Pancakes

This recipe is not Italian, but who does not love them?!

Persons: 3
Preparation: 15 min

Ingredients:
100g plain flour
Pinch of salt
1 egg
300 ml milk 
1 tablsp. melted butter or sunflower oil

Steps:

1. Place in a bowl flour and salt and make a hole in the center.
2.  Add the egg into the hole plus the melted butter and half of the milk. 
3. Stir until it melted, then add the other half milk and stir. 
4. Heat a small heavy-based frying until it is very hot and then turn the heat down to medium. 
5. Add a tea spoon of butter in the pan.
6. Place a scoop of the mixture in the pan and cook on a medium heat for 1-2 minutes or until the batter looks dry on the top and begins to brown at the edges. 
7. Flip the pancake over with a palette knife and cook the other side.

Eat them with Marple syrup, Jam, Honey or Nutella!

Cake with yogurt and olive oil

Persons: 8
Preparation time: 15 min
Cook time: 35 min

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of Greek yogurt (without sugar added)
250 gr sugar
1 tablespoon of olive oil
250 gr all purpose flour
1 teaspoon of baking soda
lemon juice
1 apple (peeled, cored and diced)
1 pear  (peeled, cored and diced)
3 eggs

Steps

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
2. Grease and flour one inch cake pan.
3. Beat oil and eggs in a bowl. 
4. Add the sugar and the yogurt and beat well.
5. Combine the flour, baking soda together in another bowl. 
6. Slowly add this mixture to the egg mixture and mix until combined. 
7. Fold in the apple and pear by hand using a wooden spoon. 
8. Add few drops of lemon juice.
9. Spread batter into the prepared pan.
10. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes or until cake tests done. 

Suggestions: Once cake is cool serve with a dusting of confectioners' sugar.

Almond cake without eggs

I did not have any eggs at home but lots of almonds so I decided to prepare a new cake! The taste was great, although it was not as soft as a cake-with-eggs can be :)

Persons: 6

Preparation time: 20 min

Cook time: 30 min

Ingredients:

200 gr all purpose flour

200 gr sugar

3/4 cup whole milk

1 cup almonds 

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Steps:

1. Place the almonds in a bowl and with a food processor mix them until finely ground. 
2. Preheat the oven at 160 C (320 F).
3. In a bowl, assemble the flour, baking powder, baking soda, the milk, the sugar, the butter, the oil and the vanilla extract with a spoon or a hand blender.
4. Beat until well mixed
5. Add the almond meal into the flour mixture.
6. Grease and line the bottom of a bake dish with baking paper and pour the batter.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes clean.
8. Decorate the top with confectioners' sugar.

Biscotti di pasta frolla

Persons: 10

Preparation: 20 min (+30 min in the fridge)

Ingredients: 

300gr flour

250 gr butter (room temperature)

200 gr sugar

4 egg yolks

chocolate chips

Steps:

1. Place in a big bowl the flour, sugar and butter.
2. Add the yolks and chocolate chips 
3. Mix everything with your hands (don't worry it will take some times and at the beginning you might think it is not working, it will!) just until it forms a ball.
4. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes.
5. Preheated oven at 180°C.
6. Flatten the pastry into a disk and then knife cut the disk in small hearts.
7. Bake for 15/20 min.

♡  Enjoy ♡

Risolat

One summer morning a friend of mine cooked this for me. 

An amazing way to start the day :)

Persons: 2

Preparation: 25 min

Ingredients:

 2 tea cups of rise

300 ml of milk (more or less)

30 gr butter (2 spoons)

50  gr sugar

Steps:

1. Melt the butter in a pan and before let it completely melted put the rice in the pan and stir.
2. After no more than 30 seconds put the milk and the sugar in the pan and let them boil until milk evaporates. I recommend, always taste the rice, if it is still a bit 'raw, or simply too hard for your taste, add more milk and boil it again.
3. Stir frequently to prevent the rice from sticking to the pan.
4. The final consistence should be more or less similar to a pudding, do not keep too dry, but soft and creamy.
5. Serve in a small bowl, preferably still warm, with chocolate chips on top.

Very good with raisins, nutella, jam, honey, or maple syrup.

Thanks Giò!

Small Krapfen

This a great treat for any special occasion. It might be a great present for St Valentine for your soul mate :)

Persons: 10

Preparation time: 30 min + 1h

Ingredients:

300 g of flour

25 g of yeast

2 egg yolks

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 tablespoon melted butter

grated lemon peel

warm milk

vanilla

oil

salt

Steps

1. In a bowl, dissolve the yeast and a teaspoon of sugar and little warm milk, sprinkle the surface with a little 'flour, stir and let it ferment for about 15 minutes to warm.
2. In another bowl, work the egg yolks with the remaining sugar, a little lemon zest and a pinch of salt.
3. Place the flour in the center, pour in the yeast and egg mixture. 
4. Work the whole by adding, if necessary, the warm milk, the dough should be soft and make bubbles that you can work with your hands. 
5. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel and let it rise.
6. When the dough has doubled in volume, transfer to a clean, floured work surface. 
7. Roll the dough out to a thickness of about 1 cm (a little less than ½-inch); using a cookie cutter or glass cut out rounds about 7-cm to 7½-cm (2¾-inch to 3-inch) in diameter (keep the cuts as close together as possible). 
8. Place the rounds on a parchment lined baking sheet lightly sprayed with vegetable spray, cover with a sheet of plastic wrap and leave to rise in a warm place until doubled in volume for about 30 minutes.
9. Heat oil in a  saucepan over medium heat 
10. Fry until golden on both sides, 3 to 5 minutes.
11. While bomboloni are still warm fill with Crema Pasticcera (Italian pastry cream). 

Apple pie

This is the original recipe of my grand mum's apple cake. I remember it as the best birthday present for me!

Persons: 8

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

4 apples

2 eggs

200 gr sugar

200 gr all purpose flour

100 gr butter

Lemon

200 ml milk

1 baking soda

1 table spoon of vanilla

cinnamon

salt

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
2. In a mixing bowl beat butter, milk and eggs with an electric mixer until creamy. 
3. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat well.
4. Combine the flour salt, baking soda, and ground cinnamon together in a bowl. 
5. Slowly add this mixture to the egg mixture and mix until combined. 
6. The batter will be very thick. 
7. Add the apples with some lemon juice to the mix. 
8. Spread batter into the prepared pan.
9. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 50 minutes or until cake tests done. 
10. Let cake cool on a wire rack. 
11. Once cake is cool serve with a dusting of confectioners' sugar.

Desert's roses

Persons: 6

Preparation: 30 min

What do you need?

300g flour 00

150g of sugar

125g butter, diced

half-teaspoon of baking powder

3 eggs

a pinch of salt

chocolate chips

corn flakes

Steps:

1. Put flour into a bowl plus baking powder and a pinch of salt to make a fountain and break in the eggs and sugar

2. mix quickly with a fork, add the butter (cold) . Begin to knead it all before with a fork and then by hand (and a little faster), until a ball is a little sticky

3. add 3 handfuls of chocolate and knead (add flour if too sticky). Let the dough in the refrigerator at least half an hour.

4.Preheat the oven. Remove from mixing the dough balls and roll in corn flakes (pressing) until they are covered. Put parchment paper on the baking sheet in the oven at medium height. 

5. Cook for 20 minutes at 170 degrees. 

Fruit tartar (torta di frutta)

This is absolutely one of the best cake I ever made. It takes some time, but you will be excited about the result!

Persons: 10

Preparation time: 60 minutes

What do we need?

Sweet Pastry Crust:
250 grams all purpose flour
125 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
115 grams granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 lemon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 egg yolks

Pastry Cream:
500 ml milk (whole is better)
1 lemon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 egg yolks
125 grams granulated white sugar
60 grams all-purpose flour

Instructions:
Sweet Pastry Crust:  

1. Place the butter in the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, and beat until softened. 
2. Add sugar, vanilla, some lemon peel and salt
3. Gradually add the beaten egg, beating just until incorporated.
4. Place the flour in a big bowl.
5. Prepare a hole in the center of the flour.
6. Add the egg mixture to the hole.
7. Mix everything with your hands (don't worry it will take some times and at the beginning you might think it is not working, it will!) just until it forms a ball.
8. Flatten the pastry into a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes.
9. Preheat the oven at 350F.

... in the meantime
Pastry Cream: 

1. In a bowl mix the sugar and egg yolks together
2. Add the flour to the egg mixture
3. Mixing until you get a smooth paste.
4. In a saucepan bring the milk, 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice and vanilla just to boiling
5. Remove from heat and add slowly to egg mixture, whisking constantly to prevent curdling. 
6. Then cook the mix over medium heat until boiling, whisking constantly. 
7. When it boils, whisk mixture constantly for another 30 - 60 seconds until it becomes thick. 

Sweet Pastry Crust (part 2 - let's cook!):  

1. Lightly butter and flour a tart pan with a removable bottom. 
2. Evenly pat the chilled pastry onto the bottom and up the sides of the pan. 
3. Lightly prick bottom of pastry crust with the tines of a fork
4. Place tart pan on a larger baking pan and bake crust for 15 minutes (check if it is getting too brown, it is ready!) 
5. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely before filling. 

The time to fill:  

1. Cut in small piece any time of fruit you like (it is great with grapes, banana, strawberries, kiwi, blueberries etc.) and cover with some lemon juice to prevent it get brown.
2. Remove the tart from the fluted sides of the pan. 
3. Spread the pastry cream onto the bottom of the tart shell.
4. Place fruit in concentric overlapping circles starting at the outside edge. 
5. If not serving immediately, refrigerate but bring to room temperature before serving. 

Results:

Suggestions: if some pastry cream is left you can leave in the fridge for a couple of days. It is also excellent on the top of a biscotto with coffee!
If some of your pastry crust is left you can prepare some small fruit tartar or just some biscotti. Cook them in the oven at the same temperature but only for 5/10 minutes (check if they are too brown).

Plum cake

Persons: 8
Preparation Time: 20 min

What do you need?
2 cups of powdered sugar
4 eggs
200 gr of butter
200 gr of flour
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 tablespoon baking powder
a pinch of salt

Preheat oven at 170C / 360F

• Mix butter with sugar preferably with your hands. 
• As soon as the butter is workable add the 4 egg yolks and continue to work to obtain a homogeneous mixture.
•  Beat until stiff the 4 egg whites with a pinch of salt and then add to the butter mixture, flour and eggs.
• Add vanilla and mix well.
• Only now you can put the mixture into a form for plum cake previously buttered and floured.
• Bake for 40 minutes.

Cream of tiramisu'

The original tiramisu' receipt is from my hometown, Venice.
Although, there are many ways to prepare a great tiramisu'.
This is one you should try :)

Persons: 8
Preparation time: 25 min
Ingredients:

500 gr mascarpone cheese

coffee (use mocha pleaseeee)

2 eggs

sugar, as you want, always try ;)

5 cookies per cup ( savoiardi or lingue di gatto )
Cocoa

In a bowl using the electric mixer to prepare the cream with mascarpone, eggs and sugar.

Take 8 cups and put in each 3 cookies and add coffe until they change colour.

Now add your cream and the other two cookies.

Cocoa on top. 

Yes I know it looks soooo nice ;)