CHOCOLATE VOLCANO

A chocolate volcano cake. The cold and hot contrast is a pleasant surprise.

CAKE
150 g (5 1/2 oz) 70% bittersweet chocolate, chopped
140 g (5 oz) butter
100 g (3 1/2oz) sugar
3 whole eggs, at room temperature
1 egg yolk, at room temperature
1 pinch of salt
40 g ( 1 1/2 oz) flour

ASSEMBLY
Grease and flour eight ramekins and line with a smal piece of parchment paper.
Heat the chocolate, butter and sugar in a double boiler over simmering water until completely melted.
Cool to room temperature. Beat the eggs and salt until frothy and whisk into the chocolate. (Note: it is important that the chocolate and eggs, when combined, are the same temperature so that the chocolate does not solidify).
Sift in the flour and mix quickly until just combined. Divide the butter among the ramekins, cover with foil and freeze for at least two hours.

TO SERVE
Preheat the oven to 250 °C. Place the ramekins on a baking tray, uncovered and bake for 7/8 mins, or until the cakes feel crunchy on the outside but are still soft in the centre.
With a towel in each hand, carefully remove each individual cake and place, right side up, on a plate.
Dust with icing sugar and serve hot (with ice cream is great).

BUON APPETITO!

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Written by Itri on 19 August 2010 | Posted in All News Entries, Recipes

TIMBALLO ALLA TERAMANA

Originally from the town of Teramo in central Italy, this timballo is constructed of five layers of crespelle (thin crepes) and four succulently prepared vegetables.

CREPES
250ml (8 fl oz)
100 g (3 1/2 oz) flour
28 g (1 oz) butter, plus more for cooking
1 egg
Salt and pepper to taste

Wisk the ingredients toghether. Heat a non-stick 20cm (8″) skillet or crepe pan over a medium-high heat. Spread 1 tea spoon of butter around the pan and wipe with a paper towel. Remove the pan from the heat.
Ladle 50 ml (2 fl oz) of butter into the pan and swirl to spread. Place the pan back on the heat and cook until one side is golden. Flip and cook the other side. Repeat with the remaining batter (makes 12 crepes).

FILLING
3 garlic cloves
1 sprig rosemary
7 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
250 g (9 oz) mushrooms, roughly chopped
200 g (7 oz) peas
2 shallots, chopped
280 g (10 oz) courgettes, cut into 1 cm cubes
250 g (9 oz) cooked spinach
7 g (1/4 oz) butter
100 g (3 1/2 oz) grated Parmesan
250 g (9 oz) mozzarella cut into 1 cm cubes
Salt and pepper to taste

PREPARATION

Mushrooms: Saute` 2 cloves of garlic and the rosemary in 2 tablespoons of olive oil until brown.
Add the mushrooms and saute` over a high heat. Cook until the liquid has evaporated.
Remove from the heat, take out the garlic and the rosemary and season to taste. Set aside.

Peas: Cook the peas, half the chopped shallots, 1 1/2 tablesppons of olive oil, pepper and enough water just to cover.
When the peas are tender, remove the vegetables, strain off the liquid, season to taste and set aside.

Courgettes: Saute` the courgettes with the remaining shallots in 1 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil.
Cook until any liquid has evaporated and season to taste. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Spinach: saute` the spinach in the butter, remaining oil and garlic. Season to taste. Remove from the heat anddiscard the garlic.
Chop well and set aside.

ASSEMBLY
Grease a 20cm (8″) square baking dish. Line the bootom with two crepes. Sprinkle with a quarter of the grated cheese. Spread the chopped spinach over the bottom.
Add a quarter of the mozzarella cubes over the spinach. Line with two more crepes. Repeat this process of crepes, grated cheese, vegetables and mozzarella with the mushrooms, peas and then courgettes.
Top the final layer with the remaining two crepes. Dot with butter. Cover with aluminium foil and bake at 180 °C for 20 minutes.
Cut into 4/6equal portions and serve immediately.

BUON APPETITO!

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Written by Itri on 19 August 2010 | Posted in All News Entries, Recipes

INVOLTINI DI MELANZANE

Aubergine spring rolls.
A delightful Mediterranean taste with cherry tomatoes contrasting with the fried aubergine. Lovely with a filling of buffalo mozzarella.

Ingredients:
- 4 medium aubergines, peeled and sliced lenghtwise into 5mm (1/4″) pieces
- 400 g (15 oz) Italian ‘00′ flour
-Sunflower oil, for frying
- 3 mozzarella balls
- 20 basil leaves
- salt to taste

Submerge the aubergines in water with 1 tablespoon flour for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oil. Drain the aubergines from the water, pressing two slices at a time between your palms, and arrange over a tray to dry. Cover the slices with flour to coat all sides. Fry in the hot oil until golden-brown and transfer to a tray lined with paper towels. Cool for two minutes, then gently press each slice between clean paper towels to get rid of any excess oil. Season with salt. Slice the mozzarella into rounds 5mm thick, and cut again into wide strips. Place one piece of mozzarella and one basil leaf across the lower third of each aubergine slice and gently roll up.

ASSEMBLY:
- 20 cherry tomatoes
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced thinly
- extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 5 basil leaves, coarsley chopped

Toss the tomatoes with the garlic, oil, salt, pepper and basil and drizzle with more olive oil until well-combined. Layer half the seasoned tomatoes over the bottom of a 20×20 cm baking dish. Line the aubergine rolls on top and top with the remaining tomatoes.
Bake at 180 ºC for 15minutes. Serve hot.

BUON APPETITO

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Written by Itri on 29 June 2010 | Posted in All News Entries, Recipes

CIAMBELLA

Ciambella is a typical Italian sponge cake, the favourite of kids. You could eat tons of it in your morning milk bowl (zuppetta). Is a very easy to make pudding but still one of the best. Traditionally it is cooked in a pan with a hole in the middle but any pan is actually fine. This is the recipe for the “two colors” one. Vanilla and chocolate.

Let`s see how to make it:

Ingredients:
- 250 g butter
- 250 g sugar
- 500 g plain flour
- 125 ml milk
- 40 g yeast
- 4 eggs
- 120 g cocoa
- vanilla flavouring

In a large mixing bowl with a whisk combine first butter and sugar until it becomes a compact whipped mixture. Add the eggs, flour and milk to the dry mixture and beat hard until creamy.
Add the vanilla flavour and the yeast and mix until it becomes a dense liquid.
Separate the compote in two parts and add the cocoa in one.
Finally put the two mixture in a cake tray and give a final mixing. Put in the oven at 180°C for 45/60 minutes.
To check if it`s cooked my mom would put a “spaghetto” in it and if it comes out dry the ciambella is ready!

itri ciambella

Buon appetito

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Written by Itri on 22 May 2010 | Posted in All News Entries, Recipes

How to cook proper Italian Carbonara

In Great Britain people loves carbonara.
But not everyone knows that the real carbonara is different from what they`ve got in the last years.
Proper carbonara is made with eggs and bacon (pretty scottish dish) with the addition of parmesan cheese and a touch of milk.
There is actually no cream (the way others do).

It`s a very simple dish, simple but great!

How to do it:
recipe for 4 people

- 500 g spaghetti
- 250 g Italian pancetta
- 5 eggs (only the red part)
- Parmesan cheese
- Milk
- Olive oil
- Black pepper

Carbonara ingredients

Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the pancetta or bacon until crisp.
In a side pot put the eggs, parmesan, milk.
Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Mix it all very well.

Carbonara eggs compote

Put in a plate and serve hot. Lots of black pepper.

Proper Italian spaghetti carbonara

Buon appetito!

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Written by Itri on 03 November 2009 | Posted in Recipes