TUNA-BOMB-norma -SWORDFISH

 

 

Tuna  with sweet and sour Onions x 4 people 

400 g of the best of the tuna you can find . Look for the beautiful red part with little fibre
300 g of  Tropea  red onions  finely chopped long ways – (if you can fine these specific  red onions great , if not please use shallot onions or the sweetest mildest onion you can find ) 30 g of white sugar
80 ml of Red wine vinegar
10 capers – if they are large chopped or if they are the mini capers you don’t need to chop
2 bay leaves
60 g of olive oil

Procedure

In a sauce pan place some your olive oil , add your onions and the bay leaves  and let them stew gently stew  for around 15-20 minutes . be patient really cook them down , so they are nice and soft and transparent.

Once done , add your sugar around the edges of the pan and leave for a few minutes .

Add your vinegar and cook for a further 10 minutes – 15 minutes .

Onions done

Now the tuna . We seared our tuna in olive oil – for about 5 minutes – medium heat . seared and remains pink in the middle.

 

 

 

 

 

Busiate  alla  Norma for 6 people 

1 kilo of tomatoes Piccadilly- take the smal part of the head off and discard  and chop the tomato  into 8 parts .
1 garlic finely sliced , taking out the middle part of the  garlic (which we call the soul of the garlic ) and finely chop into slices .
1 red soft onion finely chopped
1 Egg plant cut in half – and put in the oven for 15 minutes at 180 °c
4 eggplants – peeled and sliced in 1 cm slices (be as precise as possibile )
large handful of basil finely chopped
Breadcrumbs for your moulds
30 g of dried oven ricotta

Preparing the eggplants 

Take most of the skin off with a peeler  and cut  the  egg plants   into 1 cm slices 

If you are using the Turco Varies eggplant – drain : Add a generous amount of salt to all the eggplant and place in a drainer and let them drain for around   4-5 hours  . (This will take all the bitterness out and water from the eggplant  , meaning they will absorb less fat ) . 

** If you are using the Viola Variety  eggplant (round and purple ) You can drain for less time , around 1 -2 hr , dice and fry in sun flower or peanut oil. 

 Procedure for your tins and mould 

You can use a small -medium size baking tray . Or separate aluminium  moulds (which we used ) – muffin tins or cup cake tins.

Gently grease them with some oil and scatter the dried breadcrumbs – this will avoid any sticking .

We can start layering  the moulds with the fried eggplant , going round so we cover all the tin and leaving a flap over the edge of about 2 cm of eggplant

Procedure for the sauce 

 

Add a nice amount of  oil to your large saucepan and first add your garlic , after a  around 40 seconds  add the onion and get them nicely and soft , after a 5-8 minutes,.

add the tomatoes and keep simmering for 30-40 minutes . you don’t want the tomatoes too crushed like a sauce but still nicely cooked.

add salt and taste to liking . then add  all your basil and take off heat .

Put though your ricer or food mill (just like we showed you ) .

 

Busiate Pasta 

 

Long thin metal skewers  .  called ferro, a metal spike . . However, a thin wooden skewer works as a substitute are great . .

1/2 kg  of semola flour

a table spoon of  olive oil

250 ml of water

a large pinch salt

Preparing the pasta

On a clean surface add all the flour and add the pinch of salt and olive oil  .  With your hands create  a hole in the middle .

in the hole gently add the water and with your hand slow mix the flour into water . continue adding the water , until you get a nice firm dough. kneed the dough together , stretching it for about 10-15  minutes.

let rest for 30-40 minutes

roll the dough into long thin  sausages and with your stick you are ready to do roll your busiate .

Technique – your saw It !!!

Cook the  busiate in salted boiling water for around 1 1/2 – 2 minutes – until they come a float .

 

ASSEMBLING EVERYTHING 

THE LAST PART – Now in another pan – add your olive oil and 1 chopped finely garlic + your oven eggplant – tomato sauce .

Add your busiate pasta and cook – add a nice amount of chopped basil and your grated dried oven ricotta .

 

Now place the pasta in your eggplant moulds and place in oven for 8 minutes at 180 °c

Let rest for 5 minutes

DONE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

swordfish / fillet beef meat  involtini 

 Involtini 

500 gr  of fish/ beef fillet  will feed 4 people
400 g Breadcrumb & herb mixture ( see below )
Oilve OilSamoriglio: a squeeze of  lemon -a large pinch oregano – 50 ml of olive oil –  pinch of salt
salt and Pepper
wooden skewers

Breadcrumb mixture for the filling of the fillets
400 g of white bread loaf or sliced bread – chopped in a food mixer
4 tables spoons of flat leaf parsley
100 g of Parmesan
1 garlic very thinly chopped
Mix all together and with your and hand  rub  together all the bread and herbs together , so all the herbs and garlic infuse together.

 

Putting together your Involtini

Take your fillets and cover in oil that they are coated .
Gently coat each fillet in the breadcrumb mixture .
Gently roll your fillets
Place on your skewer

Place in the oven for 8- 10 minutes at 180 °c

(see photo )

 

FOCACCIA – MIXED HERBS AND TOMATOES ON TOP – 1/2 A KILO

 

500 g of 00 flour
15 g salt
60 ml olive oil25 g sugar
15  yeast (brewer yeast ) – 1 sachet dried yeast.
200-300  ml water
Rosemary finely chopped – olives – (you Can be adventures with this )

 

1. Place the flour ,  salt into a large bowl, and make a well in the middle. Add the yeast and sugar to the lukewarm water, and mix with a fork. Leave this for a few minutes and, when it starts to foam, slowly pour it into the well, mixing with a fork as you go.
2. Add your rosemary and herbs .
3. As soon as all the ingredients come together, which may take a minute or so, knead vigorously for around 5 minutes until you have a smooth, springy, soft dough.
4. Lightly oil a large bowl with some olive oil and transfer the dough to the bowl. Dust with a little extra flour, cover with a tea towel and leave to prove in a warm place for 30 minutes until doubled in size.
5. While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 220°C/425°F/gas 7 and prepare the toppings with some chopped tomatoes .

 

 

Tiramisu x 12 people 

6 yolks- Elvira will only use the freshest chicken organic eggs

150 g of white sugar

1/2 Kilo Mascarpone

1/2 kilo of fresh  cream  whipped

the best quality savoiardi biscuits (buy 2 packets )

300 ml of illy coffee – the best type of coffee you can get – done and cooled down

ADD 50 ml of Vecchia Romania or Cognac into the coffee

Bitter cocco powder

 

Procedure 

whisk your yolks and sugar

Then stir in the Mascarpone  (but work with it a little before  and don’t use it from directly the fridge as it would be too hard and would mix probably )

Fold in your whipped cream

Soak your biscuits In the coffee and alcohol – briefly not too much ( you don’t want them too soft ) .

Layering your tiramisu

Bottom layer biscuit – layer of cream – layer again of biscuit and final layer of cream

Sprinkle with cocco powder

ENJOY !!!