Ingredients -

• 350 gr arborio rice (put in a bowl topped with water and soak for 5 minutes before use)

• 300 ml bolognese sauce pre made

• 200 ml milk

• 250 gr mozzarella

• 50 gr grated parmesan

• butter to grease pan and blotch the first layer

• salt

• pepper
  

  Watch instagram reel here for method https://www.instagram.com/p/Chlg-T3laoJ/

This is a very easy light version but can be tweeked to your liking. You can add a couple of eggs to the potato mash, but I didn’t for this one. You could also add peas, a little cooked onion if you like, or even substitute the salumi for tuna.

• 1 kg potato - boiled, mashed and a tablespoon of butter added

• 300 g di mozzarella

• 150 g di prosciutto cotto

• About a handful of breadcrumbs

• salt

• pepe

• 80 g di grana padano or parmigiano

Head to the Instagram reel to watch the process. https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/

This cake was delicious!

For the pear prep

2 - 3 pears sliced and cooked in a small pan with a couple of tablespoons of sugar and a drop of water until browned.

Place them in a greased flan tin.

For the batter - in one bowl and in this order

3 eggs

12 tablespoons sugar

grated lemon rind and the juice

1 teaspoon powdered Vanilla (or from a pod or paste)

2 heaped tablespoons yoghurt

12 tablespoons sunflower oil

1 teaspoon baking soda & 1/2 of bicarb soda

(STIR) then add

12 tablespoons 00 flour

(if you don’t have raising agents then just use self raising flour)

Bake on 175c for approx 40 minutes (or until cooked - each over is different)

Head to reels on our instagram to watch the method

https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/reels/

500 gr Carnaroli or Arborio rice

2 large bunches of cicoria

1 litre vegetable broth (bought or homemade)

1/4 cup white wine

1 onion

250gr butter

salt to taste

Head to our instagram page to watch the method of this simple easy one pot dish https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/reels/

Raspberry & Cream Cake

allora - grab a bowl, a spoon , a cup and a whisk and in this order pop everything in the bowl and stir….

INGREDIENTS

4 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup cream ( I used thickened)

1 grated rind of a lemon

1 vanilla sachel (or from a pod, or vanilla essence - whatever you have)

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarb soda

about 1 1/2 cups raspberries (blended in food processor - I used frozen)

2 1/2 cups 00 flour ( or if you use self raising you don’t have to put the baking powder or bicarb)

METHOD

Put the ingredients all in a bowl in the order written and stir. Place batter in a greased cake tin and bake for abotu 40 minutes on 175c

For the Panelle -

About 300 gr chickpea flour

500ml water

1 tsp aniseed (if you don’t like it leave it out )

Salt and pepper

A handful of chopped parsley

** in a pan - bring to boil stirring for approx 8 min (until thick), add the parlsey once cooked, spread onto baking paper until about 1cm thick and leave to cool and set.

Once set, cut in to squares or rectangles and fry lightly in sunflower oil. Set aside to be served with the vegetable stew.

For the Carciofi -

Half and onion sliced

4-5 Artichokes

About 3 handfuls peas

About 3 handfuls fava beans

1 tblsp capers

Handful Parsley

**I cleaned the carciofi and boiled the hearts seperately and set aside. Then fry the onion in some evoo, add the carciofi, peas, fava beans. Salt and pepper to taste. Top with about half cup of water and let simmer with lid on for about 15 mintues. Add parsley and capers once cooked.

Head to instagram to watch the method - https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/

Sicily in a plate. Tuna is huge in Sicily and nope - no Sicilian ties on my part at all, apart from my mamma’s ‘vicina di casa’ (neighbour) who has been sharing some amazing recipes with me…..and here is one of them.

I had onions on hand, old wine that we now use as vinegar, and tuna steaks I had picked up at the supermarket. Simple, easy and delicious and great with a loaf of bread and a salad.

You’ll need -

At least two onions (I used the purple spanish ones but the white onions are fine also great)

About 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

6 Tuna steaks

3/4 bottle red wine vinigar (it will evaporate and make a nice juice)

For the method head over to the reel on our instagram account https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/

Method in summary - cut onions, place in bowl of water. Heat pan, place onions on pan and salt - lid on and let collapse. Add oil - cook a little more. Place cooked onions to the side of the pan, fry tuna steaks. Remove tuna, add red wine vinegar and let cook with the onions until it has reduced. Place your tuna back in the reduced ‘agrodolce’ (sweet and sour sauce). Enjoy x

I am huge on ‘no waste’. I had made an Italian Orange Cake a few days ago with Ricotta Cream Icing and needed to use up the left over icing before it went off. I love to create new meals with leftovers - or ‘gli avanzi’ as we call them in Italian. So I created these ‘zeppoline’. - mini donuts. Soft and fluffy balls of lemony heaven. Crazy easy to whip up and gobbled up quicker than you can fry them.

Here are more or less the ingredients. Just add them in order I have listed them.

-about 250gr ricotta

-about 4 tablespoons icing sugar (whip ricotta and icing sugar to make a cream)

-3 eggs (whip through ricotta cream with a fork)

-zest of one lemon

-a little bustina of vanillina (or a little vanilla pasta, or from the pod - whatever you have)

-1 teaspoon baking powder

…Mix them together

-Add about 2 and a half cups of self raising flour

The dough should be quite firmish

Heat your sunflower oil - about 3-4cm deep - I use a small pot

With a couple of teaspoons, start grabbing the batter and placing in the oil. If they burn on the outside and are raw inside, your oil is too hot.

Once cooked roll in some sugar or some icing sugar.

If you have any questions send them to my instagram profile here https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/?hl=en

ENJOY!

The time has come to farewell winter (thank gosh) which also means saying goodbye to the winter menu.

Here’s a quick and easy ‘Spezzatino’ Recipe (Meat stew - also known as ‘Carne e Patati’ in Calabrese Dialect). You can watch the method on my Instagram Reel page here https://www.instagram.com/the_little_italian_school/reels/

INGREDIENTI !

1kg gravy beef

1 onion diced

2 carrots chopped chunky

4 celery sticks chopped chunky

4 potatoes chopped chunky

1/4 cup white wine

Lots of bay leaves (at least 5)

Salt (quanto basta)

Topped with water and left to simmer for a good 2 hours or more

Eaten with good bread though steamed rice could also be an option.

I floured the meat lightly before frying- it helps thicken the sauce

2 Eggs

1 Cup of ricotta

2 Tablespoons of sugar

1/4 cup milk

2 Cups Self raising Flour

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Grated rind of a 1 lemon

Handful bluberries (or a few more if you want more)

Mix all of the wet ingredients. Add the flour and mix. At the end add the blueberries and fold through.

Heat sunflower oil in a frypan and using a tablespoon, scoop the mixture and drop into the oil. Careful not to have the oil too hot or they will burn.

Pop the cooked mini donuts onto paper towels as you cook them so they excess oil drains. Sprinkle with icing sugar to serve and eat.