as a cloud. Homemade double-dough bread is a very convenient bread to prepare. Below I tell you what time to start kneading!

Ingredients

For the first dough

500 g Flour 

330 g Water

10 g Fine salt

1 tsp Sugar

1 g Fresh brewer's yeast (or dry brewer's yeast)

For the second dough

100 g Flour 

60 g Water

To decorate

Flour

Preparation

Prepare the first dough at 18 p.m. Dissolve the brewer's yeast in 30 ml of warm water and a teaspoon of sugar and let it rest for 10 minutes so that it activates. In a bowl (or in the bowl of the planetary mixer), dissolve the salt in 300 ml of water, then add the flour and start kneading (with the hook in vel. 1 if you use the planetary mixer). Add the activated brewer's yeast and continue kneading for 5-10 minutes, in order to help the gluten mesh to develop. Cover the homemade bread dough with a cloth and let it rise at room temperature until the following morning. The next morning, knead the first dough again, adding 100 g of flour and 50-60 g of water depending on the strength of the flour used. Transfer the dough to the floured work table and divide it into two loaves of more or less the same weight. For each loave, make three rounds of folds of bread, lightly flouring the dough with wholemeal flour between folds. The folds should be made in sequence, without waiting for the rest time between one fold and another. To make a fold of bread, crush the dough with your hands and give it more or less a rectangle shape. Bend one end of the rectangle toward the center of the rectangle, and then bend the other end toward the center. This step will be repeated 3 times. Line two bowls with parchment paper, flour the parchment paper and place the dough of homemade bread on top (one dough for each bowl). Cover the bowls with plastic wrap and let the dough of homemade bread rise at room temperature for 6 hours. If you have a cast iron pot with a lid or a clay pot with a lid, you can use that. If you do not have a cast iron or terracotta pot, you can use a baking sheet with high edges (diameter of about 22 centimeters) with a steel lid suitable for baking. Turn on the oven at maximum temperature, place the baking tray and lid on it and let them heat well. When the oven, the baking tray and the lid have reached temperature, take a loaf of homemade bread (with its parchment paper), cut it on the surface making a couple of longitudinal cuts, sprinkle it with wholemeal flour and pass it in the hot pan, put it in the oven and cover with the hot lid. Bake the loaf of homemade bread at 250°C for 10 minutes. Then, without opening the oven, lower the temperature to 220°C and continue cooking for another 15-20 minutes. Finally, remove the lid and continue cooking the loaf of bread until its crust has become golden and crispy. Then take the loaf out of bread out of the oven and let it cool on a wire rack, covered with a clean cloth. Put the pot and lid back in the oven, make it hot again and then cook the second loaf of homemade bread following the same instructions as the first loaf of bread. Also take the second loaf of bread out of the oven and put it on the wire rack, covered with a clean cloth. When the loaves of homemade bread have cooled, remove them from the wire rack, wrap each loaf in its cloth and seal them inside a plastic bag or in an airtight container, so as to preserve its softness for a long time.

 

Espresso Macchiato 

De nombreuses boissons portent ce nom, mais cette recette italienne traditionnelle (en apparence simple) est la vraie affaire. Le mot « macchiato » signifie en réalité marqué. Ils peuvent se ressembler, mais l’Espresso Macchiato et le Latte Macchiato ont un goût presque opposé. Ainsi, un Espresso Macchiato est avant tout un expresso, marqué d'une petite quantité de lait cuit à la vapeur et de mousse pour ceux qui aiment un goût riche et audacieux. Un Latte Macchiato est principalement composé de lait cuit à la vapeur, complété par un expresso pour ceux qui préfèrent une boisson plus crémeuse.

Cet expresso macchiato est facile et simple à préparer avec seulement deux ingrédients : un expresso et de la mousse de lait. Un expresso macchiato italien traditionnel est préparé avec une dose d'espresso fort et de haute qualité, surmonté d'une mousse de lait mousseuse. Si vous n'aimez pas les boissons au café chargées de lait, de crème et de sucre, c'est la boisson parfaite pour vous. Expresso fort avec une petite boule de mousse de lait. Tant que vous pouvez préparer un expresso de haute qualité à la maison, cette boisson est nettement moins chère à préparer à la maison.

Ingrédients

Expresso fraîchement moulu

Lait froid

Préparation

Préparez une dose d'espresso frais avec une machine à expresso. Faites cuire le lait à la vapeur à 160°C et tenez la lance vapeur juste en dessous de la surface pour créer de la mousse. Versez du lait dans l'espresso selon votre goût et versez de la mousse dessus. Cela peut prendre quelques essais pour obtenir votre ratio personnel ! Servez-le immédiatement. Et apprécie!

Chicken Cutlet with Sharp Provolone, sun-dried tomato, and Broccoli Rabe… a classic. 😚

Sandwiches often replace the main meals, debunking the myth of "hit and run", and are increasingly considered as a single dish, like pizza. Precisely for this reason, making a sandwich at home requires care in the choice and quality of the ingredients to be used and combined with each other. A few nights ago, for dinner, I prepared a sandwich stuffed with with stewed turnip greens, sun-dried tomato cream and smoked scamorza cheese an inviting sandwich that can replace a meal and should preferably be enjoyed hot with stringy cheese. I prepared this sandwich with puccia, a typical Salento bread, made with semolina flour and natural yeast that is now easily sold in various supermarkets. There are many variations, but for this recipe I preferred to use simple pucce, those similar to sandwiches. If you can not find the puccia replace it with bread type ciabatta. Simply divine and succulent: try it... and you will do it again!

Ingredients

4 pucce leccesi

1 kg of turnip greens Chili

chicken breast

pepper 

Extra virgin olive oil 

Garlic

8 thin slices of sharp provolone cheese 

Sun-dried tomatoes in oil

Preparation

Flour the chicken breast, then pass it in the beaten egg with a little salt and then in breadcrumbs. Fry the cutlets in a pan with oil. Peel the turnip greens obtaining the tops, the most tender leaves and the outer leaves remove the hard stems and use the leaves. Wash them and remove excess water. In a pan heat the oil, add the clove of garlic and brown it, add the chilli and turnip greens, salt, cover and cook, checking that they remain slightly moist. Blend the sun-dried tomatoes in a mixer until they are creamy. Preheat the oven to 200°C and heat the buns for three to four minutes or use a griddle. Cut them in half and stuff them with a layer of sun-dried tomato cream, one of stewed turnip greens and two slices of sharp provolone cheese. Heat again to melt the cheese.

 

Spaghetti alla Nerano

The original recipe of the famous pasta alla Nerano, with simple ingredients but with an authentic flavor. Spaghetti alla nerano are a first course of delicious pasta, typical of Campania cuisine! A typical recipe of the Amalfi Coast: here is the only and original procedure to prepare a dish of fragrant spaghetti alla Nerano. Typical of the Amalfi Coast, the recipe for spaghetti alla Nerano are a real treat. Very famous are those prepared by the ancient restaurant of Maria Grazia, founded in the 50s, which still sublimates tourists and not with this tasty dish. Preparing this dish is really simple and fast but not without flavor, on the contrary, they will also inebriate your home with their incredible scent. The ingredient that makes the difference in spaghetti alla Nerano is undoubtedly the provolone del Monaco, a type of Agerola, a village located in the Lattari mountains that makes the sauce even more stringy. Like any traditional recipe, there are small variations that can make a difference; what I give you today is the original recipe of Spaghetti alla Nerano sorrentini. 

Ingredients

spaghetti 250 gr

zucchini 550 gr

Provolone del Monaco 135 gr

garlic 1 clove

basil

extra virgin olive oil

Preparation

Wash the zucchini, cut it into slices and fry them in plenty of extra virgin olive oil. Drain when they have taken on a golden color and dry on kitchen paper. We take a handful of washed basil leaves and mix them with fried zucchini so that they release the aroma. In a pot we boil the water and lower our spaghetti. We take a pan with high edges and add a little oil to fry the garlic. Remove it when it is golden and add the zucchini in the pan. After a few minutes drain the spaghetti al dente to add to the pan with the zucchini. Remember to set aside two cups of spaghetti cooking water. At this point grate the provolone del monaco and add it to the spaghetti and add a cup of cooking water. Let it cook for a few more minutes and add the second cup in order to stir the spaghetti to create that delicious cream that distinguishes this dish. And here your spaghetti alla Nerano are ready to be served.

Note

I advise you to taste them immediately, freshly made. If you have cooked them al dente, they are delicious even the next day.

 

Roman pan pizza 

What do you think if I proposed the "recipe" of one of the pizzas that I love both to taste and to prepare? You will have guessed by now that, if I talk about pizza, I refer to every possible and imaginable type, because, if prepared properly, there is no pizza that is not worth enjoying and the Roman pan pizza is certainly no exception. What do you think if I proposed the "recipe" of one of the pizzas I love most?

Do you know what characteristics a perfect Roman pan pizza must have? An open and light crumb, the bottom and edge so crumbly as to return a crunch to crack the windows of the house and all able to melt magically in the mouth and disappear in 3 strokes of the jaw. Simple right? More than you think, trust me! Today I propose what is in effect the most tested and replicable method to prepare a perfect Roman pan at home. The aim is to obtain a base with a strong, intense and persistent taste with a rustic appearance and a unique fragrance.

INGREDIENTS

for the dough

flour  850 g

Flour with 5 cereals 150 g

Water 750 g

Fresh brewer's yeast 8 g

Salt 25 g

for filling

Peeled tomato, sauce or pulp 800 g

Organic extra virgin olive oil 

fresh basil to taste

mozzarella  600 g

PROCEDURE

Start by pouring all the flour into a bowl large enough to hold about three times as much. For simplicity divide the water into 2 jugs, one filled with 650 g and the other with 100 g and mix the yeast into the one with the highest content. Create the classic "volcano" in the center of the flour and insert the mix of yeast and water previously prepared. Then start mixing the ingredients using a spoon, pay particular attention to the lumps, which of course must be completely absent and continue to knead until water and flour are well blended. Then proceed to the manipulation of the dough (yes it's time to put your hands in the dough), add the remaining water in small doses and only if the one previously inserted is well absorbed. In order for all the elements to be mixed in the best way, the easiest method is to rotate the bowl with one hand, while with the other bring the dough towards the center, without ever stopping. This serves to form as much gluten mesh as possible. Before adding the last part of water, insert the salt together with a drop of water, to facilitate absorption, and continue to knead as described in the previous point. It may be necessary to alternate breaks of about 10 minutes with manipulation to allow the flour to completely absorb the water. Once you have a smooth and non-sticky dough you can put the dough to rest. Let the mass "relax" for 30 minutes in the bowl covered with plastic wrap. Then take it to the pastry board and make a turn of folds, doing so the dough will take strength and support itself. Now the dough is ready to rest and rise. Place it in a container that you have previously oiled, for about 2 hours at 20/22 ° C. After the time necessary to start the leavening at room temperature, put everything in the refrigerator until the next day (16-20 hours) for the episode. In this phase the dough will triple in volume and the gluten mesh will strengthen and stabilize. About 6 hours before cooking, divide your dough into 3 parts of 600 g, dusting the work surface with a thin layer of re-milled durum wheat semolina. Make 4 folds "pinching" each shape from 4 sides and overlapping each flap towards the center and closing the dough on itself. Sprinkle the whole dough with semolina and place it in a leavening container of about 3 liters. Let rise at 20/22 ° C for about 5/6 hours or until it has reached three times its initial volume. Turn the dough over a floured surface with plenty of re-milled durum wheat semolina and also cover the back. Roll out by pressing with the phalanges from top to bottom, so as to move the air generated during leavening, acting first on the edges and then on the central part. Place the dough spread on the oiled baking sheet and spread all the flaps bringing them adherent to the edge. When the application is complete, distribute with your hands about 150 grams of tomato, also covering the edges without reaching the pan and flood it with plenty of extra virgin olive oil. Bake on the floor for 7/10 minutes, when the bottom of the pizza is golden brown, remove the pan and bake under the grill for another 2 or 3 minutes, leaving the upper part to color well. Remove from the oven, distribute another 100 grams of tomato and bake again under the grill for another 2 or 3 minutes. Now arrange the mozzarella and leave a few minutes in the oven at half height because it melts remaining white. Remove the pan from the oven, put it on a raised grid, add a few leaves of raw basil, a sprinkling of Parmesan, good size with scissors and enjoy for the extreme pleasure able to transmit and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Try, experiment and then tell me if you didn't like this wonder! ...And now knead, have fun and enjoy!

 

 

Belmonte Tomato

The "giant" tomato of Belmonte, originally from the Americas, was brought to Italy at the beginning of the twentieth century by Guglielmo Mercurio, an emigrant from the Calabrian town who returned from the United States. The particular climate and the territorial conformation made the product assume, with the passage of time, the characteristics that distinguish it today.

The Belmonte tomato,  for its characteristic asymmetrical shape, is the most appreciated by consumers because it has a thin skin, a compact internal structure, a firm-lumpy pulp and a bright pink color. Unlike other tomatoes it ripens from the inside out, from this characteristic and from the fact that it has very few seeds derives its particular sweetness. In the "giant" variant that has a diameter greater than or equal to the longitudinal one, more marked ribs and typical shape of the salad tomato, it reaches enormous dimensions ranging from 400 gr., to 1.5 kg, some specimens can even exceed 3 kg. It seems evident that it is nicknamed "the giant" because of its size. 

The tomato from Belmonte has very few calories. It is rich in water and lowfat. It is ideal for those who are following a low-calorie diet. It contains a substantial amount of vitamins and minerals. It is rich in vitamins A and C,  and  to those belonging to the vitamin B and E groups. It can prevent many diseases that are caused due to high blood pressure. In the kitchen, the tomato from Belmonte Calabro lends itself wonderfully to the preparation of tasty and fresh salads which is why this fruit is also called “pomodoro insalataro”.  

Another option is to cut the Belmonte tomato into slices and place it on fairly large flat platter, then season it all with extra virgin olive oil, coarse salt, oregano, hot pepper flakes and slices of red onion. It can be compared to bringing a steak to the table, but in a fresh, light, and vegetarian version. 

 

Calabrian salad 

It's still summer and you want to eat something fresh without sacrificing taste? The ideal dish for you is the Calabrian salad, able to combine lightness and goodness. The Calabrian salad mixes many of the food excellences of the Calabria region:silane potatoes, Tropea red onion and the inevitable and unique Calabrian chili. It is an easy and quick recipe to prepare requires considering the cooking time at most 30 minutes. Ready to taste this delight?

Ingredients

4 not too ripe tomatoes

2 potatoes

1 red onion 

oregano

basil

chili pepper

salt

oil

Procedure

Wash the tomatoes well and cut them into slices in a salad bowl, add the potatoes, basil, oregano and chili cut into slices (on the quantity of chili pepper you choose according to the degree of spiciness you want to get, I usually put two;). Season everything with salt and olive oil and here is your magnificent salad with the flavors of the Calabrian garden is ready to be served.

Note

The ideal is to eat this delight accompanied by a crispy bread, or even use the salad to season a fresina companion of the Calabrians especially in the summer season!  For an easy summer lunch, I sometimes fold in a jar of top-quality tuna.

Pizza with pancetta 

Today it's the turn of pizza with bacon and onions.... Maybe it will be clear to everyone that I love pizza in all its forms and variations and this is one of my favorites: bacon, onions and provolone come together in a unique taste and I recommend you try it if you have never done it, you will do it many more times, I'm sure! This pizza has a rich and decisive flavor and is certainly not suitable for all palates, but it will surely appeal to many gourmets! As an alternative to bacon, you can also use sausage or raw ham. Really very good and particular. Enjoy your meal!

Ingredients

300 gr of flour 

180 ml of water

2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon of sugar

1 teaspoon of salt

1 gr of brewer's yeast

300 gr of provolone

200 gr of sliced bacon

2 onions

extra virgin olive oil

Procedure

Prepare the pizza dough. Above all, remember to prepare the dough for pizza at least one day before, so as to have a well-matured dough as well as leavened. Roll out the dough in a baking tray greased with oil. Season with the provola cheese cut into cubes, the onion cut into thin slices and finally the bacon. As an alternative to using raw onions, you can also cut them and cook them in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and water and then use them to season your pizza. Complete with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and bake at 220 C degrees for about 10 minutes. Enjoy your meal!