A recipe that I found on Butta la pasta, a great Italian site that has the most wonderful recipes! Potato fritters are a quick and easy meal and accompanied by a salad makes for a great main course or a quick supper. Check out the site for more recipes - in Italian!
Ingredients 400 gr cooked potatoes, mashed or cubed 130 gr flour 50 gr grated parmiggiano 1 tsp powdered mustard 50 gr butter (cut in small pieces) 1 egg 1 clove of garlic(crushed) 1 tsp cumin seeds 1/2 cup milk salt and pepper to taste
Method Mix the flour, cheese, mustard, salt and pepper Add the butter and mix till you get a breadcrumb like consistency. Add the beaten egg, the garlic, cumin and milk Mix well then add the potatoes. Cover a baking tray with greasproof paper, spay with non stick then put spoonfulls of the mixture about 1cm away from each othere. Cook in a pre heated oven at 200C for about 15 mins
Pastizzi are traditional Maltese 'delicacies' made up of diamond shaped pastries filled with either ricotta (pastizzi ta' l-irkotta) or a slightly spicy pea filling (pastizzi tal-pizelli) The pastry is a puff-pastry like dough that I still have to try and replicate! Sometimes pastizzi are referred to as Maltese cheesecakes or ricotta cheesecakes, a slightly misleading term since cheesecakes are usually sweet not savoury like pastizzi. I have actually found Pastizzi in Australia and Canada, probably thanks to the Maltese emigrants there!
Pastry:
8 oz. flour 6 oz. margarine cut into cubes 6-7 tbs. cold water dash of salt
The trick here is that everything you use must be cold! If the margerine melts you will not get the desired result.The best working surface for the dough is a slab of marble since marble tends to stay cool. Make sure the dough, working surface and the rolling pin are sprinkled with flour before you start working the dough.Don't turn the dough over while you are working it. Always keep the same surface up. Turn it flat on the board (or turn the board itself) clockwise before each rolling and always in the same direction. This is one of the hardest doughs to make and you may have to try it a few times before you get it right!
Sift flour and salt together. Divide the margarine into half-inch squares. Drop the margarine into flour making sure not to squash them. Mix lightly until all margarine cubes are covered with flour (make sure that the cubes remain intact.) Add some cold water and mix lightly with a knife again making sure that the cubes remain intact. If some flour is left loose, add a teaspoon of cold water at a time until all the flour has been brought together. The resulting dough should be very soft.
Sprinkle the dough and the working surface with flour. Work the dough into an elongated shape using your finger tips. Sprinkle some flour on the rolling pin and roll the dough until it's about eight inches long and not more than five inches wide. 1 - Fold the lower third toward the top. Now fold the upper third toward the bottom on top of the first fold. You should end up with a three-layered rectangle. With light pressure from the rolling pin, seal the three edges. 2 - Remove any extra flour. Now turn the folded dough anti-clockwise so that the right side is at the top. Roll the dough lightly until it is nine inches long and six inches wide. 3 - Repeat steps one and two. 4 - Cover the dough with a damp cloth and store in the refrigerator for twenty minutes. 5 - Repeat steps one through four, four times. The dough can now be rolled out to the desired thickness. Another way is following the video posted at the bottom of this recipe. The dough is streched out and then rolled up rather like a jelly roll. Then thin slices are cut and shaped into the pastizzi.
You could also use store bought puff pastry - not quite the same but much easier! A Pastizzi fan would shun your efforts!!!
For the Filling: 2lbs ricotta 2 eggs(beaten) salt and pepper to taste optional: some chopped parsley
Method Mix the ricotta with the beaten eggs and season Roll out the dough. Cut into aprox 3" to 3" circles.(or cut slices off the 'jelly roll') Put a tablespoon of the rikotta mix in the middle of each circle.Hold both sides of the circle and bring them together, then pinch the top and bottom so that the ends are in points Put the pastizzi on a margarine greased baking sheet. Bake in a moderate oven (350-425 degrees) for about one hour. The pastizzi should be a golden-brown colour when they're ready.
I found this great video that shows how pastizzi are made! It should make the explanation of how to form them much easier! HOWEVER...the video shows a REAL pastizzi maker who has has years of experience so don't get discouraged!!!
Cooking pasta in parchment paper makes for an unusual dish. I am taking boring mac and cheese and trying to make it more interesting. The parchment paper allows the flavors to be absorbed one into another while keeping ingredients moist. I have suggested substitutions for the cheeses used. Ingredients 4 cups milk 1 pound good-quality maccaroni 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 1/4 cup corn flour (corn starch) 3/4 cup emmental (or Gruyere or Provolone) cheese cut in cubes 3/4 cup Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled (or stilton or the cheaper danish blue) 1 1/2cup Parmesan cheese, shaved (or romano if you find parmesan too expensive 1/3 lb goat's milk cheese ( feta or Cotija or any other goat's cheese you prefer ) 1/4 tsp salt 1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper Six 24 by 13-inch sheets parchment paper
Method 1. Bring the milk to a quick boil and take off the heat 2. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the maccaroni and cook for 6 minutes. Drain and keep in colander. 3. Make a bechamel sauce: Melt the butter. Take off the heat and the flour, stirring continuously until no lumps remain. Add 3 tbs of the warmed milk. Put back on the heat. Add the rest of the milk stirring continuously ( I use a whisk here). Lower the heat to medium. Continue to stir until the sauce is thick (about 5 minutes). 4. Add the cheeses to the bechamel. Use a whisk to thoroughly combine. DO not leave the sauce on its own as it will stick to the bottom so keep whisking!Add the salt and pepper. 5. Put the maccaroni to the pasta pot or in a large mixing bowl. Add the cheese sauce to the pasta. Stir to combine. Let cool. 6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Divide the maccaroni into 6 equal portions and place in the center of the parchment. Pick up each corner of the paper squares and twist on the top to make a package with a twist on top (!!). Place the bundles on a baking sheet with sides. Bake until the parchment turns pale brown and you can almost see the pasta turn brownish gold through the paper, about 45 minutes. 7. Serve immediately.
Easy, tasty and healthy! You can use pumpkin instead of squash, but do not used the canned stuff..yukkkk!!
Ingredients:
150gms squash or pumpkin
50gms parma ham
1 small red onion
50 gms scamorza (smoked provolone)
320g penne rigate ( you can also use farfalle)
salt and pepper to taste Olive oil Some chicken or vegetable broth.
Method: Chop the onion finely and fry gently in the olive oil Cook the squash or pumpkin, chop and add to the onion. Cook for about 5 mins. Add the salt, pepper and finely sliced parma ham. Cut the scamorza into cubes and add to the mixture. Let cook, adding some broth if mixture starts to dry.
Cook the pasta al dente in salted water, drain and add to the squash mixture.
Now that the weather is getting cooler, there is nothing more sociable than a pot of Swiss Fondue.( for the Swiss, fondue is ALWAYS made of cheese) There is a game assoicated with the dish : If someone loses their piece of bread of the fork they have to pay a penalty! What that will be is up to you! The trick to a successful fondue is to ensure that the cheese sauce stays smooth. Cheese has a propensity to get stringy or to "seize up" into clumps, the fat separating from the proteins. Do not over heat as cheese tends to ball up at higher temperatures and if possible use a fondue pot. Don't let the cheese cool down too much before serving, as it tends to get stringier and tougher as it cools. Don't over stir the cheese, doing so will encourage stringiness.. so many don'ts!! When we lived in the Ticino, we would use Grappa instead of kirsh.
Ingredients
1/2 pound (Real) Swiss cheese such as Jarlsberg or Emmenthaler, shredded (or try Vacherin Fribourgeois) 1/2 pound Gruyere cheese, shredded ( aged about 8 months is best) 2 tablespoons cornstarch * 1 garlic clove, peeled, halved crosswise 1 cup dry white wine like a Sauvignon Blanc 1/4 cup kirsh 1 tablespoon lemon juice Pinch nutmeg *The cornstarch helps stabilize the sauce Crusty bread, cubed, for dipping (can be a day old as it does not need to be super fresh - in fact a bit old is better!)When you cut the bread, try make sure that each piece had a bit of crust.
Method
1 Place the shredded cheese and cornstarch in a plastic bag. Seal, shake to coat the cheese with cornstarch. Set aside.
2 Rub the inside of a 4-quart pot with the garlic, then discard. Over medium heat, add the wine and lemon juice and bring to a gentle simmer. Gradually stir the cheese into the wine. Stir constantly in a zig-zag pattern to prevent the cheese from seizing and balling up. Cook until the cheese is just melted and creamy. Do not let boil. Once smooth, stir in the kirsh and nutmeg. 3 Transfer the cheese to a fondue serving pot, set over a flame to keep warm. 4. Spear the bread cubes with a fondue fork, dip in mixture till coated in cheese, and EAT!!!
Serves 4.
NB: As the cheese gets less and less, scrape the sides with your bread.When almost all the cheese is gone, lower the flame under the fondue pot.The last bit of cheese will be all toasty and yummy!
This is by far my favourite veal recipe. Veal is very easy to find in Europe - no that much in the USA it seems. You could substitute pork fillet - that would be the closest to veal. This is a really great dish!!
Wiener Schnitzel is originally made with veal. The meat is coated in breadcrumbs and fried in a pan. Schnitzel is found on all the menus in Germany and is a popular dish to be made at home. You can also use this recipe to make a pork Schnitzel or a chicken Schnitzel if preferred.
A Wiener Schnitzel is only original when made from veal. When made with pork (Schweineschnitzel) is known as "Schnitzel Wiener Art". Wiener Schnitzel is served with lemon slices that you squeeze over the meat. Anchovies and capers can also be served.
Ingredients 4 veal fillets (approx each 200g) or use veal rib eye if fillet is unavailable salt and pepper 1 cup flour 3 eggs 150g breadbrumbs preferably made from stale French or Italian bread Butter or lard (clarified butter* is actually the best here)
Method Flatten the meat with a rolling pin or meat hammer. It is very important that the meat is almost paper thin.It's best to have the butcher pound the meat thinly for you, but if you want or need to do it yourself, position the 5-ounce piece of veal between 2 sheets of wax paper or parchment paper. Gently at first, then more forcefully, use a flat-bladed meat pounder to pound the veal into a fairly round shape 7 to 8 inches in diameter. First coat the seasoned meat in flour, then dip into beaten egg. Lastly coat in breadcrumbs. The schnitzels can be covered and left for 1 to 2 hours at a cool room temperature before cooking. Heat oil in a pan and then fry the Schnitzel on both sides until brown and the meat is cooked through. Use enough butter or lard.During cooking, press the Schnitzel lightly with the back of a spoon. Cook for aprox. 2-4 mins on both sides. Once cooked serve straight away.
*To clarify a pound of butter, heat it slowly over low heat in a medium saucepan. After it has melted, let it stand for 10 minutes, then use a spoon to skim off the foamy solids on the top. Pour off the clarified butter, leaving the watery residue in the pan (a fat-separator cup can be helpful for this). Pour the cooled butter into a plastic container, cover and refrigerate. The butter may be used a second time after frying a batch of schnitzel: Pass it through a fine-mesh strainer to eliminate any solids, then cover and refrigerate as above. Use within 1 month.
