Party time!

We had a big party last night and here is what we prepared for our guests...... if you like it and want to have the same for your party... mail us! Enjoy the pics!

Bresaola, soft cheese and rucola Crepês rolades

 Crab and chicken filled cherry tomatoes

 Salmon and crab blinis

Sushi rolls

Roasted prawns with Thai sauce

Meat crispy bites

Roasted bacon rolls

Salmon and speck filled mini croissants

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Pollo fritto al sesamo (sesame fried chicken)

Here is a fried chicken made the myitaliancuisine way.....We use corn flour and sesame to coat the chicken, the result is crisp and crunchy ;) It is a quick and easy recipe that everybody can try....enjoy!

Serving 4
Ingredients:
500gr chicken wings (tip cut off)
2 cups corn flour
1cup sesame seeds
2 beaten eggs
salt to taste
1 lemon
1/2 liter frying oil

Clean and cut each wing in 2 parts.

Mix the corn flour and the sesame seeds in a large bowl. Beat the eggs in a separate bowl. Coat the chicken with the corn/sesame mixture then with the beaten eggs and again with the corn/sesame.

Put the half liter oil in a frying pan, wait till it gets very hot. Place the coated wings in the oil and fry them till they get golden brown.

Drain the fried wings on a paper towel.

Your fried chicken wings are ready! Serve warm with lemon and the sauce you like.....Buon appetito!

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Neapolitan "Sfogliatella Frolla" (sfogliatella frolla napoletana)

I miss Italy tremendously... so today I will propose you something very traditional from Naple: the Sfogliatella! Neapolitan most famous pastry:"Sfogliatella"comes in two styles: "riccia", with a crust of many crisp, paperylayers, and "frolla", with a thicker pastry crust. Thericcia's tender exterior (made with flour, water, and lard) consists ofconcentric squashed rings. The frolla shell (made with flour, sugar,and butter or lard) is like the best sweet piecrust. Both hold fillingsof sweetened ricotta and cooked semolina flavored with vanilla, "millefiori" flavour and mixed candiedfruits. I propose you the Sfogliatella frolla, much easier to make at home....but terrific as well as the Riccia! The filling is, anyway, always the same.

Makes about 20 Sfogliatelle

Ingredients for the pastry crust:
500gr Pastry flour
180gr sugar
200gr Lard or butter (traditionally lard!)
75gr Cold water
1 egg
1 pinch of salt
1/3 teaspoon of baking soda
10gr honey
The grated peel of 1 organic lemon

Ingredients for the filling:
200gr semolina
1/2 liter of boiling water
1 pinch of salt
2 eggs
400gr fresh Ricotta cheese
200gr powdered sugar
150gr mixed candiedfruits
2 tbs Millefiori or Rose water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pinch of cinnamon
The grated peel of 1 organic orange

Pastry glazing:
1 beated egg
1 tbs milk

Intructions for the pastry:

Mix all the ingredients  in a food mixer, make a ball out of it, place it in the refrigerator overnight or minimum 1 hour.

Instructions for the filling:
Cook the semolina in the salted boiling water, with a wooden spoon mix constantly to avoid lumps, mix till well cooked. make it cool.

Once the semolina has cooled, mix it with the ricotta, the sugar, and the other ingredients. Taste the mixure and add more sugar or more flavours if necessary (depends on your taste) you can even add some rum if you like it! Place the mixture in the refrigerator till you need it.

Making the sfogliatelle:

Preheat the oven on 185°C. Devide the pastry in 4 balls, roll out the first ball on a floured worktop using a pastry rolling pin till you get a 1cm high circle of pastry.

With a cup or a glass cut out some pastry discs.

Roll them out a bit more and place a tbs of mixture in the middle of each disc.

Close them up like a "Raviolo". Be sure that the borders are well sealed.

Cut the borders with a pastry rolling cutter. Repeat the procedure till pastry balls are over.

 Glaze each sfogliatella with the egg/milk mixture. Place them in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes (depending on your oven).

After 20 minutes your Sfoglaitelle must nicely turn golden brown, see picture above ;)

The sfogliatelle are now ready, take out from the oven and let them cool completely.

Serve poweder with sugar...they are so delicious!!!!!!! Buon Appetito!

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Sea Grasshoppers Gratin (Cicale di mare gratinate)

The most difficult part of this dish is... finding the Sea Grasshoppers. In italy they are very common, but it can be very difficult to find them abroad. I had the chance to get them very fresh just few days before to leave Italy...  I cooked them with my mother... her favourite way: filled with a bread, parmesan and parsley mixture then baked in the oven. Simply delicious! I reccomend this recipe to you, it can be a perfect  starter for your fish based dinners!

Serves 4
Ingredients:
12 sea grasshoppers (cicale di mare)
150g day old bread
50g bread crumbs
1+ 1/2  tbs grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
6  tbs extra virgin olive oil
1 tbs dry white wine
1small bunch of fresh parsley
1 garlic clove
salt and peper to taste

Instructions:

Wash and open lenghtside the upper part of the grasshoppers with a good knife, keep aside. Preheat the over at 180°C. Prepare the filling mixture. In a food mixer mix all the other ingredients and 3 tbs of olive oil and the white wine.

Fill each grasshopper with the mixture and place them on a baking tray covered with parchment paper. Pour the remaining olive oil on the top. Bake 180°C for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Your Sea Grasshopper Gratin is ready! Serve warm. Buon Appetito!

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Raw Seafood Starter

I am spending my holidays in Italy, on the Adriatic sea cost. Here you can get the best seafood of the
region.... I am trying some starters for the New Year's eve dinner... here is a suggestion for you if you manage to get fresh seafood in your region... this is the best... simple and easy!

Serving 2
Ingredients:
8 Oysters
4 "Fasolari" or small scallops (coquilles Saint Jacques)
8 Venus clams (Tartufi di mare)
4 Lemons
Pepper to taste

Carefully open the seafood shells and place them on a serving plate, cut the lemon in quarters, cut the quarters in half. place them on the serving plate, sprinkle some pepper on the top of the opened seafood. Eat each shell with lemon juice..... Buon Appetito!

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Cocoa Ravioli with Ricotta & Lemon filling in Pistachio Pesto

Traditional Pesto, from Liguria, is made of fresh Basil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Garlic, Pinenuts with the addition of Pecorino and Parmigiano cheese. This Pistachio pesto is from Sicily, the only Italian region where Pistachio plants are cultivated. The famous Italian Pistachio from Bronte is mainly used to make this pesto. Of course you can use any kind of (unsalted) pistacho to make it. I've served this Pistachio Pesto with handmade star shaped cocoa ravioli with a filling of Ricotta and grated lemon zest, an original recipe by Myitaliancuisine for Christmas. This could be your very special Italian Christmas or New Year's Eve original dish.  Cocoa, ricotta and pistachio are a very nice combination of flavours. I recommend to use pure unsweetened cocoa powder to make the pastry.

Serving 4
- For the Ravioli
Pastry:
100gr Durum semolina (Italian: farina rimacinata di grano duro, tipo 0)
200gr all pourposes flour (Italian: farina di grano tenero, tipo 00)
30gr Usweetened cocoa powder
3 eggs
A pinch of salt
Filling:
250gr Fresh ricotta
1 egg
Grated zest of half organic lemon
50gr crushed pistachio nuts
Salt  and pepper to taste
- For the pistachio Pesto
200gr unsalted pistachio nuts
4 Tbs Extra Virgin olive oil
1 Tbs Grated Pecorino
1 Tbs Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
Salt and pepper to taste
Some extra Grated Pecorino cheese to serve

-Prepare the ravioli pastry. Mix the 2 flours and the cocoa. Place the flour mixture on a worktop, make  a hole in the middle, pour the eggs, and a pinch of salt. Beat the eggs, mix it with the flour with a fork. Work the pastry till you get a even mixture. Give it a ball shape. make it rest for 15 minutes.

-Prepare the filling. Mix the ricotta with a pinch of salt and pepper, the grated lemon zest and the crushed pistachio nuts.
-Prepare the star shaped ravioli. Place the pastry on a floured worktop, roll it out with a rolling pin.

Add flour when needed. Roll it out till you get a fine pastry disc.

Start to cut out the stars of pastry with a star shaped form (the same used to shape Xmas biscuits) Cut as much stars as you can.

Place a teaspoon of ricotta in the middle of a start, cover with another star.

 Make sure that the borders are well sealed, if necessary use a little water and help pressing with a finger. Proceed this way till all the pastry stars are filled.
-Prepare the pesto.

In a mortar (or in a  small food mixer ) smash the pistachio nuts together with the grated cheese, little by little pour the oil on the mixture, mix well.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil, cook the Ravioli.

 Your Christmas cocoa stars are ready! Place the ravioli on a serving plate and pour the pesto on it. add some grated Pecorino cheese, sprinkle some pistachio nuts. Buon appetito!
"Cocoa ravioli with ricotta and lemon filling" is an original recipe by MyItaliancuisine.  All right reserved ©MyItalianCuisine2011.

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