Pasta with Ham, Mascarpone and Green Peas

I myself am surprised I didn’t written this post earlier because this pasta dish has been a classic in our family for many years. It is so easy and quick to prepare yet so delicious! I have served it to our friends on some informal occasions but – probably more importantly – it is a hit with children.

When my daughters were small and they had their friends over in our house, I could be almost sure that if I had cooked this meal, all the children would eat it. But even now when they are so much older, their (different) friends still enjoy it tremendously.

Another good point about this recipe is that it can be adjusted to different needs without losing too much of its flavor. If you or your children are not big fans of green peas, they can be omitted. And if you want to cook it for a vegetarian, you can omit the ham – I made it that way for my vegetarian daughter and although she was skeptical at the beginning and worried it wasn't going to be that tasty, she did enjoy it a lot (but I wouldn’t omit both at the same time: the ham and the peas ;)).

INGREDIENTS (for 4 portions):

1 tbsp butter,

150g sliced cooked ham, cut into strips,

5 tbsp milk,

125g mascarpone cheese,

40g grated Parmesan cheese (plus extra for serving),

180g green peas,

400g spaghetti, tagliatelle or linguine,

Salt and pepper.

METHOD:

1. Boil salted water and when ready, cook the pasta al dente; 3 minutes before the end of cooking time add the green peas.
2. On a medium heat melt the butter in a medium size frying pan, add the ham and fry for 1-2 minutes.
3. Decrease the heat to low, add the milk, mascarpone and Parmesan, stir till the cheeses melt, season.
4. Drain the pasta and green peas (reserve a few tbsps of cooking water); put them back to the pan and pour the sauce in.
5. Stir well, adjust the seasoning, if necessary and serve straight away with some extra Parmesan cheese.

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Meringue Torte with Raspberry Cream

If you read my previous post on meringues, you know I am somewhat obsessed with them. So when some time ago my neighbor suggested going to a café serving some great meringue cakes, she didn’t have to repeat her invitation twice. And she was right: the raspberry version was absolutely delicious!

It was so delicious that I quickly wanted to recreate it in my own kitchen at home. I based it on my Meringue Cake with Strawberry Cream recipe but since I wanted to intensify the raspberry flavor, I added more fruit, both liquidized and torn into small pieces, and more mascarpone to prevent the cream from becoming too runny. I also found a way to stop the cream from spreading beyond the meringue: instead of putting the cream on the whole meringue base, I left approximately a 3-4cm free margin from the edge. This way even though the cream spread a bit, it didn’t ooze out beyond the meringue itself.

INGREDIENTS (for 8-10 portions):

Meringue:

6 egg whites,

300g caster sugar,

1 tsp white wine vinegar,

a pinch of salt.

Cream:

300g raspberries,

6 tbsp icing sugar,

250g mascarpone cheese,

150ml double cream.

Extra fruit for decoration.

METHOD:

1. Take two pieces of baking paper and draw 23cm - diameter circle on each one; then put them on two baking trays.
2. Pre-heat an oven to 180 Celsius degrees.
3. Put the egg whites to a big, clean and dry bowl, add a pinch of salt and beat them with an electric mixer.
4. When they are stiff, start adding sugar (while you still beat the egg whites): add one tablespoon at a time and carry on beating for 20-30 seconds before you add another tablespoon of sugar.
5. When you have used all the sugar, keep on whisking for another 2-3 minutes, then add the vinegar and beat for another minute.
6. Divide the beaten egg whites into 2 portions and carefully spread them on the drawn circles, put both baking trays to the hot oven.
7. After 5 minutes decrease the temperature to 140 Celsius degrees and bake for 90 minutes; afterwards turn off the oven, open its doors slightly and keep it open for 5 minutes. Then close the door and keep the meringues in the oven for a few hours or overnight.
8. Liquidize approx. two thirds of the raspberries, press them through a fine sieve, add the sugar and stir till the sugar dissolves.
9. Put the mascarpone to a bowl, beat with the electric mixer on low speed and add the liquidized raspberries.
10. Whisk the double cream till stiff and gently stir with the mascarpone and raspberry mix till combined.
11. Tear the rest of the raspberries into smaller pieces, add to the cream and gently stir.
12. Put one meringue disc (the worse looking one) on a serving plate, spread three quarters of the raspberry cream on it, leaving a 3-4cm margin around the edges without the cream. Place the second meringue carefully on top, spread the rest of the cream on top and decorate with fruit.
13. Keep refrigerated till ready to be served.

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Apple and Blueberry Cobbler

Although I love testing new recipes, there are many dishes I have been cooking for years, and this Apple and Blueberry Cobbler is just one of these. When I made it for the first time, it was already so popular that my husband and brother almost chased each other to the kitchen the next day to have the leftovers for breakfast. And still now when I make it for guests, everybody loves it and it is finished in no time.

Another advantage of this easy dessert is that both fruit and batter (all ingredients but milk) can be prepared in advance (even a day ahead). And then approx. 45 minutes before you would like to serve this incredible dish (for me it is usually when I finish up preparing the main meal), you warm up your oven, add milk to the batter and arrange everything in the dish. And just when your guests are ready for dessert, your just-baked dessert is ready to be served, too.

INGREDIENTS (for 6 portions):

4 apples (approx. 600g), peeled, cored and sliced,

1 tbsp butter (plus extra for greasing),

250g blueberries (or mixture of blueberries and raspberries,) fresh or frozen,

25g sugar,

250g mascarpone cheese,

200g plain flour,

1.5 tsp baking powder,

80g butter, cut into pieces,

50g sugar,

1 lemon (finely grated zest only),

150ml milk.

METHOD:

1. Melt 1 tbsp of butter, add the sliced apples and fry them on medium heat for 3-4 minutes.
2. Add the blueberries and sugar, fry for 2 minutes and put aside to cool down. If the apples you use are sour, you may want to add more sugar.
3. Grease an ovenproof dish (I used a round one, 23 cm diameter) and transfer the prepared fruit to the dish.  
4. Put the flour and the baking powder to a bowl, add the butter pieces and with your fingers combine them together till the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
5. Stir in the sugar and lemon zest. If you are preparing this dessert in advance, you would continue with the next steps approx. 45 min. before you would like to serve it.
6. Preheat an oven to 200 Celsius degrees (180 degrees for fan ovens).
7. Add the milk to the dry mixture and stir with a spoon until everything is combined.
8. Using two teaspoons put the mascarpone on top of the fruit, and then the same way spoon the prepared batter on top of the mascarpone (the layers don’t have to be smoothened as mascarpone will melt in the oven and the batter will rise).
9. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes.
10. Let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.

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