I was given the nickname “goloso” (meaning “greedy one”) at a young age. My Italian father was (and still is) a great cook, and I was an adventurous, enthusiastic eater and keen whisk-licker. Every trip to his native Florence would start with a visit to the bakery down the street, where carpets of flatbreads and tarts with savoury and sweet toppings are as vivid in my greedy head today as they were then. Today’s crostata pays homage to those, while the pork meatballs and clams – unheard of in our corner of the Middle East – are some of the big, exotic flavours that enchanted and seduced me.
Clams with tomatoes, chilli and lemon (pictured above)
I love how so few ingredients and so little time can create a dish as delicious as a bowl of clams in sauce. Scotch bonnet adds an untraditional (and, dare I say it, un-Italian) smoky dimension, but roughly chopped red chilli also works well. Discard any clams with open or cracked shells before cooking. Serve with crusty bread.
Prep 10 min
Cook 15 min
Serves 4 as a starter
80ml olive oil
1 red scotch bonnet, cut a lengthways slit along one side
3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly crushed
200g cherry tomatoes, preferably datterini, halved
3 bay leaves
1 lemon – peel finely shaved, to get 3 wide strips, then juiced, to get 2 tbsp
Salt and black pepper
700g sustainably sourced clams*, rinsed to get rid of grit
80ml dry white wine
3 tbsp parsley leaves, finely chopped
5g basil leaves
Put the first five ingredients, lemon peel and half a teaspoon of salt in a large saute pan for which you have a lid on a medium-high heat. Gently fry for six minutes, until lightly bubbling, then add the clams and swirl the pan until some of them begin to open. Turn up the heat to high, pour in the wine and let it bubble away for three minutes, then cover the pan and cook until all the clams are open – about another three minutes. Stir in the herbs and lemon juice, season with plenty of black pepper and serve at once.
* The Guardian aims to publish recipes for sustainable fish. For ratings in your region, check: UK; Australia; US.
Pork and fennel meatballs with braised lentils
I’m a big fan of Tuscan sausages, which are flavoured with fennel seeds, chilli and plenty of fat. They can be hard to come by over here, so I have echoed those flavours in these meatballs.
Prep 18 min
Cook 1 hr 10 min
Serves 4
For the meatballs
1 banana shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 egg
¾ tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp fennel seeds, toasted and crushed
Salt and black pepper
400g pork mince
100g pancetta slices, roughly chopped
½ tbsp flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
3 tbsp olive oil
For the lentils
60ml olive oil, plus 2 tbsp extra to serve
3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed with the flat of a knife
2 shallots, peeled and finely diced
2 bay leaves
2 sage leaves, plus 2 tsp extra, finely sliced, to serve
15g dried porcini
Salt and black pepper
180g puy lentils
250ml white wine
500ml vegetable stock
2 tbsp parsley leaves, finely chopped
1 lemon, cut into wedges to serve
Blitz the first six meatball ingredients and plenty of pepper in a food processor, then add the other ingredients except the oil and blitz again until the mix comes together. With lightly oiled hands, form the mix into 12 meatballs weighing about 50g each, squeezing them tightly as you go, so they hold together.
Heat a tablespoon and a half of oil in a large, nonstick saute pan on a medium-high flame. Once very hot, fry half the meatballs for four to five minutes, turning them regularly, until golden brown all over (turn down the heat if they stick to the pan or colour too quickly). Repeat with the remaining meatballs and oil. Transfer to a dish (along with any fat) and wipe the pan clean.
Put the first six ingredients for the lentils, three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper in the same pan on a high heat. When the oil starts to bubble, turn the heat to medium-low and gently fry for 10 minutes, until the shallots are soft and golden brown. Stir in the lentils, raise the heat to high, then pour in the wine and let it bubble away for three minutes. Add the stock and 300ml water, bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium and cook for half an hour, stirring now and then. Cover the pan, cook for 10 minutes more, until the lentils are soft but still hold their shape, then return the meatballs (and any fat) to the pan, cover and leave to cook through – six or seven minutes.
Drizzle with the remaining two tablespoons of oil, scatter with the parsley and remaining sage, and serve hot with the lemon wedges.
Grape and strawberry crostata
During the vendemmia (the Italian grape harvest, which is right about now), you’ll find uva fragola, a grape that tastes like strawberry, stuffed into crostate and scacciate in bakeries all over Tuscany. We don’t get them in the UK, so I’ve paired black grapes with strawberries in this crostata. The dough is very wet and sticky – you’ll need to flour your hands and surface often – but the result is a super-short, flaky pastry that you’ll want to keep coming back to.
Prep 15 min
Chill 1 hr
Cook 45 min
Serves 4
For the filling
350g black grapes, halved
150g strawberries, hulled, then halved or quartered, depending on size
3 strips orange peel
1 tbsp lemon juice
¼ tsp vanilla bean paste
2 tsp fennel seeds, toasted and crushed, plus ¼ tsp extra to serve
60g caster sugar
½ tsp cornflour
1½ tbsp rosemary sprigs
For the pastry crust
80g plain flour
30g wholemeal flour
¼ tsp flaked sea salt
½ tsp rosemary leaves, finely chopped
3½ tbsp sugar
110g unsalted butter, fridge-cold and cut into 1.5cm cubes
60ml ice-cold water
1 egg, beaten
Mix all the filling ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.
In a second bowl, mix the flours, salt, rosemary and two and a half tablespoons of sugar. Squash the butter cubes into the mix with your fingers; you want chunks dotted throughout the dough, so don’t overwork the butter. Add the water, then, using your hands, gather the dough into a shaggy, wet and sticky mess – you’ll need to scrape dough off your hands a few times. Transfer to a well-floured surface and roll into a 28cm x 18cm rectangle, flouring the rolling pin and surface as you go.
Fold the longer ends in towards each other, so they meet in the middle, then roll over once. Now fold in the shorter ends, roll out once, then fold in half, so you’re left with a square. Using your hands, form into a circle, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for half an hour.
On a well-floured surface, roll the dough again, this time into a 28cm circle, then carefully lift on to a tray lined with baking paper and refrigerate again for 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 200C/390F/gas 6. Strain the fruit over a saucepan to catch the liquid that’s been produced, then spoon the drained fruit and aromatics into the centre of the pastry circle, leaving a 5cm rim around the edge. Fold the rim up and over the edges of the fruit, and seal any cracks or holes in the pastry by squashing it together with your fingers, to prevent leakage. Brush the pastry with beaten egg wash (you won’t need it all), sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of sugar evenly over the top, and bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Leave to cool for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, reduce the fruit syrup on a medium-high heat for about four minutes, until it’s the consistency of thick maple syrup. Drizzle over the crostata, sprinkle on the remaining fennel seeds, and serve warm or at room temperature.
