MY OWN BUCK WHEAT “MALTAGLIATI”

MY OWN BUCK WHEAT “MALTAGLIATI”

I have just come back from a travel in North Europe and I admit I was glad to see Italian sun again and the flavours of our food. We landed in Pisa at 12 pm and at 1 pm my husband was happily eating pasta. Italians love pasta, but from my experience at Il Caggio, also the rest of the world.

I like offer my guests the possibility to taste everyday different recipes, so sometimes I test recipes  which resemble traditional ones. So I mixed two different kind of flours to have a rough pasta good for vegetables and cheese. Somebody told me it reminds a recipe from Veneto.

For 6 people:
mix 200gr soft wheat flour and 200gr buck wheat flour then knead with 3 eggs and salt. Let sit then divide the pastry in 4 parts and stretch using a rolling pin. Cut shaping squares and rhombus 4cm side. In the meantime pour 5 spoons of olive oil in a pan. Cut 1 onion, 2 zucchini, 1 aubergine, 1 pepper and put in the pan adding salt and pepper. Cook high fire. 5 minutes before remove from the fire add 5 small tomatoes half chopped. Cook pasta in salted water. When pasta come up drain it and pour on the vegetable.

Mix adding 50gr Emmenthal cheese and 50gr pecorino cheese (chopped). Cook for few minutes. If you prefer having it smoother just add 2 or 3 spoons of cream.

This recipe is quite nutritious so it can be consider a single course. Add a dessert and the dinner is ready!

 

                                      

 

 

                                     

AUBERGINE ROLLS

AUBERGINE ROLLS

Ingredients:

2 aubergines

250 gr. ricotta cheese

70 gr. grated parmesan cheese

50 gr. grated pecorino cheese

1 egg

garlic, salt and pepper, olive oil

Wash and cut the aubergines then bake them for 20 minutes in pre-heaten oven. Pass in the mixer. In a pan pour 2 spoons of olive oil and 2 garlic gloves. When the garlic starts browning remove it and add aubergines. Cook for few minutes stirring. Let cool, then add 50gr parmesan cheese and ricotta cheese, salt and pepper. Make rectangles 10x8cm using phillo partry prepared in advance. Brush olive oil on and place the filling. Roll up and put in the oven. Mix 1 egg, 1 glass of water, 3 spoons of olive oil, salt and 20gr parmesan cheese left. Pour it on the rolls and bake for 15 minutes, 200°. Serve hot.

                            

PHILLO PASTRY

PHILLO PASTRY

From my last trip in Turkey I come back with some new cooking inspiration thinking about who, as all my family, would like to eat light food but without give up the taste. During my previous journeys in Turkey I tried different courses made with phillo pastry but I wasn’t able to understand the way to cook it. This time I was at my friends house so I could find out some secrets of the Turkish tradition. Coming home I tried and my family said the result was pretty good.

Phillo pastry is made just with flour, water and salt. If the ingredients are in the right proportion the pastry should result quite hard and it should sit in a fresh place for about 1 hour. I mix 300gr flour, 140gr water, salt. I can be stretch out using a rolling pin sprinkling with durum wheat flour. However you can use the machine and the result is quite good. Each time you pass the pastry through the machine sprinkle with durum wheat flour.

Once ready the tripes can be keep in the fridge for about a week, but they have to be sprinkle with durum wheat flour and protect with plastc wrap.

Phillo pasta can be used for tart with vegetables o to prepare some rolls fill with cheese or vegetables. If you like you can cook on a hot plate and eat with cheese and cured meat.
















                                    




they are delicious eaten hot

FOCACCIA CON I CICCIOLI (FOCACCIA BREAD WITH PORK MEAT)

FOCACCIA CON I CICCIOLI (FOCACCIA BREAD WITH PORK MEAT)

This focaccia bread came from the inspiration of Tuscan women who used to make bread ones every 8-10 days. It was a hard, long job: in the evening they “mettevano il lievito” which mean preparing the first pastry using “lievito madre” (starter) to add to another pastry for the second rise. Then at dawn they waked up to hot the oven ( using wood)  and knead the pastry…quite a long work. In the middle of the day the pastry was ready to be cooked.

Then to satisfy the children they use to make a sweet version with sugar, for adult during grape harvest they prepared a version using fresh grape then when farmers killed the pork used to make a focaccia bread adding roasted pork meat (“focaccia con I ciccioli”).

Today everything is much more easy, to make a good “focaccia con i ciccioli” you can use 500gr bread pastry (the same you used for pizza), 300gr bacon, salt and pepper.
 Chop the bacon and cook in a small pan until lightly brown. Add salt, pepper and let cool. Take the rised pastry add bacon and lard. Make focaccia as thick as you like and bake 200° until gilded. In the Easter period we use to make small loaf. In this case bake for about 45 minutes and the oven temperature should be lower.

CHEESE PIE

CHEESE PIE

I have memories of this pie my mum used to prepare for Easter. After going to the church all the family ate holy eggs with tuscan cured meats and different kind of pies.

My favorite  were  the cheese one and the one made with “ciccioli di maiale” (a pie with small pieces of roasted pork meat inside). The last one we used to eat during Easter lunch was a sweet pie with mint syrup.

Ingredients:

170 gr milk
80 gr. olive oil
3 yolks
400 gr. flour
100 gr. Parmigiano cheese
100 gr. chopped Emmental cheese
50 gr. grated pecorino cheese
15 gr. yeast
salt and pepper

Make a smooth ball using yeast, 30gr warm milk and the necessary flour. Let rise in a warm place. It will be ready when doubled.

Pour in a bowl the flour left and mix with cheese, 10gr salt and pepper. Make a hole in the middle and pour the left milk, pastry, olive oil and yolks then knead using your hands. Put in an baking tray and let rise again. Bake in pre-heaten oven 180° for about an hour.

FIGS AND HONEY TART

FIGS AND HONEY TART

     
To prepare short crust pastry : mix 300gr flour, 100gr sugar, 120gr butter, 1 egg and 1 yolk, lemon zeist and salt. Let sit the pastry for an hour in the fridge. Stretch out the pastry leaving aside a part for the topping stripes. Cover with figs jam. In the meantime pour 3 spoons of honey and 50gr walnut in a small pan. Cook until honey will be melted, then pour on  the tart and place the stripes of pastry on the cake.

Cook 180° for about 30 minutes.

MILK CARROTS

MILK CARROTS

Today I want to write a very simple recipe thinking about children who don’t like eating vegetables. As all orange vebetables carrots are rich in vitamins, but if you don’t like eating them uncooked we have to cook with steam to keep all the healthy substances. Because I think steam carrots remind hospital food I suggest this recipe:

for 4 people
500 gr. carrots
1/4 liter milk
20 gr. butter
1 lemon
50 gr. parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

clean the carrots and cut thin round, put in a pan with milk and butter. Cook until carrots will be soft and all the milk absorbed. Add salt, pepper, lemon juice and half parmesan cheese. Pour in a tray and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese left before serving.