italian braised pork

what you need
2 tablespoons olive oil

1.5kg pork shoulder, rolled and tied

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 medium brown onion (150g), chopped coarsely

½ small fennel bulb (100g), chopped coarsely

8 slices hot pancetta (120g), chopped coarsely

1 tablespoon tomato paste

½ cup (125ml) dry white wine

400g can whole tomatoes

1 cup (250ml) chicken stock

1 cup (250ml) water

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

2 large fennel bulbs (1kg), halved, sliced thickly

spice rub

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

2 teaspoons dried oregano leaves

½ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon cracked black pepper

1 tablespoon sea salt2 teaspoons olive oil

what to do

Preheat oven to 180°C/160°C fan forced. Heat oil in large flameproof casserole dish on stove top; cook pork, uncovered, until browned all over.Meanwhile, combine ingredients for spice rub in small bowl.Remove pork from dish; reserve 1 tablespoon of the oil in dish; discard remainder. Cook garlic, onion, chopped fennel and pancetta in same heated dish, stirring, until onion softens. Add paste; cook, stirring, 2 minutes.Meanwhile, rub pork with spice rub. Return pork to dish with wine, undrained tomatoes, stock, the water and rosemary; bring to the boil; cover. Transfer dish to oven; cook 1 hour. Add sliced fennel to dish; cover. Return dish to oven; cook 1 hour. Remove pork from dish; discard pork rind. Cover pork to keep warm.Meanwhile, cook braising liquid in dish, uncovered, over medium heat on stove top until thickened slightly. Serve sliced pork with sauce, and warm ciabatta bread, if desired

date and chocolate torrone

what you need

1/3 cup (55g) currants

¼ cup (60ml) brandy

200g unsalted butter, chopped

300g dark chocolate, chopped

2 eggs

½ cup (110g) caster sugar

225g shortbread biscuits, broken into chunks

2/3 cup (110g) finely chopped mixed peel

½ cup (70g) pitted dates, chopped
1/3 cup (55g) roasted almonds, coarsely chopped

cocoa, to dust

what to do
Line base and long sides of two 8 by 26cm bar cake pans with baking paper. Combine currants and brandy in a bowl. Cover and set aside for 1 hour. Place butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Stir over simmering water until melted and smooth. Using an electric beater, beat eggs and sugar together until pale and thick. Stir in chocolate mixture, currants and brandy. Gently fold in remaining ingredients until just combined.Spoon into prepared pans and spread out. Cover surface with plastic wrap and smooth out. Refrigerate overnight, until set. Remove plastic wrap, turn out onto a board and dust with cocoa.

Slice and serve, or cut in half lengthways and wrap to give as a gift.

bread and butter pudding

As the winter settles in and the temperature falls this is a great winter dessert and good way to warm up, make sure you use day old bread, or try using old croissants for something a little richer and more indulgent.

85 gm (½ cup) sultanas
2 tbsp brandy, warmed
5 eggs
300 ml pouring cream
300 ml milk
55 gm (¼ cup) caster sugar
1orange, finely grated rind only
1vanilla bean, seeds only
½ tsp ground cinnamon
8 1.5cm-thick slices of day-old white bread
60 gm soft butter, plus extra for greasing
1 tbsp demerara sugar
To serve: icing sugar and vanilla bean ice-cream or double cream

Combine sultanas and brandy in a small bowl and set aside to cool.
Combine eggs, cream, milk, caster sugar, orange rind, vanilla seeds and cinnamon in a jug. Whisk vigorously to combine and set aside.
Spread both sides of bread slices with butter and halve lengthways. Scatter one third of the brandied sultanas into a lightly greased 1-litre capacity ovenproof dish. Trim bread slices to fit dish and layer, scattering remaining brandied sultanas between each layer. Pour cream mixture evenly over bread slices and stand until bread has completely absorbed cream mixture (about 1 hour).
Preheat oven to 180C. Scatter demerara sugar over pudding and bake until golden and custard is firm (30-40 minutes). Serve immediately or at room temperature, lightly dusted with icing sugar, and with scoops of vanilla ice-cream or cream to the side, if desired

mixed berry & frangellico trifle

This well presented, simple mixed berry trifle individually served is a perfect dessert for any dinner party.

what you need

2 egg yolks
1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar
1/4 cup (60ml) Frangelico hazelnut liqueur
250gr mascarpone
8 x 1cm-thick slices panettone
300g fresh or frozen mixed berries

what to do

Use a balloon whisk to whisk egg yolks and sugar together in a medium bowl until light and fluffy. Add 1 tablespoonful of the Frangelico and whisk until smooth. Add the mascarpone and use a metal spoon to gently fold until just combined.Use an round pastry cutter to cut discs from the panettone slices. Brush four discs with a little of the remaining Frangelico. Place in the base of four 1-cup (250ml) capacity serving glasses. Spoon half the berries evenly among serving glasses. Top with half the mascarpone mixture.Continue layering with remaining berries, mascarpone mixture, panettone and Frangelico, finishing with a layer of mascarpone. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill before serving

potato doughnuts

what you need

4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs, well beaten
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup shortening, melted
1 cup unseasoned mashed potatoes

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar

what to do

Sift flour with baking powder, salt, nutmeg, soda. Set aside.
Beat eggs with sugar, shortening; stir in mashed potatoes, lemon rind. Add flour mixture alternately with milk. Turn dough onto lightly floured board. Roll to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut with doughnut cutter. Drop 4 or 5 doughnuts at a time into deep hot fat preheated to 360°. Cook until doughnuts are brown and rise to surface; turn to brown on both sides. Drain.

Roll in mixture of cinnamon and sugar

Pappardelle with Wild Mushrooms

what you need

2 tablespoons plus 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 pounds assorted wild or cultivated mushrooms (such as oyster, porcini, cremini, portobello and stemmed shiitake), trimmed, large mushrooms cut into same size as smaller mushrooms
2 small onions, quartered lengthwise, then thinly sliced crosswise
Sea salt
1 small bunch fresh chives, snipped
500gr (1lb) fresh pappardelle

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 large eggs
Generous pinch of sea salt

what to do

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms and saute until juices form, about 4 minutes. Add onion and saute until mushrooms are tender and liquid has reduced by half, about 5 minutes.

Season to taste with sea salt. Keep warm over very low heat.

Cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until tender but still firm to bite, stirring often, about 1 1/2 minutes. Drain.

Toss mushroom mixture through pasta, divide equally. Sprinkle with picked parsey and serve with a good parmesan

orange and polenta cake

what you need
200g butter, melted
½ cup polenta
1 cup cake flour, plain
1 cup castor sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
Zest of one orange
3 eggs
½ cup milk
3 tablespoon orange juice
2 tablespoons castor sugar (extra)

what to do
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Melt butter.
Combine all dry ingredients with orange zest and put aside.
In a mixer, whisk eggs until light and fluffy (approx 5 minutes).
Slowly pour in melted butter and continue whisking for 1-2 minutes.
Turn whisk to low and gradually pour in dry ingredients and zest.
When just combined add milk and orange juice and fold with spatula. Once combined, pour the mixture into a springform cake tin that has been greased well.
Bake in oven for 45 minutes. Remove and cool on wire rack.
While cooling add remaining 2 tablespoons of orange juice and extra sugar in a small saucepan, sir on high heat and bring to the boil, boil for 2 minutes then remove and brush syrup over orange cake.

marinated stawberries

what you need

2 punnets of strawberries

juice of 1 orange

15mls cointreau

1 dessertspoon icing sugar

what to do

Rinse and hull all but ten strawberries.
Mash the remaining berries, add orange juice, cointreau and sugar.
Tip sauce over whole berries, and marinate for about an hour.

To serve

Dust cake with icing sugar and spoon over marinated strawberies

Chicken Pizziola

This isa fool proof, quick and simple chicken dish that you can just top and pop in the oven with out lots of fussy cooking that will be ready in forty minutes.

what you need
4 x 125g flattened skinless chicken breasts
1/2 cup lean ham, diced
1/2 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 cup capsicum, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped shallots or thinly sliced onion
1/2 cup tomato, diced
1 tsp crushed garlic
1/2 tsp dried basil
cooking spray
4 dsp tomato paste
1 cup tasty cheese, grated



what to do
Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius fan forced. Flatten chicken breasts with a meat mallet. In a medium sized bowl, mix together ham, mushroom, capsicum, shallots, tomato, garlic and basil. Coat a baking tray with cooking spray and place all four flattened chicken breasts on it. Spread one dessertspoon of tomato paste over each breast, then spread pizza topping evenly over each breast. Sprinkle a quarter cup of cheese over each piece. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is cooked and topping is golden brown.

now how easy is that

beef & red wine casserole

what you need

500g diced beef (use chuck or topside)

2 tbsp olive oil

6 small onions, peeled and left whole

2 carrots, thickly sliced

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 cup beef stock

1 cup red wine

200g button mushrooms

what to do

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Coat the beef in one tablespoon of the oil and brown in small batches in a large preheated fry-pan over a medium-high heat. Set beef aside. Reduce heat in pan and add remaining oil, onions, carrots and tomato paste, and cook, stirring for one minute. Add the stock and wine, scraping up the meat residue from the bottom of the pan. Heat until the mixture boils, then pour into a large casserole dish. Add the beef to the casserole dish, mix well. Cover the casserole dish tightly and cook in the preheated oven for one hour. Add the mushrooms.

Cover and cook for a further 20-30 minutes.

Serve with creamy mashed potatoes and sugar snap peas.

pumpkin & pinenut ravioli

pasta dough 1/2 recipe from my blog

what you need for the filling
500g pumpkin, chopped
1/2 cup pine nuts
2 cloves organic garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1 egg white
what you need for the sauce
2 cans organic tomatoes
250g butter
1 large onion

what to do for the filling
Rub salt and olive oil onto pumpkin and roast until soft. Roast pine nuts in a dry skillet. Combine pine nuts with chopped garlic and olive oil in a mortar and pestle to make a rough paste. Add to the cooked pumpkin. The mixture should be rough in texture, juicy and gooey.

what to do for the sauce
Add tomatoes to a deep pan with butter and halved onions.
Simmer for 40 minutes, then remove onions. To assemble ravioli Push fist-sized chunks of dough through a pasta machine to make sheets. Cut pasta sheets into 6cm circles and fill with a tablespoon of stuffing, paint edges of pasta with egg white, and top with another circle and press around edges to seal, ensure you remove all the air or the raviloi will burst when cooking.

Cook ravioli in boiling water until it floats to the surface.
To serve drain then serve with sauce.

spaghetti con cozze

what you need
1/2 extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 cup dry white wine
2 pounds small mussels, scrubbed and debearded
2 cups basic tomato sauce
1 pound spaghetti
1/4 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

what to do
Bring 4 litres of water to a boil in a large pot, and add 2 tablespoons salt.
In a 12-inch sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until light golden brown, about a minute. Add the wine, raise the heat, and bring to a boil, then add the mussels. Cook, stirring and tossing, until all of the mussels have opened, about 4 minutes, remove mussels from the pan and add the tomato sauce, when sauce is hot add mussels back in to warm through.
Meanwhile, drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook until al dente; drain well.
Add the fresh parsley parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. serve on top fresh spaghetti

rustic vegetable soup with italian sausage

With the weather starting to change her in australia and temperatue dropping, nothing warms you up like a good soup, this rustic vegetable soup is a meal in it self, with winter vegetables, pasta, beans and good italian sausage, it will sure fill you up, enjoy it with crusty bread.. why not make double, and enjoy it for days to come. You'll be amazed how much better it tastes the second day.

what you need
1 tablespoon olive oil
500 gr (1lb) mild Italian sausage, casings removed
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
4 cups drained and rinsed canned white beans, preferably cannellini

10 cups water
1 cup canned diced tomatoes with their juice
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper

1/2 cup pasta shapes
1/2 bunch spinach, stems removed and leaves washed well
Grated Parmesan, for serving

what to do
In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately high heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove the sausage with a slotted spoon.
Reduce the heat to moderate. Add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables soften, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, combine 2 cups of the beans and 2 cups of the water in a blender and puree until smooth.
Add the tomatoes, the bean puree, the remaining 8 cups water, the salt, and the pepper to the pot. Bring to a boil, skimming any foam that rises to the surface., add the pasta and cook further 6 minutes, Ssir in the sausage, the remaining 2 cups beans, and the spinach. Simmer until the spinach wilts, or about 3 minutes.

Serve the soup with grated Parmesan and a good spoon ful of basil pesto and lots of crusty bread.

creamy garlic prawns

what you need
250 grams green (raw) prawns
2 cloves of garlic
50 grams butter

table spoon olive oil
30-mls brandy or white wine
Chopped shallots
Cup of thickened cream

what to do
Melt butter with olive oil in fry pan.
Add prawns and cook for about 30 secs
Put crushed garlic in fry pan
add the Brandy or white wine
Reduce liquid until nearly all gone
add the shallots and cream
Boil until cream thickens and reduces slightly.

Serve with rice to soak up all that lovely garlic and cream

braised lamb shanks

what you need

4 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound onions, chopped

2 carrots sliced

2 stalks celery chooped
5 large shallots, sliced (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary or 2 teaspoons dried
6 3/4- to 1-pound lamb shanks
all purpose flour (plain)
2 1/2 cups dry red wine
2 1/2 cups beef stock
1 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 bay leaves

what to do
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in heavy large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add sliced onions , carrots, celeryand shallots and sautee until brown, about 20 minutes. Mix in 2 tbs chopped rosemary. Remove from heat.
Sprinkle lamb shanks with salt and pepper; coat lamb with flour. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy roasting tray over high heat. Working in batches, all lamb shanks to roasting tray and cook until brown on both sides, about 10 minutes per batch.

Using tongs, transfer lamb shanks to plate. Add 1 cup dry red wine to theraosting tray and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Pour into Dutch oven with onion mixture. Add remaining 1 1/2 cups red wine, beef stock, tomato paste and 2 bay leaves to dutch oven. Bring to boil, stirring until tomato paste dissolves. Add lamb shanks, turning to coat with liquid.
Bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until lamb is almost tender, turning lamb shanks occasionally, about 1 1/2 hours. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
Uncover Dutch oven and boil until liquid is reduced to sauce consistency, stirring and turning lamb shanks occasionally, about 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

chilli mussels

Chilli mussels are one of those dishes that everybody loves, and we sold so many in my restaurant, but get them wrong and people will let you know. One of my pet hates is a watery and tastless sauce, One of the main reasons for a watery sauce is the water that comes from the mussels themselves. The fresher the mussel the more water they contain, a mussel can filter up to 38litres of water a day (10 gallons) and while there is nothing better than the tase of fresh seawater, to much can lead to a very watered down sauce.

Ingredients
2 kg cleaned and de-bearded mussels
1 litre good tomato sugo (sauce)
75 mls dry white wine (Riesling, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc)
1 lemon - zest and juice
½ bunch fresh Italian parsley - roughly chopped
100mls extra virgin olive oil
2 gloves garlic crushed
2 small chillies choped (add to taste)

what to do
In a large saucepan with a tight fitting lid, add the mussels and steam till the mussels just open.
Discard 1/2 the water that is in the pot. (otherwise you will ahve avery watery sauce).
Add the white, garlic, chilli wine, and tomato sugo stir well and replace lid. Cook for 3-4 minutes on medium high heat or until all of the mussels shells are open and sauce is hot.
Remove from heat, Stir well so all mussels are coated in sauce.
Serve in large bowls with a drizzle of olive oil, fresh lemon juice and chopped parsley.

Serve a finger bowl and a bowl to put empty shells into, and lots of crusty bread to saok up the thick rich sauce.

chocolate walnut brownies

what you need

150 gm walnut halves, lightly toasted and coarsely chopped
250 gm good-quality dark cooking chocolate, chopped
200 gm dark brown sugar
125 ml vegetable oil
50 ml coffee liqueur (Kahlua / Tia Maria)
3 free range eggs
1 tsp natural vanilla essence
150 gm plain flour
30 gm cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder

what to do
Preheat oven to 170°C. Spray a shallow 23cm square cake pan with spray oil to lightly grease. Line the base with non-stick baking paper.
Melt the chocolate in a medium heat-resistant bowl (glass/ceramic) over a saucepan of simmering water and mix until smooth. Remove the bowl from the heat and set aside.
Beat sugar, oil, eggs, liqueur and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl until well combined and paler in colour. Add the melted chocolate and beat until well combined.
Sift together flour, cocoa powder and baking powder over chocolate mixture and use a large metal spoon to fold in until combined. Fold in walnut pieces. Pour mixture into prepared pan and smooth the surface. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until moist crumbs cling to a skewer inserted into the centre. Remove from oven and cool completely in pan.
When cool, turn onto a board, remove paper and cut into pieces.

For a great easy dessert, lightly warm a brownie, top with a scoop of good vanilla ice cream, pour over a bix berry coulis and serve with fresh berries.

warm lemon and herb olives

what you need

500 grams of a variety of whole olive in brine that are different sizes, colours and varieties - drained and rinsed (eg. Kalamata, Manzanillo)
1 clove fresh garlic - sliced
100 mls redisland extra virgin olive oil
2 sprigs fresh rosemary stripped from the stalk
3 sprigs fresh thyme or lemon thyme stripped from the stalk
4 small red chillies - whole
Zest of 1 lemon - pith removed and cut into matchstick strips
Freshly cracked black pepper
Fresh crunchy bread to dip in the oil - sliced

what to do
Heat oil up to low - medium heat in fry pan and gently cook garlic without colour
Turn to a low heat and add rosemary, thyme, lemon zest and whole chilli
Toss in the pan for 1 minute and then add olives. Warm through for 2 minutes on low heat.
Season with pepper and serve warm with crusty bread to dip into the oil.

chef's tips
Serve a small bowl to put the unwanted olive pips
If you require olives with more chilli flavouring, slice the chilli or add more.
Pitted olives can be used instead of whole olives

three cheese risotto

what you need

1 litre hot chicken stock

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
3 sticks celery, trimmed and finely chopped

400g aborio rice

2 glasses of dry white wine

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

100g Gruyere cheese, roughly chopped

100g taleggio cheese, roughly chopped

75g butter

50g freshly grated Parmesan cheese

what to do

Heat the stock in a pan over a moderate heat.

Heat the olive oil in a pan. Add the onions, garlic and celery, and fry gently for about 5 minutes until softened.

Add the rice to the pan and turn up the heat. Cook for a minute or so, stirring constantly, until the rice looks slightly translucent.

Add the wine and keep stirring - any alcohol flavours will evaporate.Once the wine has been absorbed by the rice, add your first ladle of hot stock and a good pinch of salt and pepper.

Turn the heat down to a simmer so the rice doesn't cook too quickly on the outside. Add the stock, a ladleful at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next, until the rice is cooked but still holds its shape - this takes about 15 minutes.Stir in the Gruyere and taleggio.

Remove the pan from the heat and season to taste, then beat in the butter and Parmesan.

Place a lid on the pan and leave to rest for 2 to 3 minutes - your risotto will get nice and oozy.

baby beetroot. asparagus and fetta salad

For the salad
6-8 baby beetroots
4 asparagus spears, blanched
1/2 spanish onion, thinly sliced
handful continental parsley, roughly chopped
handful fresh watercress
75g aged fetta
30ml extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp natural yoghurt
pomegranate molasses - optional

what to do
For the salad:
Place beetroots in cold, salted water and bring to the boil. Cook until easily pierced with knife or skewer (about 20 minutes). Strain and allow to cool. Peel off skins while still warm and set aside. In a mixing bowl combine beetroot, asparagus, spanish onion, parsley, watercress Toss lightly with extra virgin olive oil to coat.

To assemble: Glide yoghurt on to your salad plate with the back of a serving spoon and spread over the plate.
Place salad in the centre of the plate, garnish with a good drizzle of olive oil and season with a generous amount of cracked pepper.

Dizzle with pomegranate molases if prefered, eat as a started or with rare roasted beef

ricotta stuffed figs

what you need
8 medium figs (480g)
¼ cup (25g) roasted walnuts chopped coarsely
½ cup (120g) ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1/3 cup (80ml) cream
30g butter
1/3 cup (75g) firmly packed brown sugar

what to do
Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C.
Cut figs, from the top, into quarters, being careful not to cut all the way through; open slightly. Place on oven tray.Combine nuts, cheese and sugar in small bowl; divide nut mixture among figs. Cook, uncovered, about 10 minutes or until figs are heated through.Meanwhile, combine remaining ingredients in small saucepan; stir over heat until sugar dissolves. Simmer, uncovered, 3 minutes
Place two figs in each serving dish; drizzle with caramel sauce.

Or for something a little more savoury mis fresh herbs in with the ricotta wrap in parma ham and bake for 10 minutes

spaghetti puttenesca

This pasta sauce originally was made by Neapolitan prostitutes, who quickly put it together while waiting for the next client

what you need
350g spaghetti or spaghettini
4 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely sliced
6 anchovy fillets, drained of oil
400g can chopped tomatoes
2 tbsp small black olives, halved
Pinch of dried chilli flakes
1 tbsp small salted capers, rinsed
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
Sea salt and black pepper

what to do
Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water until al dente.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frypan and gently cook the garlic for a minute or two.
Add the anchovies and mash them into the oil. Add the tomatoes, olives, chilli and capers and cook over medium heat for 5 mins, stirring occasionally. Add oregano and parsley and season to taste.
Drain pasta well and toss with the sauce. Serve hot.

fettucini alfredo

The original dish consists simply of butter and freshly grated parmesan cheese. Rich and creamy, this pasta dish is delicious, there are many variations to this recipe. Why not add pancetta, chicken, fresh asparagus or even mushrooms.
the better the pasta and cheese the better the result, as simple as this recipe is you won't Taste better.

what you need
500gr (1lb) Fresh Fettuccine
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Cup Heavy Cream
1/2 Cup Chicken stock
1 Egg Yolk
1/2 Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
Sea Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
Additional Grated parmesan To Serve

optional
pancetta or streaky bacon)
asparagus
field mushrooms
chicken

what to do
Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Remove 1/4 cup of the cream to a separate bowl and wisk the egg yolk into it. In a saucepan, heat the remaining cream and chicken stock . (if adding options, sautee first then add cream)
Cook the pasta al dente.
Drain the pasta and return it to the pot. Stir the butter into the pasta until melted and the butter covers each strand of pasta. Wisk a little of the hot cream mixture into the egg yolk, mix well, and then pour the egg yolk mixture over the pasta.

Add the grated cheese, and a dash of sea salt to taste. Divide the pasta into four separate dishes and top with cracked black pepper and offer additional parmesan cheese.

cannoli

A cannoli is a crisp hand-rolled pastry shell filled with an exquisite thick cream made of ricotta cheese

what you need
225 gm (1½ cups) plain flour
2 tsp Dutch-process cocoa powder
½ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp caster sugar
2 tbsp melted unsalted butter
60 ml (¼ cup) vin santo or Marsala
1 egg, beaten
6-8 cannelloni pasta tubes, for wrapping
1 eggwhite, beaten
For deep-frying: vegetable oil
For dusting: pure icing sugar

what to do
Sift flour, cocoa and cinnamon into a bowl, add caster sugar and combined butter, vin santo and egg, stirring until dough starts to come together, then turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until dough is smooth and elastic (5-10 minutes). Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Cut pastry into four pieces. Working with one piece at a time (keep remaining refrigerated), lightly flour dough, then using a pasta machine with rollers at widest setting, feed dough through rollers reducing settings one notch at a time until dough is 2mm thick. Cut into 9cm squares, place on a lightly floured tray and cover with a tea towel.
Working with one square at a time, wrap pastry around cannelloni tubes, so opposite corners overlap, and brush with eggwhite to seal (do not put eggwhite on the tube). Heat oil in a deep-fryer or deep saucepan to 180C. Deep-fry tubes in batches until crisp and golden (2-3 minutes), drain on absorbent paper, cool slightly, then slide cannoli shells off tubes. Cannoli shells will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
For filling, process ricotta, liqueur and icing sugar using a food processor until smooth, stir through remaining ingredients. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a 1.5cm star nozzle and pipe into cooled cannoli, dust with icing sugar and serve immediately.

fettucini con cozze

what you need
1/2 extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 cup dry white wine
2 pounds small mussels, scrubbed and debearded
500gr (1lb)fresh fettucini
1/4 cup finely chopped Italian parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon hot red pepper flakes

what to do
Bring 6 litres of water to a boil in a large pot, and add 2 tablespoons salt.
In a 12-inch sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook until light golden brown, about a minute. Add the wine, raise the heat, and bring to a boil, then add the mussels. Cook, stirring and tossing, until all of the mussels have opened, about 4 minutes.
Meanwhile, drop the pasta into the boiling water and cook until al dente; drain well.
Add the pasta to the pan with the mussels and cook over high heat for 1 minute. Add the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Sprinkle with red pepper flakes and serve immediately

porchetta

what you need
1 kg piece of boneless pork belly
2-3 garlic cloves
Pinch sea salt
3 tsp fennel seeds
½ bunch sage leaves, picked and roughly chopped
2 sprigs rosemary, picked and chopped
Pinch chilli flakes
½ zest of a lemon
50g capers, rinsed and roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
Ground black pepper
1 carrot
1 onion
125ml water

what to do
Preheat the oven to 400/200/Gas 6.
Score the pork fat and remove any excess with a craft knife as this will help with the cracking. Crush the garlic in a large pestle and mortar with a good pinch of sea salt, add the fennel seeds and sage and bruise.
Transfer to a bowl, and add the rosemary, chilli flakes, lemon zest, capers, olive oil, a grinding of black pepper and mix. Lay the pork on a board skin side up, smear the herb and caper mix over pork and roll lengthways.
To roll the pork, start in the middle and tie very tightly with one piece of string, continue to make 2 more ties on either side. Cut the carrot and onion into quarters, place in a roasting tin and put the pork on top. The carrot and onion will act as a trivet and stop the pork sticking to the tin. Roast for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300/150/Gas 2, add 250ml of water and cook for 2 hrs. Remove the pork from the oven and set aside in a warm place to rest.
Heat the roasting tin on the hob and scrape any caramelised pieces and pour the cooking juices into a jug.

Cut the pork into 4 pieces and serve with rosemary roasted potatoes and the pork juices

arrabiata (angry) pasta

This fiery dish gains its name arrabbiata (angry) because of the use of chilli. When preparing this angry dish, feel free to use as much chilli as you want, it is up to you and to your mouth, to make it angry or very angry!
This is a recipe that has its origin in the central part of Italy, more precisely, it belongs to the Roman cooking tradition. As you can imagine, in Italy there are many versions of it because of the different regional cooking traditions that influence this famous dish; some are so adventurous that they have nothing to do with a proper arrabbiata (like the use of cream or anchovies).

what u need
400 g (14 oz) Penne rigate pasta (cooked "al dente")
90 ml (3 ½ oz) Extra virgin Olive Oil
2 Cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
2 or 3 Whole dried red chilli (roughly chopped)
500 g (1.1 lb) Chopped tomatoes
A small handful of flat leaf parsley (roughly chopped)
Salt for seasoning

what to do

Chop the garlic and chilli.
Heat the Olive Oil in a sauté pan (medium heat) and add the chopped garlic and chilli into the pan.
Sauté for a couple of minutes or until the garlic becomes golden in colour. When the garlic has turned to golden, add the chopped tomatoes.
Stir for a few seconds.
Season with salt.
Now, cook on medium/low heat for about 20-25 minutes, to reduce the sauce. After this time the suace will be ready.

A few minutes before the arrabbiata sauce is ready, boil your pasta and when the pasta is cooked al dente, drain it and add it into the pan containing the sauce.
Stir for few seconds to coat the pasta with the sauce. Do this when the pan is still on the heat.
Then, sprinkle with chopped parsley, give a quick stir and serve immediately.

gremolata

Gremolata, which is also spelled “gremolada,” is a condiment that is traditionally served with Ossobucco, which is an Italian dish of braised veal shank. Gremolata is a chopped herb condiment made of garlic, parsley, and lemon peel. Although it is a common accompaniment to veal, the citrus element in gremolata makes it a wonderful addition to seafood and lamb dishes.
Here is a very simple gremolata recipe:

what you need
1 small bunch of flat-leafed parsley
1 lemon
1 large clove of garlic
cracked Black pepper

what to do
Wash and dry the parsley. Finely chop enough to yield two tablespoons
Mince the garlic.
Grate the peel of the lemon until you have produced one teaspoon of zest.
Mix all of the above in a small bowl and add salt and pepper to taste. Many chefs like to prepare the ingredients together in a mortar and pestle to ensure that the flavors of each ingredient mingle before the gremolata is served.

Sprinkle over your dish prior to serving

zabaglione with marinated berries

what you need
2 egg yolks per person
2 teaspoons Sugar
1 small sherry glass full of Marsala

what to do
beat the yolks and the sugar together until they are white and frothy. Stir in the Marsala and put the whole mixture into a thick pan (an untinned copper sugar-boiling pan is the best utensil for zabaglione) over a low heat. If you don't have a copper bowl use a double boiler or a bowl over a large pot of boiling water. Stir continuously as for a custard, taking great care that the zabaglione does not curdle. It must not boil. As soon as it thickens pour it into warmed glasses and serve immediately

marinated berries
what you need
2 punnet fresh mixed berries
60ml white sambucca
1/3 cup sugar

what to do
Meanwhile, place the berries in a pan with the sugar and sambucca. Stir over low heat for 5 minutes to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.

To serve place berries in the bottom of a tall glass and top with the warn Zabaglione, dust with greshly grated cinimon.

olive tapanade

what you need
2 cups good-quality kalamata olives, pitted
4 anchovies, drained
1/2 small garlic clove, chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons capers, drained
2 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
·1/2 lemon, juiced

what to do
Place olives, anchovies, garlic and capers in a small food processor. Process until mixture is almost smooth. With the motor running, slowly add 2 tablespoons oil, in a thin steady stream, until mixture forms a thick, smooth paste (adding oil slowly prevents the tapenade from separating).
Transfer tapenade to a small bowl. Stir in 2 teaspoons lemon juice, or more if desired.
Season with pepper. Transfer to a sterilised glass jar or container. Pour remaining 2 teaspoons oil over tapenade to cover surface. Store in the refrigerator for up to 7 days.

braised beef cheeks

what you need

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 (12-oz) beef cheeks, trimmed of excess fat
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1/2 celery rib, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups red wine (preferably a dry Lambrusco or Chianti)
1 lge can whole tomatoes including juice, chopped (3 cups)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper

what to do

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in an ovenproof wide heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. While oil is heating, pat beef cheeks dry and season with salt and pepper. Brown beef, without crowding, on all sides, about 20 minutes total, and transfer with tongs to a bowl. Pour off fat from pot, then add remaining 2 tablespoons oil and cook onion, carrot, and celery over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Stir cocoa powder into vegetable mixture, then add wine and scrape up any brown bits. Increase heat to high and boil until liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes.
Return cheeks (with any juices) to pot and add tomatoes with juice, salt, and pepper. Bring to a simmer, then braise, covered, in middle of oven until very tender, for about 3 hours.

Once cooked I prefer to strain the sauce and remove all the vegetables, great served with either, polenta, mash or shreaded with fresh pasta