Red chicory and pancetta

And for the serie belonging to the sunday pizza, almost with one week of delay, the red chicory and pancetta is served.
The procedure for the dough and the topping is basically the same as always.

Zuppa & Pappa: MV% Ceramics

Thanks Sofia for this nice present from MV% Ceramics.

Zuppa & Pappa plates

Another pizza with fruit

Yes, we are quite monotone.
This time the pizza was with pears and gorgonzola (and nuts). A classic!

The pizza of the day

Again pizza and risotto

Ok, it clearly doesn't seem like we eat anything else these days, but that is not the case!

For the traditional Sunday pizza we have tried this version: pancetta and grilled squash.
Ingredients for the topping:

• Mozzarella
• Tomato sauce
• A squash
• Some slices of bacon/pancetta

Meanwhile the dough is being prepared, slice the squash in thin slices. Then, grilled them with some olive oil.

When the dough is ready to be "topped", start by putting the tomato sauce spreading it with a spoon. Add the mozzarella breaking it in small pieces (I do not slice it up, I break it with the hands and place it randomly). Finally add some of the squash and the pancetta slices. 

Cook it in the oven that was previously warmed to 200 degrees for about a quarter and serve!

Pizza with pancetta and grilled squash

The risotto I proposed this week was instead a pumpkin risotto, in theme with the season!

Ingredients:

• one onion
• 750 ml of vegetable broth
• 2 fists of rice for person + one for the pot
• half of a butternut pumpkin peeled and sliced up in cubes
• 100 gr of parmesan
• 50 gr of butter
• a bit of olive oil
• 1 glass of white wine

The preparation is quite basic and follow the majority of the risotto recipes.

Light fry the finely chopped onion in a bit of olive oil and then the pumpkin until it softens up.

Pumpkin

Add the rice and let it toast for few minutes: pour the wine in and lower the temperature. Start to cook the rice adding slowly the broth and after few minutes add the pumpkin.

Cooking the risotto

When the rice is ready, take the pot off the heat, add the butter and the cheese and mix carefully for one minute or so. 

Enjoy!

Shoes, babies and Sweden

At least during winter, this is a quite interesting dilemma.
The kiddo should be able to roll in the snow, leaves, dirt, soil, mud and whatever, and still have the possibility to walk without damaging forever his/her capability to walk when he/she will be 50.
What to dooooo! You might need 700 pair of shoeeees! One for the rain, one for walking elegantly with mamma and papa', one for being in the snow/rain/mud/etc. And although I support the second-hand concept, being italian (and from Gallarate, I'd add) the shoes can't be second-hand. It is a no-no!

So, this is the result of our little nordic hunt, which we will evaluate if working or not for all the possible circumstances...

Elegant autumn shoes (Austrian brand: Superfit - very common here o.O)

Boots for outdoor activities - no elegant restaurant dinners (Reima)

Oh, life in Italy it is much simpler from a shoes perspective..

Apples and Taleggio

With the abundancy of apples in our garden, the only thing to do except trying to find a way to give them away, is of course to eat them ourselves. For not going to traditional, this weekend we have combined apples with taleggio (an italian cheese from nearby Milano) in two different dishes: a risotto and pizza.
Risotto
Ingredients for two people that eat a lot:

• 5 fists of arborio rice 
• 750 ml of vegetable broth
• 2 apples
• 100 gr of taleggio
• 40 gr of butter
• a bit of olive oil
• a yellow onion
• one glass of white wine

The procedure is basically the same as always: warm up 20 gr of butter, light fry the finely chomped onion and then add the rice for toasting it. Pout the wine over and then cook the rice with the broth.

The rice is cooking

After 10 minutes of cooking the rice with the broth, add the apples that have been sliced in little cubes.

We add the apples

Meanwhile, we cut the taleggio in small cubes and when the rice is ready we remove the pot from the heat and let it rest one minute or two. Then we add the cheese and the remaining butter.

Taleggio

Mix everything carefully until both the butter and the cheese are properly melted.

Mix the risotto for the final touch

Serve it with a bit of grated parmesan cheese for the most cheesy people, a tiny decoration of parsley for the ones that care about presentation or a little shower of black pepper for the spicy ones.

The risotto is ready!

Pizza

Ingredients:

• The usual dough + mozzarella + tomato sauce
• One apple
• 100 gr of taleggio

After preparing the dough and put the tomato sauce and the mozzarella on top, as usual, add the sliced apple and the sliced taleggio. 

Ready to be cooked!

Let it cook for 15-20 minutes in 180 degrees warm oven (or until the cheese is melted and the pizza is golden).

Ready!

Take it out of the oven, and make sure that you are not one hour later respect to your daughter schedule. She will eat you alive with the pizza ;)

What to do when you need to pick up too many apples..

So, too many apple trees means also too many apples and how to pick them up. Of course, hands and a ladder are usually sufficient tools, but why making life "so complicated" when one can use practical tools!

The tool!

  With this quite simple but very effective tool, even abnormous-quantities-of-apples-picking operation can become a decent family activity.

Carefully "cherry picking" the apples. The Tool is in action!

  Maybe I should start to sell this amazing gardening tool, because picking up apples becomes easier and doesn't require too much stretching, cursing and of course, effort. The result is guaranteed as well as an happy customer!

Ten minutes of apple harvest

  Now, there is only one problem left. Still too many apples to eat...