Orange and shrimp salad

After the season I've been on holidays, now I'm back and I'm cooking for myself again!

Radicchio (or other slightly bitter raw leafy vegetable) 1 small bunch
Orange 1/2
6 large shrimp
100 g salmon
EVOO
Lemon juice
Salt
Pepper

Steam or boil the shrimp and the salmon cut in cubes.
Mix the radicchio, orange cut in bitesize portions, salmon and shrimp.
Add salt, pepper, oil and lemon juice to taste.

Enjoy!

Cheese and champignon omelette

Yes, eggs again!
Eggs are fast to prepare, moreover my hens seem to have decided that Spring is here (hens tend to produce less eggs during Winter), so I have many eggs!
This recipe is by far longer to explain than to prepare.

1 egg
1/2 tsp flour
2 tbsp milk
1 pinch salt

8 very small champignons
30 gr cheese (I used Asiago, but you can choose your favourite cheese that melts well: Emmenthaler, Gruyere, Cheddar...)
butter

Mix the flour with 1 tbsp of milk, making sure that there are no lumps. Add the rest of the milk, the egg and the salt and beat. Let rest.

Sautee the quartered champignons in a bit of butter adding a pinch of salt almost at the end and reserve. Cut the cheese thinly.

In the same pan that you used for the champignons add 1 tbsp of butter and let it melt until lightly brown. Add the egg mixture, making sure that it spreads evenly. Put the cheese and the champignons in a line in the centre of the omelette or cover half of it.
When the egg is slightly congealed fold the empty side(s) over the filling.

Eat hot. Enjoy! ...ups, I forgot taking a picture before eating it!

If you fancy a dessert, use the same recipe and fill with your favourite sweet filling.
My personal favourites are: apricot jam with a splash of Cointreau, orange marmelade or chocolate & rhum (cocoa powder, sugar & rhum or melted chocolate with rhum).

Pictureless frittatina della nonna Giulia

I'm working hard, I'm preparing for the season (at Valle Nuova, my organic country inn): collecting vegetables and cutting, jarring, freezing, collecting wild herbs and flowers and making liqueurs, cleaning, organizing, visiting my providers to buy salamis and cheeses, oil and wine... I'm not cooking, basically I eat salads, boiled vegetables and eggs.
Today I prepared the fastest and easyest frittata (kind of thick omelette) that is known in my house as Frittatina della nonna Giulia (granny Giulia small omelette, granny Giulia, being my great grandmother).

This is the recipe
for every egg that you're using add:
a half eggshell of milk
1 tbsp grated parmesan
1/2 pinch salt
1/2 pinch grated nutmeg
black pepper if you like it
butter

I use 2 eggs per person

Beat the ingredients (except the butter) and melt a bit of butter in a pan (1 or 2 tsp per person).
Add the beaten eggs, cover and let cook (very low heat with a screen under the pan).
You decide if you prefer the frittata to be very thin (and fast) or a bit thicker (let's say that 1 to 4 cm will do), the cooking time will depend on the thickness... the frittata is done when it puffs up a bit there's no liquid egg on the surface, do not overcook since the cheese in the frittata will form a brown bitterish bottom.
ENJOY!

Merluzzetti al forno

I use the oven extensively to cook.
First of all because I like to cook light dishes with simple flavours that don't mix too much, second because once I have the food in the oven I can leave it alone and not worry too much about mixing and checking, this leaves me time to wash my dishes, feed my cats or just relax.

This dish only needs 5 minutes preparation (+20/30 minutes in the oven, depending on the size of the fish) and it's oh so good!

2 or 3 small cods or hakes (clean)
4 table spoons bread crumbs
1/2 garlic clove
3 or 4 parsley sprigs
4 cherry tomatoes or a small tomato (very ripe)
EVO


In a small bowl mix the bread crumbs, minced parsley and garlic, 1 tablespoon evo, 2 pinches of salt.
Fill the fish with as much of this mix as you can, put in an oven pan (lightly oiled or with aluminium foil in the bottom), cover with the remaining bread crumbs mix and the diced tomatoes. Sprinkle with a bit more oil.
Oven (180º C) for about 20/30 minutes (depending on the size).

Chicken tagine with preserved lemons and olives

200 gr chicken (I use boneless thighs)
half preserved lemon
half small onion
a small handful of green olives
extra vergin olive oil
1 tsp Ras el Hanout
2 pinches ground cinnamom


I always have all the ingredients (except the chicken, unless I buy more and freeze some, already in small chunks) that keep wonderfully, so this is easy to prepare any time I fancy it.
Ras el Hanout is a mix of spices that can be easily found, along with the preserved lemons, in Maroccan shops or Hallal butchers.

Sautee the onion in two tablespoons of evo. Add the chicken cut in bitesize pieces and the spices and stir for 5 minutes. Cut the preserved lemon and scoop and discard the pulp (including all the inner white bits) and cut in stripes or small chunks.
Add the lemon peel and the olives to the chicken along with half a glass of water. Let cook (20-30 minutes) watching that it doesn't dry out too much and checking if some salt is needed (it depends on the saltiness of the lemons).
Serve with couscous.