Zia Tata’s kitchen

This morning Luciano brought us a bowl full of zucchini flowers ! I love the bright yellow zucchini flowers, I really do. There are more ways than you probably can imagine to prepare them. You can stuff them, fry them you can use them in a variety of pasta and risotto dishes. But today we are making the breaded ones, simple but delicious

Ingredients.

• 6 zucchini flowers
• 2 eggs
• Breadcrumbs
• Salt and pepper
• EVO

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Gently rinse your flowers and pat dry with paper towels and carefully remove the inner stamen from each, open them (like a fan)

Beat the eggs with some salt and pepper till light and foamy.

Dip the flowers into the egg wash and allow it to drip off.

Gently press the flowers in the breadcrumbs and place on a tray.

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium high heat. Fry them until both sides are golden brown.

Place the fried flowers on a platter covered with paper towels to absorb the excess oil .

Arrange on a platter and sprinkle with sea salt. That’s it easy but delicious !

Buon appetito!

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This year spring has a difficult start it’s cold and wet in Varese , but yesterday was a nice sunny Sunday, our neighbor came by with a beautiful salad from her garden ( we are so lucky) So this was the moment to prepare a nice spring salad for dinner !

Ingredients.

• 1 green salad or 2 different colors
• 200 g fresh peas
• Asparagus
• Tropea onion
• 4 eggs
• 1 avocado
• Some cherry tomatoes
• 2 tbs of pine nuts
• Some fresh herbs
• Salt pepper oil and vinegar

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Bring a saucepan of water to a hard boil. While waiting for the water to boil, shell the peas and rinse them. Boil the peas for about 4to 5 minutes , drain them immediately . Cool them in a bath of ice water ( the ice water will help ensure that the peas don’t continue to cook and keep their nice fresh green color )

Wash the salad dry carefully ( it should be as dry as possible) torn into bite-sides bits .

Prepare the asparagus ( we use only the tips of the asparagus ) boil them ( as we did with the peas ) also cool them of in the ice water .

Boil your eggs for 6 / 7 minutes over high medium heat for perfect hard boiled eggs

Peel the avocado and cut in pieces. Wash and cut the tomatoes and prepare the onion . Quickly toast the pine nuts in a frying pan, turn the heat to medium low and cook them until golden brown ( stir frequently)

Put the greens in a large bowl, so it’s easier to dress the salad, add all the other ingredients and your finely shredded herbs ( to your taste: basil,chives )

Drizzle the salad lightly with your dressing ( I only used EVO some red wine vinegar, salt and pepper) just enough to moisten the salad, and work it with your hand or 2 forks taste and adjust as needed

Done !

Buon appetito !

Meatballs, who doesn’t like them ! We all grew up eating them, your mother or grandmother would prepare them for you. Each with their own recipe, sometimes recipes that were handed down for generations.

The first time the word meatball was ever mentioned, we have to go way back, up to the 15th century ! When Maestro Martino mentioned them for the first time in “ De Arte conquinaria “ The first modern cookery book .Those where prepared with pulp of white veal meat.

They come in all sorts, fried, breaded in eggs and breadcrumbs, prepared with row meat or cooked meat before making the meatballs.

There are several regional recipes. The “Mondeghelli “ from Milano, made with leftovers of boiled meat, strictly fried in butter. In Piedmont you will find them “ in carpione “, veal meatballs with vinegar and onions. In Emilia, a mix of beef, pork, mortadella and cheese. But today I am preparing my recipe of meatballs in tomato sauce, they are absolutely irresistible !

Ingredients.

• 500g of minced veal
• 1 egg
• Salt and pepper
• Half a teaspoon of nutmeg
• 3 to 4 tbsp of breadcrumbs
• Some butter and a splash of EVO
• Tomato sauce

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Put the meat in a bowl, add all the ingredients in the bowl and mix everything very well together. Now you can form little balls ( try to make them all the same size )

Put the butter and the oil in a pan and brown the meatballs in the butter and oil.

Now you add them in the tomato sauce ( I still had some fresh tomato sauce in my freezer ) let them simmer in the sauce for approximately 30 /35 minutes.

Done !

Buon appetito.

This is an easy and tasty dish, their intense sweet taste is an irresistible pleasure !

Can you imagine cooking without onions ? I can’t. Onions are members of the family that also includes garlic and chives, they are simply indispensable in our kitchen, adding sweet and earthy flavors to many cooked dishes and contributing a spicy accent when served raw. You hate them or you love them … I just love them !

For this recipe you can use white or Borettane onions as well as red ones from Tropea .

Ingredients .

• 6 white onions
• Breadcrumbs 3/4 tbs
• Parsley ( 1tbs)
• Rosemary ( 1 teaspoon)
• Thyme ( 1 teaspoon)
• Oregano ( 1 teaspoon)
• Chili pepper ( 1 small )
• 1 clove garlic
• Some salt
• EVO

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Peel the onions and with a small knife cut a cross shape in each of them .

boil them for about 5 minutes in lightly salted water , drain them well .

Chop the herbs and garlic finely , transfer in a small bowl, add the breadcrumbs and olive oil and season with salt.

Place them into a well greased baking dish ( grease with EVO)

Carefully spoon the herbs breadcrumbs mixture into and on top of the onions. drizzle with some EVO

Bake in a preheated static oven at 180 C for about one hour until the onions are golden brown. Done !

Buon appetito!

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There’s no denying these muffins are delicious, the perfect mix of white chocolate chunks and sweet raspberries. Easy to prepare Great for breakfast, with a cup of coffee or tea, or just as a treat. Muffins are always the perfect option for the whole family.

• Ingredients
• 350 g self-raising flour
• 100 g sugar
• 100 g white chocolate
• 150 ml milk
• 150 g butter (soft)
• 150 g raspberry

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– Preheat the oven to 180 C

– Prepare the cupcakes tin

– In a bowl mix the eggs with the milk , add the sugar,flour and butter then add the chocolate chunks, whisk everything well together now gently stir the raspberry into the batter making sure to keep them as whole as possible.

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– fill the cups with the batter add some extra sugar on top of the muffins. Bake them in the oven for 25 minutes . Done !

Buon appetito !

“Pesce a l’acqua pazza” is an ancient fish dish, typical of southern Italy. Written records of this cooking technique date back to the late 1800s. The story goes that this dish was invented by poor fisherman who cooked the fish on their boat with the naturally salted seawater, (as salt was very expensive), the recipe evolved adding wine and other ingredients. I ate it several times, but I never had it cooked under pizza crust. That, I discovered in Sicily, in a restaurant on the beach at Marina di Ragusa who served this delight ! Just imagine bread dipping the sauce with your pizza crust ! Before you know you will be licking your fingers .

For the dough

• 300 g 00 flour ( all purpose)
• 200 g Manitoba flour ( 400W)
• 300 ml lukewarm water
• EVO 20g
• Salt 10 g
• 5 g fresh brewers yeast (2 g dry yeast)

Start by dissolving the yeast into the water, combine the Manitoba and 00 flour into a large bowl then poor the water little by little while kneading with your hands when you have poured half the liquid you can add the salt, continue to knead, still pouring the water until you obtain a homogeneous mixture, now add the oil little by little. Transfer the dough on a flat surface, knead until it is smooth. Put the dough back in a bowl and let it rest for 2 hours covered under a humid towel. The dough should double the volume..

For the sea bass.

• 2 sea bass filets
• 250/300 ml of white wine
• 50 ml of water or fish stock
• Some cherry tomatoes
• 2 tbsp of capers
• 1 clove of garlic
• Half of a small chili
• Some parsley
• A pinch of salt

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Now remove the skin and the bones from the sea bass fillet. Lay the fish in slightly oiled ovenproof dish, Add the wine, water, garlic, tomatoes, capers, chili, pinch of salt, parsley. Cover the dish with the pizza dough, drizzle some EVO on top and put in the oven for 20/ 25 minutes ( the dough has to have a golden colour). You obtain a surprise effect you when you cut the pizza crust ! The smell is divine and the plate looks gorgeous ! Enjoy with a nice glass of dry white wine. Buon appetito!

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Fond memories of the time I lived in Antwerp ! If there was a stall of waffles, impossible to pass by without buying one! Just the smell makes your mouth water. I like the crunchy pieces of pearl sugar and the caramelized ones on the outside of the waffle. Finger-licking delight!

Ingredients.

• 300g pearl sugar
• 50 g fresh yeast
• 500g all purpose flour
• 150 ml lukewarm water
• 70 g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 215 butter
• Salt

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Dissolve the yeast in lukewarm water and pour this into the flour (300g). Add the sugar (70g), the 2 eggs, the butter (15 g) and stir until you obtain a homogeneous dough. Than sprinkle the rest of the flour (200g) on top and add a pinch of salt. Now put the rest of the butter on top and let rest for 15 minutes. Knead very well and only at the end add the pearl sugar. Roll out in a sausage and roll little balls ( more or less 100 g each) Let them rise under a wet towel for an other 15 minutes. Bake in a waffle machine until golden brown. Done. Buon appetito !

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Tip. Your waffle machine can be a bit messy ( due to the sugar) for easy cleaning prepare a paste from water and cornstarch and put this paste in your machine it will absorb the caramelized sugar.

I love this sumptuous moelleux au chocolat a little cake with a lavish molten heart. I follow John Burton Race’s recipe since I bought his book year’s ago and till today I use the same recipe! You can prepare these earlier in the same day and keep them in the fridge until ready to bake.

Ingredients.

• 105 g chocolate ( 70 % cocoa solids )
• 105 g butter,plus extra for greasing
• 3 eggs
• 30 g caster sugar
• 45g plane flour
• 2 egg yolks
• 4 to 6 ramekins
• Some icing sugar

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Butter 4 / 6 ramekins or dariole mounds. To make the fondant, melt the chocolate and butter together in a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water. Meanwhile, beat the whole eggs with the sugar and the flour until smoothly blended. When the chocolate has melted, take off the heat and let cool slightly, than beat the egg yolks, followed by the whisked egg, sugar and flour mix . Put into the ramekins or darioles. Shortly before serving, preheat the oven to 190 C. Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes. Than carefully tip the fondants out of there moulds on the serving plates and dust with icing sugar. Done! Buon appetito!

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A classic Sunday meal! Good food for good people and good times with family and friends around your table. There are several variations of this dish, many households will have their own recipe! Every region, has their own stuffing like in Piedmont they have a filling based on their famous hazelnuts. In Genova you will find “la cima allo genovese”. But mine today is a spring stuffing, lovely with the fresh peas.

Ingredients

• 800 g of veal breast
• 200 g of cooked ham
• 70 g of breadcrumbs
• 200 g of peas
• 1 stalk of celery
• 1 carrot
• 1 small onion
• 1 egg
• 5 tbs of Parmesan cheese
• 1clove of garlic
• 1 glass of white wine
• 30 g butter
• 2 tbs of EVO
• 1 stock cube
• Salt and pepper
• An extra carrot celery stalk and onion for the sauce

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If you have a kind butcher ask him to prepare the breast pocket for you. ( cutting the breast creating a pouch ). Peel the peas, chop the carrot, onion, garlic and celery. Put some oil in a pan, add the vegetables, season them with salt and pepper and add a splash of white wine ( let them simmer for 5 min low heat ). Mince the ham and add it to the vegetables together with the breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese and the egg, season with salt and pepper ( if you like add a pinch of nutmeg ). Mix everything together. Now fill the veal breast carefully with the stuffing, pay attention that the stuffing reaches the bottom part by gently squeezing down. Close the pocket by sewing it with kitchen twine. When all that is done heat the butter with the oil in a pan ( creuset is ideal) add the meat and brown it at both sides, ( moderate heat ) add the extra carrot,onion and celery, the glass of white wine, and the stock cube. Put the lid on the pan and cook on a low heat for 1h30 / 2 hours turning the meat every 30 minutes. Serve the dish with a nice glass of red wine, enjoy! Buon appetito!

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To continue the trend of my last 2 posts, today we prepare “ un raviolone with egg yolk spinach and ricotta “. Simply an extra dose of sunshine on your plate ! ☀️

Ingredients (for 4 portions)

• 1 egg per raviolo
• 200g ricotta
• 250 g spinach
• 50g Parmesan
• 150 g butter
• Some sage
• Salt and pepper

Ingredients for pasta

• 100g flour per egg

First of all prepare the fresh pasta. (Follow the recipe of my post below). Followed by the ricotta spinach filling ( same recipe as the ravioli filling in post below). Now prepare the sage butter, by adding butter and sage in a pan let simmer for 5 minutes, remove from heat and leave to infuse. So firstly you cut your pasta sheets in squares. Now ( with the help of a sac a poche )you spread the ricotta spinach filling in a square on your pasta sheet, once this is done you carefully divide the eggs and place the yolk in the center of each ricotta cup. With the unused egg white brush the pasta around the ricotta spinach filling (doing so the pasta sheets will seal together well). Gently place an other pasta square on top and seal them together by pressing with your fingers around each raviolo. Bring a pan with salty water to a rolling boil, cook the raviolis for 2/3 minutes ( two at a time ). Drain the raviolis with a skimmer, serve them with the butter sage infusion, sprinkle some Parmesan cheese Buon appetito.