Tag Archive for: conta dei carboidrati

Discovering Italian PDOs: Savoury muffins with Provolone Valpadana PDO

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While still loving the ‘old’ way of travelling, I decided to embark on a journey of discovery of the Provolone Valpadana PDO through the project “Choose your taste, sweet or spicy, only from Europe”in collaboration with the European Commission and theItalian Food Bloggers Association. The project aims to improve the manner in which European quality labelled products are recognised and promote their consumption, and I did it with my Savoury muffins with Provolone Valpadana PDO.

logo progetto 

My encounter with this product dates back to my childhood when I accompanied my father to the International Dairy Cattle Fair in Cremona , where the food stands present at the social event for breeders from Northern Italy displayed huge cheese wheels, shiny, sometimes round and sometimes cylindrical. Their size fascinated and, at the same time, frightened me.

After so many years, discovering how this cheese is made fills my heart with joy.

The sweet and spicy Provolone Valpadana PDO

Where does the name of this cheese come from? From the Italian word prova “try” (because in the past, when there were no technological means to verify that the curd was fermented to the right point to be spun, pieces of it were taken and spinning tests were made repeatedly (hence the name Provola and its augmentative Provolone) until the results were perfect to proceed.

marchio

The production area of Provolone Valpadana PDO includes part of Lombardy, part of Veneto, the province of Piacenza and part of the province of Trento, an area characterised by the presence of the Po Valley.

The production process in brief

  1. Milk preparation in the boiler within 60 hours after milking.
  2. Addition of fermented whey from the end of the previous day’s processing and, if necessary, of additional lactic acid bacteria always obtained from the whey of Provolone Valpadana PDO.
  3. Rennet and curdling, the stage from which the differentiation between mild and piquant Provolone starts, thanks to the addition of calf rennet in the former and kid rennet in the latter, which cause the milk to curdle at a temperature of between 36 and 39°C.
    coagulazione

    Curdling (photo by Consorzio del Provolone Valpadana PDO)

  4. Fermentation and cutting of the curd, when the curd is allowed to rest by fermenting on suitable surfaces and, once ready, cut and then stretched.
  5. Stretching, a process that takes place in water at 85-95°C, consists of melting the curd by pulling it to form long threads.
  6. Moulding, cooling and firming, when the curd is moulded either by hand or in special moulds and placed in ice-cold water to promote rapid cooling and subsequent firming.
  7. Salting, which consists of immersing the cheeses in brine for a period of time depending on their size.
    salatura

    Salting (photo by Consorzio Provolone Valpadana PDO)

  8. Tying, possibly smoking and maturing are the final stages of production since once the cheeses are tied, they can be smoked and matured or stored for a short time in the case of sweet Provolone Valpadana PDO.
stagionatura

Maturation (photo by Consorzio Provolone Valpadana PDO)

Many shapes for many flavours

As a great cheese enthusiast, I find the variety of shapes in which Provolone Valpadana PDO can be presented really unusual, because each size will have its own uniqueness in terms of flavour. So not only is there a difference between sweet and piquant, but within those, ranging from small 6kg wheels to huge 100kg cheeses, the sensory profile develops in a multiplicity of nuances.

For this reason, maturation periods can vary from a minimum of 10 days to over 240 days!

How to use Provolone Valpadana PDO

Given the variety of flavours, textures and maturations, Provolone Valpadana PDO can be used in an infinite number of recipes, which will then be characterised by our choices: a delicate version with a milky scent or a strong touch of flavour and spiciness, as if we had added a pinch of chilli pepper.

Provolone can be used directly raw or in preparations that are to be cooked in a pan or in the oven. Here is the recipe I have prepared to share with you and which I cooked using mild Provolone Valpadana PDO, but which you can easily modify using the piquant version of the same cheese to obtain a completely different result: have fun experimenting!

Savoury muffins with Provolone Valpadana PDO

33.43g carbohydrates per 100 g

Ingredients for 4 large muffins

  • 90g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 75g Provolone Valpadana PDO sweet or spicy (sweet in the photo)
  • 2 eggs
  • 35g tapioca starch*
  • 30g milk
  • 25 g extra virgin olive oil
  • 20g dried tomatoes
  • 5g baking powder for savoury pies*
  • salt and pepper

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Coarsely chop the Provolone cheese and dried cherry tomatoes and set them aside.
  2. Place the rice flour and tapioca starch in a planetary mixer or bowl, then mix with eggs, milk and oil until smooth and creamy; finally add the yeast, Provolone cheese and cherry tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.
  3. Pour the mixture into 4 rather large muffin tins, filling them 3/4 full.
  4. Bake the muffins in a static oven preheated to 180°C for 10-20 minutes.
  5. Take the muffins out of the oven and eat them warm – they are mouth-watering!

muffin salati al provolone

Version with gluten of Savoury muffins with Provolone Valpadana DOP

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten.

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Coffee Tomini with yoghurt sauce and golden apples

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Do you remember the book by my blogger friend Raffaella Fenoglio of the blog Tre civette sul comò entitled ’50 Shades of Coffee‘? Here is the second mouth-watering recipe: Coffee Tomini with yoghurt sauce and golden apples. And if you love coffee, try also Gnudi with coffee.

A chat with Raffaella

  1. Why a book about coffee?

Coffee is a cue that all three of us liked: myself, Silvia Casini and Francesco Pasqua. It is a universal element, with which music, literature and film are imbued. We added history, curiosities, caffeomancy, recipes, historical cafés, coffe painting, etiquette, star constellations, horoscopes, aphorisms… and many many experts and in the end we had collected so much material that we could have written an encyclopaedia! The difficult thing was to cut, trim, decide what was less interesting. The editor then worked on the infographics and the end result exceeded our expectations.

  1. Is there a recipe in the book that you are particularly fond of?

Let’s face it, the difficult part was the food & wine part: we didn’t want to lapse into banal recipes – you won’t find Tiramisù – and we imagined a complete menu based on the ‘wine from Arabia’. My favourite recipe, among the 50 suggestions, is Cheese with coffee fruit chutney.  We paired this recipe with a SAUVIGNON BLANC SESTO 21 from Casata Mergè. A wine from Latium, from 100% Sauvignon Blanc grapes, structured, suitable for accompanying special cheeses.

  1. In your latest publications, cooking is an integral part of other art forms such as poetry, literature and cinema. How did the idea for this approach come about and what else is boiling in the pot?

In 2020, together with Silvia Casini and Francesco Pasqua, we drew up some literary projects in which we could merge our skills – namely cinema, poetry, literature, music, food and wine. To our great joy, many of those projects, once they landed on the tables of publishers, were successful! So for the following two years you’re going to see some great things! Very interesting and eclectic volumes are coming out. Furthermore, the three of us, taken individually, are fiction writers and have one book each out.

  1. Our first meeting took place when your book Indice GliceAmico came out, a subject that is particularly dear to me because of the attention that diabetes requires of us, where did your interest in this subject come from?

Diabetes has touched my family. This stimulated me to focus on low glycaemic index recipes but until the cookbooks linked to my blog came out, I had no idea of how widespread diabetes was, especially among children.  I find your online cooking courses supported by a clinical nutritionist very interesting. This is the way to inform in the best way without frightening patients and their families.

Coffee Tomini with yoghurt sauce and golden apples

4.45g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 4 pieces of Tomino cheese of about 90g each
  • 200g apples
  • 125g plain fat-free Greek yoghurt
  • 1 cup of strong coffee
  • 30g ginger
  • 1 organic lemon, zest and juice

Preparation

  1. First put Tomini in a bowl to marinate with the cup of coffee and the peeled, sliced ginger. Let them rest for about an hour in the refrigerator.
  2. Peel the apple, cut it into segments and brown them in a little extra virgin olive oil in a non-stick pan until lightly browned on both sides.
  3. Remove the Tominos from the marinade, blot them with kitchen paper to remove excess coffee and cook them in a non-stick pan or on a grill.
  4. Prepare the yoghurt sauce by simply flavouring it with grated lemon zest and a few teaspoons of juice.
  5. Serve Tomini hot, accompanying them with the yoghurt sauce and a few apple slices.

tomini al caffè con salsa di yogur e mele dorate

Version with gluten of Coffee Tomini with yoghurt sauce and golden apples

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten.

 

 

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Gluten-free Focaccia with lentil flour

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Who can resist gluten free Focaccia with lentil flour? At home, it finishes right away because it is good, soft, fragrant and more blood sugar-friendly than classic Focaccia. Watch how to prepare it!

I love focaccia because it is easy to cut into portions, freeze and stuff quickly in the morning before school even just out of the freezer: that way, by break time, it will be perfect to be enjoyed.

The addition of lentil flour helps reduce the glycaemic index of the focaccia and gives it a golden, slightly orange colour that is very pleasing to the eye. Serve it stuffed with whatever you like or enjoy it plain: whatever solution you choose, it will not disappoint you!

If you love focaccia, also try Gluten-free Buckwheat and corn focaccia.

Focaccia with Lentil Flour     

43g carbohydrates per 100g

 Ingredients

  • 400g water
  • 250g gluten free bread flour mix, brand Schär Mix B**
  • 250g gluten free bread flour mix, brand Fibreban Farmo**
  • 200g milk
  • 100g lentil flour*
  • 30g extra virgin olive oil
  • 17g brewer’s yeast
  • 10g salt
  • extra virgin olive oil for spreading the focaccia and for the emulsion
  • coarse salt
  • oregano
  • water for the emulsion

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Pour water and milk into a food processor or thermomix and dissolve the brewer’s yeast in it.
  2. Pour the flours into the processor with the liquids and mix, adding oil and salt until a smooth, creamy dough is obtained.
  3. Pour the mixture onto a baking tin covered with parchment paper, pour a good amount of oil on the surface to help you flatten out the dough using your hands, lightly sinking your fingers in to give it the typical focaccia appearance.
  4. Let rise for about 2 hours or until the dough has doubled in volume. Sprinkle with a grinding of coarse salt and dried oregano.
  5. Bake for about 25 minutes in a convection oven preheated to 200°C.
  6. Let the focaccia cool and brush the surface with an emulsion of water and a few tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil.

focaccia con farina di lenticchie

Version with gluten of Focaccia with lentil flour

Replace the gluten free flour with 500g wheat flour and reduce the total amount of liquid (water and milk) to 420g instead of 600g.

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Potato and courgette patties with Parma ham

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I don’t know about you, but with the kids home from school, the need to cook lunch and dinner every day makes it difficult for me to find solutions to satisfy their appetite, desire for variety and time available, so try these Potato and courgette patties with Parma Ham.

Boiling potatoes will be the longest step, but the rest will only take you a few minutes. Obviously you can replace Parma ham with another ham you like, but it is important to remember that by combining a source of fat and protein with potatoes, you will slow down the absorption of carbohydrates, so it will be helpful to avoid glycaemic peaks.

You can accompany these Potato and courgette patties with a side dish of vegetables for a complete and balance meal. And if you love pies, but don’t want to turn on the oven, try this Pan-fried potato pie.

 

Potato and courgette patties with Parma ham  

14.41g carbohydrates per 100g of patties without Parma ham

Ingredients

  • 700g potatoes
  • 350g courgettes
  • 80g spring onion or leek
  • 60g breadcrumbs**
  • 40g butter
  • Parma ham
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation

  1. Boil the potatoes in a pot of water, then peel and mash them with a potato masher, add butter while they are still hot so that it melts well, then set them aside.
  2. In the meantime, put a few tablespoons of oil in a non-stick frying pan, brown the finely chopped spring onion or leek, then add the courgettes grated with a coarse-hole grater, season with salt and pepper, then cook for about 10 minutes, making sure that the courgettes are nice and dry.
  3. Add the cooked courgettes to the mashed potatoes, mix well and season with salt and pepper if necessary.
  4. With the help of a 6cm diameter cutter, form 2cm thick patties; roll them in breadcrumbs very carefully because they are quite soft, then brown them in a non-stick frying pan with a few tablespoons of oil until very crispy on both sides.
  5. Top each patty with a slice of freshly sliced Parma ham and serve.

Pizzette di patate e zucchine al prosciutto

Version with gluten of Potato and courgette patties with Parma ham 

Replace gluten free breadcrumbs with standard breadcrumbs

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Non fried Sicilian Caponata

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Sicily is undoubtedly one of the most popular destinations for art and cuisine, and one of its gastronomic symbols is undoubtedly Sicilian Caponata , of which I share the recipe of dear friends from Carini, near Palermo, whom we feel are part of our family. The only change I made is not frying aubergines… I hope you’ll forgive me!

Precisely because of its Italian character, I chose the Caponata recipe as the star of a fantastic project to make the international public aware of what the products of a virtuous cosmetics company contain, Davines which uses Slow Food Presidia to extract its active ingredients. So you can watch the video made in the Davines Scientific Garden to discover that the ingredients of Caponata are also the ingredients of solid shampoos that are as friendly to humans as they are to the environment.

So have a good trip to discover a recipe that makes us beautiful inside and out!

Non fried Sicilian Caponata 

9.34g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 6-8 servings

  • 830g aubergines, preferably round or striped
  • 550g tomato sauce and peeled tomatoes
  • 300g onions
  • 225g celery
  • 150g pitted green olives*
  • 60g raisins
  • 40g pine nuts
  • 30g salted capers
  • 10g sugar
  • extra virgin olive oil, white wine vinegar and salt

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Ingredienti della caponata

Preparation of Non fried Sicilian Caponata

  1. Wash and peel the aubergines, then dice them, sprinkle them with a pinch of fine salt and leave them to drain in a colander for a couple of hours. Blot the aubergines to remove the water they have released and fry them in a non-stick frying pan with a little oil (this is the step that makes the difference to the original Sicilian recipe in which the aubergines are deep fried).
  2. Soak the raisins in water.
  3. Meanwhile, cut the celery in pieces and cook it for about 5 minutes in boiling water, then drain it (without throwing away the cooking water) and set it aside.
  4. Cut the pitted olives in half and set aside.
  5. In a non-stick frying pan, pour a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and sauté the sliced onion, then add the celery, olives and well-desalted capers and leave to gain flavour for about ten minutes.
  6. In the meantime, in another non-stick pan, cook the tomato sauce and peeled tomatoes for about 15 minutes so that they shrink, adding sugar and a pinch of salt. Finally, pour in the vegetable mixture, aubergines, wrung out raisins and pine nuts. Stir and cook for about a minute, then remove from the heat and add white wine vinegar to taste. Adjust salt if necessary and serve Caponata warm or cold.

Caponata

Version with gluten of Non fried Sicilian Caponata 

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten.

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Vegetarian main courses: No-cook stuffed tomatoes

We could write pages and pages of recipes with tomatoes, so let’s start with this one: my No-cook stuffed tomatoes, a vegetarian, tasty, fibre-rich preparation that does not require the oven.

The main trick to make good stuffed tomatoes is to drain them and let them lose their water by sprinkling them with a pinch of salt and laying them ‘upside down’ on a surface covered with kitchen paper. Furthermore, it is important to choose perfectly ripe and firm tomatoes to get the best out of this preparation.

And if you like fresh fillings for summer, try my Travel Caprese.

No-cook stuffed tomatoes

6.64g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 720g approx. tomatoes (4 ripe, firm salad tomatoes)
  • 170g yellow and red pepper
  • 50g peas
  • 40g onions
  • 30g breadcrumbs**
  • 30g pitted black olives*
  • 8g capers
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Cut the tops off the tomatoes, empty them, add a pinch of salt, then place them on a tray covered with kitchen paper to drain the water they produce. Use the inside of tomatoes to add to a soup or sauce.
  2. Meanwhile prepare the filling. In a frying pan, sauté the sliced onion, then add the peas and diced pepper, and cook. Remove from the heat and add the breadcrumbs, capers, chopped olives and season with salt and pepper.
  3. Stuff the tomatoes with the vegetable mixture and serve.

Pomodori ripieni senza cottura

Version with gluten of No-cook stuffed tomatoes

Replace gluten free breadcrumbs with standard breadcrumbs; no other adaptation is needed.

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Herb-marinated chicken salad

You know those recipes you can no longer do without? Herb-marinated chicken salad is definitely one of them. I therefore decided to share it at the beginning of summer because it will be the ideal solution for many occasions, from a trip to the mountains, to a lunch on the beach or in the office, this cold dish has an irresistible aroma and a flesh as soft as tuna.

Another not insignificant aspect is that you can prepare the chicken and marinate it in the aromatic oil even one or two days in advance and the result will be even more extraordinary because the meat will be even tenderer.

In addition to the courgettes in the marinade, serve the Chicken Salad with any other seasonal vegetables and you will have solved a naturally gluten free and virtually carbohydrate free meal. A possible pairing could be Cherry tomatoes with bread and anchovies.

Herb-marinated chicken salad    

negligible carbohydrates per 100g

 Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 800g boiled chicken breast
  • 300g courgettes
  • 150g extra virgin olive oil (which you will re-use once you have eaten the chicken)
  • 30g Pantelleria capers in salt
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 4 cloves
  • 4 star anise berries
  • 1 tuft of thyme
  • oregano
  • chili
  • salt
  • lettuce and mixed leafy greens to taste

Preparation

  1. Cut the courgettes into ribbons with a mandoline and grill them for a few minutes on a grill or in the oven at 200°C on a baking tin covered with parchment paper. Put the oil in a saucepan, add the cinnamon, star anise, cloves, thyme, salt, chilli and peeled garlic in fillets. Let everything gain flavour on a low heat for about 10 minutes, taking care not to fry the spices.
  2. Desalt the capers, cut the cooked chicken into pieces, put it in an airtight jar with the capers, the still-warm aromatic oil and the courgette ribbons, possibly adding more oil to cover the chicken; close the container and refrigerate for 24 hours.
  3. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator a few hours before serving, mix well, season with a pinch of oregano and serve accompanied with lettuce and other mixed leafy greens to taste.

Note: the marinade oil remaining in the container will be excellent for dressing other salads and as a base for preparing other dishes.

L'insalata di pollo pronta per essere gustata

Version with gluten of Herb-marinated chicken salad

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten.

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Dairy-free asparagus loaf

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When asparagus is in season, we can indulge in cooking it in a variety of ways, and here is an idea for a vegetarian one-course meal: Dairy-free asparagus loaf.

For someone like me who comes from a family of producers of Parmigiano Reggianogiving up cheese is not easy, but I am often on the lookout for ideas for recipes that do not include it as an ingredient precisely to avoid the risk of consuming too much of it, as I love cheese!

Having potatoes as the main ingredient, this recipe with asparagus is a dish that provides a good dose of carbohydrates combined with plenty of fibre due to the presence of so many vegetables, so simply accompanying it with a side dish of fresh vegetables makes for a complete meal.

And remember that asparagus can be cooked in the microwave for few minutes to retain all its flavour! Read how in the recipe procedure.

Dairy-free asparagus loaf

13.28g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 6 servings

  • 470g peeled potatoes
  • 350g asparagus
  • 210g onions
  • 100g leek
  • 2 egg whites
  • 15g breadcrumbs**
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • Crusco pepper to taste
  • oregano, mint
  • salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation of Dairy free asparagus loaf

  1. Cut the potatoes into small pieces and boil them in lightly salted water until soft.
  2. Mash the potatoes while they are still hot in a bowl and set them aside.
  3. Slice onions and leeks and fry them in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, season with salt and pepper and cook.
  4. Cook the asparagus. You can choose to cook the asparagus in the microwave oven by making a layer of spears in a container and cooking it for 4 minutes at 600W. Alternatively, cook the asparagus in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a few tablespoons of water until soft.
  5. Put the mashed potatoes in a bowl, add the onions and leeks, chopped asparagus and egg whites; mix everything together, season with oregano, mint, pepper and salt.
  6. Lightly grease an oven dish, pour in the potato and vegetable mixture, flatten the surface and sprinkle it with breadcrumbs. Top with a drizzle of oil and cook au gratin in a convection oven preheated to 200°C until a golden crust forms on the surface.
Il polpettone con asparagi senza formaggio pronto per essere gustato

The Dairy free asparagus loaf ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Dairy free asparagus loaf

Replace gluten free breadcrumbs with standard breadcrumbs; no other adaptation is needed.

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Gluten-free treats: Supplì with Balsamic vinegar and cooked shoulder ham

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Prior to Covid, street food events had become a must-attend event for cooking enthusiasts, and these Supplì with Balsamic vinegar and cooked shoulder ham would have been the perfect protagonists of a snack with friends in the name of good food and regional flavours. So, I wanted to share them with my work colleagues, turning an ordinary day into a special day!

Il supplì con i colleghi di lavoro

But what are Supplì? I told you about them last year for the first SuppliTiamo event with my Suppli Viva l’Italia. And for this new edition of the contest, I wanted to create a much richer and delicious Supplì using three products from my region: Balsamic Vinegar of Modena in its two expressions, PGI and PDO, Cooked shoulder ham from San Secondo and Parmigiano Reggiano.

Let’s start with order. I am not going to tell you about Parmigiano Reggiano because its history has been the protagonist of many other recipes, while I will start with Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI. This is the product obtained from partially fermented and/or cooked and/or concentrated grape must and wine vinegar that are subjected to acetification and ageing in wood for at least 60 days. Aging can last up to 3 years for vinegar called “Aged”. This vinegar is the aromatic, sweet and sour product that we are used to using as a condiment and that I love for preparing my sweet and sour onions.

Balsamic PDO is a product that, despite its similar name, has very different characteristics and uses. Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PDO is in fact the product obtained from a single ingredient, cooked grape must, aged in barrels of different woods and sizes for a minimum of 12 years following a unique production process, closely linked to family traditions. Balsamic Vinegar PDO is a thick, glossy black liquid and has an extremely sweet and concentrated flavour. It is perfect to be consumed raw on sweet and savoury dishes.

Finally, Spalla cotta di San Secondo is a typical deli meat from the areas near the river Po in the province of Parma obtained from the shoulder of pigs. It is a product with a long history sought after by cured meat enthusiasts for its very distinctive flavour and aroma: eaten warm, perhaps with the typical Fried dough, Spalla cotta is just unforgettable!

So let’s prepare our Supplì step by step.

Supplì with balsamic vinegar and cooked shoulder ham

29g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 8 servings

  • 550g meat stock
  • 270g Carnaroli rice
  • 200g onions
  • 120g sliced cooked shoulder ham from San Secondo*
  • 100 g young Pecorino or other cheese that melts
  • 2 eggs
  • 50g breadcrumbs**
  • 40g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 40g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 20 g butter
  • 3 tablespoons of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena PGI
  • 1 teaspoon Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • salt and pepper
  • seed oil for frying

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Prepare the rice by putting the Carnaroli rice in the meat stock and cooking it until all the stock has been absorbed. Stir the rice with butter and grated Parmesan cheese, then spread it out on a plate or tray to cool.
  2. While the rice is cooling, prepare the onions. Slice them thinly and brown them in a non-stick frying pan with a little oil (I used my fantastic Shark Skin pan from Pentole Agnelli discovered at one of the Risate & Risotti evenings last year) and a bay leaf. When the onions are soft, add Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, season with salt and pepper and let the sauce thicken well. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.
  3. Once the rice has cooled down, put it in a bowl and incorporate an egg. Season the rice with 1 heaped teaspoon of Traditional Balsamic Vinegar of Modena.

L'aceto balsamico tradizionale di modena

4. Assemble the supplì. Lightly grease your hands with extra virgin olive oil, place a layer of rice on the palm and fingers of one hand, place a spoonful of sweet and sour onions in the centre of the rice, a few cheese cubes and a slice of cooked shoulder ham from San Secondo. Using lightly greased fingers, take more rice to cover the Supplì and form the cylinder, sealing it well.

5. Beat the second egg in a bowl with a pinch of salt. Dip each Supplì in rice flour, then in beaten egg and finally in breadcrumbs.

6. Put the seed oil in a saucepan, heat it and deep fry the Supplì until golden and crispy. Serve them piping hot and… remember to open your eyes again after the first bite!

dettaglio supplì

Version with gluten of Supplì with balsamic vinegar and cooked shoulder ham

Replace gluten free breadcrumbs with standard breadcrumbs and, if you prefer, rice flour with wheat flour.

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Mini Easter pies with artichokes: Italian gluten-free Easter

Mini Easter pies with artichokes are my single-serving version of the Easter pie the Easter classic and symbol of rebirth par excellence.

Prepared with the ever-present brisé pastry, in the filling, in addition to Swiss chard, I used artichokes and quail eggs for an irresistible taste.

If the weather and temperatures permit, with Mini Easter pies with artichokes we can also organise an Easter or Easter Monday lunch outdoors, even in the form of a picnic, as the mini pies are very easy to carry and enjoy, whether sitting or standing.

Are you ready to knead? Let us begin and… a Happy Easter to you all!

Mini Easter pies with artichokes  

19.26g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for the brisé pastry

  • 300g gluten free bread flour mix, brand Biaglut**
  • 150g butter
  • 80g water
  • salt

Ingredients for the filling

  • 300g cow’s milk ricotta
  • 200g cleaned artichokes
  • 200g cleaned Swiss chard
  • 100g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 12 quail eggs
  • 1 egg
  • 10g parsley
  • 1 clove garlic
  • salt, pepper

Ingredients for the béchamel sauce

  • 100g milk
  • 10g brown rice flour*
  • 10g extra virgin olive oil
  • salt

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparing Mini Easter pies with artichokes

  1. Mix all the ingredients for the brisé pastry in a planetary mixer or bowl until smooth and even. Cover the brisé pastry with cling film and place it in the refrigerator for the time needed to prepare the filling.
  2. Sweat the Swiss chard in a non-stick pan with a little oil and using only the remaining water from washing. Allow the water to evaporate well before chopping it.
  3. Clean the artichokes by removing the tough leaves and tips, then cut them in half to remove the choke and cut them into wedges. Cook the artichokes in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and a clove of garlic (to be removed at the end of cooking), seasoning with a pinch of salt.
le mammole

Mammolas

  1. Prepare the béchamel sauce. Put the milk on the stove and bring it to the boil. In the meantime, mix the oil with the rice flour and when the milk has come to the boil, start adding it slowly into the rice flour mixture, stirring so that no lumps form. Add the milk and put everything back on the heat until the béchamel starts to thicken. Season with salt and leave to cool.
  2. Put the ricotta in a bowl, add the chopped Swiss chard and artichokes. Also chop the parsley, add it to the mixture and season with grated Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Finally add the béchamel sauce and mix well.
  3. Roll out a thin disc of dough on a cutting board and cut 12 discs of the necessary diameter to cover tartlet moulds. I used the non-stick 12 muffin mould by Le Creuset and a 12cm diameter pastry cutter. Fill all the mould.
  4. Fill the brisé shells with the artichoke mixture almost to the top and create a hole in the centre of the filling. Break a quail egg in the hole, then cover the egg with more filling.
La preparazione delle pasqualine

Preparation of Mini Easter pies

  1. Cut 12 disks of brisé pastry the size needed to cover and seal each pie using a fork. Finally, beat the egg and brush the surface of all the pies and use a toothpick to pierce the surface of each pie in the centre: the small hole will act as a ‘chimney’ and reduce the risk of cracking during baking.
  2. Bake the Easter pie in a static oven preheated to 180°C for about 25 minutes until the surface is golden brown. Take the pies out of the oven and serve lukewarm or cold.

Pasqualine ai carciofi

Mini Easter pies with artichokes ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Mini Easter pies with artichokes

Replace the gluten free flour in the brisé with an equal amount of wheat flour; no other adaptation is needed.

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