Jyothi

Some people use spaghetti or bucatini.
I do prefer short, raw pasta that collects the bacon pieces and the egg better.

This recipe is very simple, but timing is essential when making it.

Start by frying some bacon in olive oil. Don’t make it burned. Just cook it for a couple of minutes: it only needs to get pink and cooked, it does not have to be crisp at this point. So stop the fire and take the pan away not to make it burn.

Also, while doing the bacon this way start with letting the water boil and cooking the pasta.

At the same time prepare a couple of eggs like if you would do an omelette – it is not necessary to mix it very throughly – it is fine if the white and the yellow part of the egg are not mixed completely:

You can add a bit of salt and pepper to it.

At the same time, grate some parmesan cheese:

When the pasta is nearly cooked (half a minute before you think it’s gonna be “al dente”), turn the fire back on softly under the bacon, so the oil gets warm again. As soon as the pasta is “al dente” dump it quickly with the bacon and the oil, start mixing it so the oil makes it all aroound the pieces of pasta like a glue. Also dump the egg in the pan at this point. Just keep the fire low and keep mixing.

Mix the parmesan cheese too:

Just keep stiring, the egg needs to go everywhere and the past has to absorbe it a bit. keep stiring, don’t let it be stuck to the pan or form blobs.

Add freshly grated black pepper:

Serve and eat while it’s warm!
Enjoy

Ingredients:

A small onion.
a pinch of salt,
a pinch of pepper,
lemon juice (a couple of tea spoons),
one ripe avocado,
one cherry tomato.

put altogether and mix it all with a blender.
don’t forget to dip your nachos in it.
enjoy

Living in Italy also means that when it is the right season the vegetables of that season are really cheap. So the other day I bought 10 kilo of tomatoes for 4 euro.

So I went looking online for recipes, this is one of them.

6 plum tomatoes cut in thick slices
1 package of puffpastry
about 300 grams of grated cheese ( I used a mixture of Gouda, parmesan and pecorino)
1 tablespoon of mustard
1 tablespoon of dried basil

Put the puffpastry in a low pie shape. spread the mustard on the bottom. Lay down the tomatoes in a circular way. cover it with the grated cheese and the basil.

Then put the pie in the oven for about 30 minutes on 200 degrees Celsius. Or until it looks done. Take out and let the pie cool down. Enjoy  

This is how I make them. I add some more vegetables then in the “original” recipe because Luca is not to keen on eating vegetables and he loves eating these. So this way he eats them anyway. For me cooking is a matter of feeling so it is hard to give the exact amounts for the ingredients.

Ingredients.

1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed off
1 small onion
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
60 grams of fresh parsley
salt and pepper to taste
3 eggs
dried breadcrumbs 

As I own one of these lovely food processor I add all the ingredients in there, apart from 2 eggs and the breadcrumbs. And turn it on. Normally after 5 minutes or so I have a smooth mixture.

If you do not own one of those you need the chop the onion, carrot, parsley and  celery in very small pieces. Then squash the chickpeas and mix it all together with one egg.

From the mixture that you have you should be able to make firm balls. So if it is to wet add a little of the breadcrumbs, if it is to dry add a little oil.

Once you made all the balls. Beat the 2 left over eggs in a plate and on another plate you do the breadcrumbs.

First you role the balls through the eggs and then through the breadcrumbs.

At this point i normally let them rest in the fridge for about half an hour and after that I deep fry them.

1 tablespoon of olive oil

1 shallot chopped

pinch of chili pepper

150 gram frozen spinach

150 gram frozen chicory

3 eggs

250 ricotta (I used the one from sheep milk)

salt and pepper to taste

ready made puff pastry (I know i am lazy)

baking tin

Defrost the spinach and chicory.(I usually defrost it for about 5 minutes in the microwave)

In a pan glaze the shallot and add the chili pepper.

When the shallots are glazed add the spinach and chicory and stirfry for about 10 minutes or until all is cooked.Take of the heat

In a bowl mix the eggs with the ricotta until it is smooth, add salt and pepper to taste.

Dress the baking tin with the puff pastry, the left over bits you can use to decorate the pie.

Mix the egg/ricotta mixture with the spinach and chicory and after all is mixed transfer to the dressed baking tin.

Decorate with the leftover bits of the puff pastry.

Bake in the oven on about 180 degrees  for about 45 minutes or until golden brown.