Sunday, November 3, 2013

Italian Fruit Tarts

Preparation time: 40 minutes. Serves 10 people.


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Is there anything better than a delicious, crispy, crunchy Fruit Tart to start a weekend!? Fruit tarts with Crema Pasticcera and seasonal fruit are the perfect treat for your weekend and are perfect for any occasion: breakfast, lunch, dinner, afternoon tea, chemical hunger at night. 

1. Sweet Shortcrust Pastry (Pasta Frolla) 

  • 275 gr. of plain (all-purpose) flour 
  • 100 gr. sugar 100 gr. unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes 
  • 1 egg yolk 
  • 1 whole egg 
  • lemon zest (half lemon)

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Mix the flour and the sugar together, make a volcano as shown in the picture and add 1 egg, 1 egg yolk, butter and the lemon zest.

Mix all together with cold hands - remember to keep them cold!! At the beginning the dough will look like crumbles - don't worry, that's normal! Process until dough comes together. Test by squeezing a small amount of dough together with your fingers. If dough is crumbly, keep mixing with your hands until dough is smooth and compact.

Make a ball and flatten it into a disc and wrap in a transparent film.  Transfer it to the refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Roll out pastry on a lightly floured work surface to 3-mm thickness. Cut pastry and fit it into the tart tins (previously buttered and floured); trim off excess pastry with a sharp paring knife. Prick base of pastry shells with a fork. 

Preheat oven to 200° C.

Line each pastry shell with non-stick baking paper and fill with ceramic pie weights, dried beans or rice.  Bake pastry shells until edges are just beginning to turn golden, about 15 minutes.

Transfer baking sheet to wire rack.  Remove non-stick baking paper and pie weights.  Let cool for 1 minute. Remove pastry shells from tins and return to wire rack to cool completely.


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2. Pastry Cream (Crema Pasticcera)

  • 3 cups of whole milk
  • few drops of vanilla (or vanilla seeds)
  • 3 tablespoons of sugar
  • 3 large egg yolks, room temperature
  • 3 tablespoons of flour
  • half lemon peel
In small saucepan bring milk and vanilla just to the boil over medium heat. Meanwhile, in a medium-sized bowl whisk together egg yolks sugar until pale. Using a fine mesh sieve, sift flour into egg mixture; whisk until smooth.

Remove vanilla bean from milk mixture.  Gradually pour 1/3 hot milk mixture into egg mixture, whisking constantly until well combined.

Pour mixture back into saucepan.  Bring to a boil, whisking constantly, over low heat. Continue to boil, whisking constantly, over medium heat until thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer mixture to small bowl.  Place a piece of plastic wrap directly onto surface of pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming as it cools.

3. Assembling Fruit Tarts

Mixed berries and season fruits: raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, but also bananas, kiwi and peaches.

To prepare glaze, in small saucepan heat jelly over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until jelly is melted, set aside to cool slightly.Divide pastry cream evenly between pastry shells. 
Arrange berries on top; using a small pastry brush thinly coat berries with glaze.

If not serving tarts immediately refrigerate to chill.  Bring to room temperature before serving. 


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Having fruit tarts after dinner?! Enjoy them with your homemade Limoncello - Recipe here!

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Italian Chicken Cacciatore with Sage and Prosciutto

Preparation time: 40 minutes. Serves 4 people (depending on the size of the chicken)


This is a yummy, typically-Italian variation of the famous Pollo alla Cacciatora recipe. The recipe is also extremely easy and fast to prepare - you will only need few minutes and then let it cook for 30 minutes!







Ingredients:

- 1 free-range Chicken or chopped free-range chicken pieces
- 100 gr Parma ham
- half glass red wine
- sage, rosemary, E-V olive oil, onion


Take a saucepan, add 7 tbsp E-V olive oil and 2 garlic cloves with their skin and put it over medium-low heat. Add the chicken pieces and continue cooking, stirring them about so as to brown all sides (5 minutes per side).


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Once the ten minutes is up stir the wine into the pot and cook over a brisk flame until the wine evaporates. Dust with freshly ground pepper and salt on each side of the meat. 

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When the wine has evaporated (i.e. when you don't smell alcohol in the air anymore), add the chopped herbs (8 leaves of sage and some rosemary) and the chopped ham (see pictures).

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Mix well, cover, reduce the flame to a low simmer, and cook for 30 minutes, stirring, over a low flame until the meat is fork tender; should things look like they're beginning to stick down, add a little water. 

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The dish is ready. This is what I call a mouth-watering recipe: the fat of the chicken melts with the fried and crunchy Parma ham making the perfect sauce... yes, yes, yes!

Try it now!

Friday, August 23, 2013

Mascarpone Amaretti Cups

Preparation time: 20 minutes. Serves 6 people (depending on the size of the cups)

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It's time for a nice yummy dessert - easy to make, absolutely delicious to taste! I would recommend to prepare it for an after lunch or dinner.

You will only need:

- 150 gr Mascarpone cheese
- 100 gr Icing Sugar
- 3 eggs
Shaved dark chocolate
- Some brandy
- Amaretti biscuits





Mix the egg yolks with the icing sugar (ops, sorry for the wrong sugar in the picture!) until you obtain a creamy light mixture. Add the Mascarpone and mix a bit more.

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In another bowl, mix the egg whites until they reach a somewhat firm peak. When your egg whites get fluffy...STOP! If you overbeat them, they will liquify again. Then Shave the dark chocolate as shown below.

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Add the whipped whites and the shaved dark chocolate to the creamy mixture previously prepared. Gently stir with a spatula from the bottom to the top of the bowl, so that the whipped whites don't liquify.

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Your cream is ready!

Add the cookies to a medium bowl and stir in the brandy or any other dessert liquor (just until moistened, you don't want them soggy). It's time to get a cup or a glass. Divide the Amaretti into the bottom of 6 glasses (4-5 Amaretti per glass). Add the cream and top with a roughly shaved dark chocolate. Believe me, this is as good as a well-prepared Tiramisu'!

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Can it get better than this?