Struffoli (Tiny Honey Balls)

Struffoli are an Italian dessert typical of Naples. They consist of tiny fried pieces of dough simply made with flour, sugar, eggs, lemon and rum, completely coated with honey and colored confection. Their dimensions are important indeed the more they are small the more they are good because they absorb the sweet taste of honey. They are simple to cook and in particular they are prepared in the occasion of Christmas. In Naples Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without Stuffoli.

INGREDIENTS (for 10 people):

300 g of Flour

2 Eggs

1 Tablespoon of Sugar

1 Lemon

2 Tablespoon of rum or anisette

1 Pinch of salt

25 g of Butter

4 – 5 Tablespoons of Honey

Some colored confections

Extra virgin olive oil to fry

PREPARATION TIME: 40 minutes

COOKING TIME: 15 minutes

WINE: Meditandum (White Wine)

PREPARATION

Place the flour as a fountain on a table, in the middle of it add the sugar, the butter, the eggs, the rum, the salt and the grated peel of the lemon.

Knead in order to obtain solid dough and let it stand for about 30 minutes.

After the 30 minutes knead again the dough and divide it in small parts. Knead each part rolling it until you obtain loafs thin and long.

Cut the loafs into small squared pieces called struffoli.

Preheat the extra virgin olive oil in a pan and fry in it the small squared pieces until they become slightly golden, this takes about 5 minutes. Then drain them on a kitchen paper.

Now put in the middle of a platter an overturned glass and place the struffoli around it.

In a pan place the honey and let it melt then pour it over the struffoli. Remove the glass and sprinkle with colored confections. This is the result:

BUON APPETITO!

Omelet with Zucchini, Salami and Fontina Cheese

Here the preparation of omelet with zucchini made in a different way from the classical one where you mix everything before and then cook. In this case I first cooked the zucchini then I add the beaten eggs and in the top I put pieces of Bergamasco salami and Fontina cheese. In this way you can appreciate and taste every ingredient that you use. What I like more is when the pieces of cheese are not completely melted and this you can decide at the end of the cooking, but if you want the cheese completely melt you can cover the omelet with a lid for few minutes.

INGREDIENTS (for 4 people):
5 Zucchini

4-5 eggs

5 slices of Bergamasco salami

80 g of Fontina cheese

Salt

Black pepper

3 Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

PREPARATION TIME: 10 minutes

COOKING TIME: 20-30 minutes

WINE: Chardonnay Doc (White Wine)

PREPARATION

Wash the zucchini and cut them in thin slices. Preheat the extra virgin olive oil in a large pan add the zucchini and let them cook for about 15 minutes stirring time by time.

While the zucchini are cooking, prepare the eggs, the bergamasco salami and the Fontina cheese.

In a bowl place the eggs, sprinkle with salt and black pepper and beat them.

Cut the Bergamasco salami in slices and then in pieces and cut also the Fontina cheese in cubes. When the zucchini are ready, pour on them the beaten eggs in order to cover all the zucchini,

and then add the Bergamasco salami and the Fontina cheese.

Let the omelet cooked for about 15 minutes, during the cooking make small holes in the middle of the omelet in order to let the eggs to cook completely.

If necessary at the end of the cooking cover with a lid for few minutes in order to melt completely the cheese. Serve it hot.

BUON APPETITO!

Spelt Salad with Basil Pesto and Cherry Tomatoes

A fresh Italian salad for the hot summer, you need only few ingredients: spelt, basil pesto and fresh cherry tomatoes. The preparation of this Italian salad is easy and fast and you can also prepare it in advice and keep in the fridge. You can prepare it in the morning for the dinner or the night before for the next lunch, in this way the salad it will result more tasty and all the flavors will be good mixed.

INGREDIENTS ( for 4 people):

320 g of Spelt

3 Tablespoons of Basil Pesto

12-15 Fresh Cherry Tomatoes

Salt

PREPARATION TIME : 20 minutes

COOKING TIME: 20 minutes

WINE: Sangiovese (Red Wine)

PREPARATION

Boil the spelt for about 20 minutes in salted water.

 

Drain the spelt and let it cool down. If you want to eat it immediately you can put it in the fridge so it will cool down faster. In the mean time wash the cherry tomatoes and cut them in slice, keep one or two tomatoes  entire to use on the top of the salad. When the spelt is cold add the basil pesto

 

and the slice of the cherry tomatoes, mix all together. Serve cold with an entire cherry tomatoes on the top.

BUON APPETITO!