VANILLA POUND CAKE

What's easier than a pound cake? You can personalize it as you prefer, adding particular flavors or ingredients. Of course, my favorite is the vanilla pound cake! 

An easy and quick dessert, that you can eat as breakfast as well as a snack accompanied with a cup of tea. It's amazing spread with Nutella or, even better, with a home made raspberry jam.

WARM GOAT'S CHEESE SALAD

Believe me, this dish tastes even better than it seems. Warm goat's cheese accompanied by a fresh salad with apples and walnuts.

I discovered this way to serve goat's cheese almost one year ago, when my boyfriend ordered it in a restaurant here in Utrecht. It was delicious and once home I immediately started to search for a recipe explaining how to prepare it. Nothing! I found different versions of warm goat's cheese but no one looked like the dish we had in the restaurant.

I decided then to find it by myself. After several attempts I finally found out the right combination of ingredients and the cooking time!

Let's see together how to make this dish, that can be served as starter or second/main course.

SHRIMPS AND MUSHROOMS PASTA

This shrimps and mushrooms bavette is my cheaper and easier version of the Italian pasta mare e monti. 

This dish has become a classic of the Italian cuisine and everyone has his/her own recipe. The mountains (monti) are represented by mushrooms and the sea (mare) by shrimps or other sea food, as mussels, clams, squids etc.

Following these steps and with the help of your imagination you will bring to the table a very tasty main course!

APPLE CAKE with cinnamon

This is my mum's apple cake recipe. In autumn, when there are the new apples of the season, it's always present in her kitchen. I love it: simple and delicious.
I decided, however, to make some changes and to make it even more tasty. I'm really proud of the result: this is not only an apple cake. This is an addictive apple cake!

Let's see how to prepare it.

BAVETTE ALLA CARBONARA

What shall I say about carbonara? It's a traditional Italian recipe, quite caloric, delicious...well, you already know that!
I can only add that the following recipe isn't the original one but it's my mother's version! For me (and my boyfriend) the best ever tried!

APPLE STRUDEL

It's about time to enjoy the new apples of the season!

Apples are a perfect snack eaten row; but when used as an ingredient they can be transformed in delicious desserts! They combine perfectly with flavors such as cinnamon, vanilla, caramel. 

My favorite apple-dessert is, without any doubt, the strudel!

It's really easy to make and it contains only few simple ingredients that match magically with apples.

It smells wonderful (also your house will be surrounded by the aroma of cinnamon and apple) and tastes even better if dusted with icing sugar. Served still warm with vanilla ice-cream is....simply divine!

PASTA BRISÉ (shortcrust pastry)

Pasta brisé (shortcrust pastry) is the basic dough in my kitchen (and in the Italian cuisine) for preparing both savory and sweet dishes. From apple pie to pastry appetizers, from pastries to quiche, from closed pies to ''pastry shells'' and so on...
Once you learn how to make it (and believe me, it's really easy!), you will forget the ready-to-bake pastries of the supermarket!

BEANS SALAD WITH PEPPERS, ONION AND FETA

After my last visit to Italy, my pantry is now full of food stored by my mother.

In particular I brought with me two different types of dried beans. But...How to cook them?

I like beans: they are a good substitute for meat (being high in protein) and they are an excellent source of minerals and vitamins. Though I've never prepared them from scratch.

There is always a first time...and a new recipe!

For this recipe I used a typical bean of the Belluno Valley, the area where my parents live. Its name is gialet (you can find more information about it here): 

Of course, other types of beans can be used and also canned beans or chickpeas match perfectly with the other ingredients (saving also a lot of time ;) ).

The result will be a tasteful salad that, accompanied by a slice of bread, is also a healthy main course. 

POTATOES ROSTI

Either we eat a steak or I decide to serve a plate of cheese and cold cuts, this rösti is perfect as accompaniment.

Potatoes rösti is my boyfriend's favorite side dish. And mine...as it's quick, easy and all what I need are three ingredients.

Crispy outside and soft, buttery inside it's an original way to serve potatoes. It's also a lighter alternative to fries.

I started to prepare my rösti from scratch; only later I discovered its history (it is a Swiss traditional dish initially eaten as breakfast) and the different versions (indeed you can add cheese, salami or other vegetables). I would like then to precise that my recipe doesn't pretend to copy or imitate the original one.

Let's see how to prepare it!