Insalata di puntarelle - puntarelle salad

Puntarelle are a variety of chicory and its bittersweet shoots works perfectly with a tangy dressing.

You can find them in London in some greengrocers and are a bit of a faff to clean and prepare but the results are incredible, trust me!

This is the Roman way to prepare them, you will need a bowl full of water and ice and soaking them in it will make them wonderfully curly.

Ingredients:

1 head of puntarelle

1 clove of garlic

6 anchovies fillets

Extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

salt to taste ( it doesn't require much as anchovies are already salty)

Method :

Wash the puntarelle and strip away the leaves, you will need to carefully cut thin strips from the bulbs and let them soak in the iced water for at least 30 mins.

Prepare the dressing by crushing the garlic, chop the anchovies and mix with oil and vinegar.

Carefully drain the puntarelle and toss in the dressing, taste and adjust with more salt if needed.

You can add more garlic if you wish, make it yours and play with the quantities to your taste!

Buon appetito

Chocolate cake with strawberries and cream

Need a guaranteed crowd-pleasing cake that's easy to make? This decadent and deliciously

moist chocolate cake it’s perfect for a birthday, afternoon tea or weekend treat.

Servings 8

Ingredients

For the cake

● 200 g caster sugar

● 180 g butter at room temperature

● 3 large free-range eggs

● 180 g plain flour

● 3 tbsp milk

● 50 g cocoa powder

● 1 tsp Baking Powder

● A pinch of salt

To decorate

● 200 g strawberries

● 300 ml double cream

● Chocolate Stars (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/Gas Mark 3. Grease and line 2 x 20cm (8in) sandwich tins. Put the

butter in a mixing bowl with sugar and milk then whisk together until creamy and pale.

2. Add the eggs one at the time until well combined. Mix the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking

powder together then add it little by little to the mixture.

3. Divide the cake batter equally between the tins and use a spoon to smooth over the surface. Bake

for 20/25 minutes until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes,

then turn onto wire racks to cool completely.

4. For the filling whip the cream until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed. Spread ¾ of the

cream over one of the cake sponges, carefully top the cream with halved strawberries, leaving

some whole for decorating.

5. Add the second sponge, push down very gently and spread the remaining cream over the top

using the back of a spoon to create soft swirls and peaks, add the strawberries on top and

chocolate stars or ribbons of chocolate if you wish. The cake is now ready to serve and enjoy!

Tip : if the batter seems too stiff you can add a little bit more milk (e.g. can happen if you use small or medium

eggs)

Store in the fridge for a maximum of 4 days.

Spaghetti with sardines - Pasta con le sardine

Dreaming of summer dishes?

You can also use canned sardines and tinned tomatoes if you don't have fresh ones.

Ingredients:

Serves 4

Olive oil

Garlic

red hot chilli peppers

1 tbsp of tomato puree'

400 g long shaped pasta ( spaghetti, linguine, etc)

250 g of cherry tomatoes

180 g fresh sardines or canned ones

half a glass of white wine

half a bunch of dill or parsley

1 tbsp of capers, black olives (optional)

pepper

salt

Method:

Fill a large pot with water and put it on the hob.

When the water is boiling add the pasta and cook it 'al dente' accordingly to the instructions on the packet .

In the meanwhile prepare the sauce, in a frying pan drizzle a generous amount of olive oil, 1 glove of garlic (or more if you like it more garlicky), a pinch of red hot chilli pepper, the tomato paste and let it infuse at low heat for a couple of minutes.

Wash and halve the cherry tomatoes, add them to the pan and let them cook for 10 mins .

Add the sardines at the very end, add the white wine and cook for about 5 min or until the fish is opaque and the alcohol evaporated, then adjust with salt and pepper and turn off the heat.

Chop finely the herbs of your choice and add it to the sauce.

When the pasta it's cooked add it into the sauce and let it combine for couple of minutes adding some of the starchy pasta water if necessary.

Buon appetito!