These days, most recipes use some pre-cooked ingredients, but for these chestnut soufflés I prefer using fresh chestnuts and boiling them instead of using a chestnut jam, as is indicated in modern recipes. As in other cases, I was inspired by the father of Italian cuisine, Pellegrino Artusi, and his Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well.

While jam gives an excessively sugary taste to the soufflés, this preparation is lighter and more elegant.

Serve them immediately without trying to remove them from their moulds.

Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cooking Time: 40 minutes | Total Time: 60 minutes | Yield: Makes 4 servings.

Ingredients

• 5 oz. (150 g.) chestnuts
• 3 tablespoons (25 g.) icing sugar
• ¼ tablespoon vanilla
• 2 medium egg yolks
• A dash of marine salt
• ¾ cup medium egg whites (about 3 + ½ eggs – 140 g.), room temperature
• White sugar for ramekins
• Unsalted butter (for ramekins)

Special Equipment

• 4 (6-ounce) ramekins

Instructions

Boil the chestnuts in a pot with water for 10 minutes. Peel them, and cook them in milk for 30 minutes.

Put the chestnuts and milk in a bowl and, with an immersion blender, blend them. Pass through a sieve. Add the vanilla, yolks, and mix.

Heat the oven, 375 F (180 C), convected.

Butter ramekins, making upward strokes up the sides with a pastry brush. Sprinkle with sugar, tilting to coat completely and tapping out any excess. Arrange prepared ramekins on baking sheet.

Beat egg whites and a pinch of salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium speed until frothy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add icing sugar, 1 Tbsp. at a time, and beat until medium peaks form, 6 to7 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula, fold one-quarter of the beaten egg whites into chestnut mixture to lighten. Fold in remaining egg whites in 2 batches. Divide batter among prepared ramekins, filling completely.

Transfer baking sheet with ramekins to oven and bake soufflés until puffed and tops feel firm to the touch, 25–28 minutes.

Poached pears in red wine are a delicious dessert, which joins the pleasure to eat fruit in an unusual way and the possibility to offer a dessert lighter than usual. It is free from animal products and indulges even the pickiest palates or our guests who suffer from food intolerances.

Pears, red wine, sugar and spices join in a magic blending which evokes winter and evenings spent in front of a fireplace. Traditionally they were cooked in the oven, in an Aga. The smell invaded all the house, but even now, even if we cook them in a pot, the scent which pervades all the house is heavenly. It recalls the atmosphere of Christmas Markets and the mulled wine you are served there

If you want to add a more personal touch to this dish, you could serve the pears on a bed of custard or Mascarpone sauce, and pour the wine reduction on it. If you also add some wild berries you could give a kick to a dessert that tends to be very sweet.

In restaurants in Emilia-Romagna, they are frequently served with a zabaione mousse.

Butternut squash is one of the many joys of the season: rain and cold temperatures are compensated by incredibly rich and comforting foods. It is another gift from the Americas, like potatoes.

Accompanied by a creamy Taleggio cheese sauce, this dish speaks about the valley crossed through the Po river, its fog, its chilly temperatures. In this discomforting weather, nevertheless, the inhabitants created a varied cuisine, sophisticated, that requires some manual skills but is a great source of satisfaction.

One of my personal favorites is this recipe of gnocchi: the great canonic recipe of gnocchi is enriched by the addition of Butternut squash. It is extremely versatile: the 00 flour can be easily replaced by the same quantity of gluten-free flour in order to create a dish which can be tasted by our celiac guests. It is important to underline that the temperature of potatoes and squash is fundamental: just tepid, not too hot, or it would require an excessive quantity of flour, nor too cold, or it would be very hard to knead. Still, for the egg intolerant or vegan tablemates, we can decide not to add the egg. We must be quite skilled, though, since the egg makes pasta easier to knead. (and of course, the Taleggio sauce should be replaced by a vegetables one.

This recipe, like many others, is a starting point for a journey in the pleasures of Autumn.

Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cooking Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 2 hours | Yield: Makes 6 servings.

Ingredients for gnocchi

The freshness of arugula is very inviting in the heat of the Italian summer. This is, of course, a variation of the famous “pesto” par excellence”. Arugula is a great source of flavonoids that are believed to have antioxidant properties. It’s also an excellent source of vitamin K, B and a very good source of iron, magnesium and vitamin A. Not only it shares the beneficial effects on the health of other cruciferous vegetables, but it is also a very rustic plant that does not need too much water, and it is ideal for the ones who have no too much time to dedicate to their garden.

The choice of potato gnocchi implies a lower quantity of calories due to the nutritional qualities of potato. I always prefer, if possible, to make potato gnocchi myself (see recipe).

The Latins considered this plant as a powerful aphrodisiac, probably because of its peppery flavor, typical above all of the wild variety.

Tuna and rabbit, together? Why this odd name?

A legend says that in 19^th century the rules about fasting were particularly strict, and the friars in a convent of Avigliana, near Turin, decided to circumvent them by baptising their chickens and rabbits and calling them ‘tuna’ in order to eat them without sinning.

In spite of its country origin and simplicity, it is an elegant and delicious dish, perfect in every season, but particularly appreciated in summer. It was created in Piedmont, in a time where even the most modest families had barnyard animals and because it was necessary to find a way to preserve their meat, given there were no freezers, they started imitating the techniques used for tuna.

Rabbit meat is white and light, perfect for kids and all those who want or need to be careful with red meats. It is healthy and delicious – far from the sadness of eating kale or other depressing vegetables.

Strawberry panna cotta (bavarese) is a delicious dessert, ideal to celebrate Spring!

Strawberry season reaches its peak in May, offering the sweetest and most delicious flavour. This panna cotta intensifies their freshness creating a symphony of tastes in which the light sourness of lemon balances perfectly the sweetness of whipped cream.

I noticed, reading American recipe books, that panna cotta includes also the concept of bavarese, whereas the 2 cakes are quite different. While both of them are made basically with gelatin and whipping cream, panna cotta is a “white dessert” served with a chocolate sauce or a fruit compote, while bavarese includes fresh fruits, zabaglione and a wider assortment of ingredients in its own mixture.

IMPORTANT NOTE: in order to follow the American system with cups and pounds, I slightly varied the quantities to adjust it compared to the Italian recipe. Decide which system you prefer, the taste is the same, the result too.