Liquorice Torrone and Christmas Wishes / Torrone alla liquirizia e Auguri di Buon Natale

This is my last recipe before Christmas, I don’t know yet if there will be more confectionery/sweets recipes next year as sugars and dairy product are the biggest no no in my new diet, and I would like to avoid falling into easy temptations even by having a little taste. But change is inevitable, the whole evolving as the days go by. I really wanted to post this recipe to show how sometimes the simple addition of a single ingredient can change a product, making it more special.

Sourdough Bolos de Ferradura / Bolos de Ferradura al lievito madre

What a lovely discovery the Bolos de Ferradura. When I started my research on Portuguese breads recipes the list of options was quite long, but as soon as I read the ingredients of this traditional breads in the shape of a horseshoe my heart was set on it. Anise and lemon zest how could I possibly resist? Bolo de Ferradura is a traditional festive bread (Nelson told me that he used to eat it as a child during country fairs) usually served as a wedding gift to guests by the bride, to bring good luck and prosperity. Bolo de Ferradura stands out for its compact crumb, almost similar to a biscuit. Dunk it in milk for a breakfast or an indulging snack. Join me and enjoy this sweet break!

Dolci Regali, MTC’s third book is here! / Dolci Regali, finalmente il terzo libro della collana dell’MTC!

I don’t know about you but to me Christmas is a source of massive headaches and late races to purchase gifts. Not to mention gift wrapping and greeting cards, people who know me well are aware of my habit of wrapping presents in old newspapers, which I love to scribble with stupid doodles and vaguely punk collages. This year I won’t miss the opportunity to buy this wonderful volume for some of my friends and family members. “Dolci Regali” is the third book of MTC’s book series, which was born a year ago “L’ora del paté”. With such a title (Dolci means Sweet and Regali has two meanings, gift and royal) there’s no better choice for a Christmas gift, isn’t it? As in the book series’ dna this volume focuses on a very specific topic, exploring a period of time between the late seventeenth and early nineteenth century, which saw the rise and triumph of pastry, with the birth and development of leavened sweet breads starting from the mythical babà.

Pao Alentejano

This bread was a nice discovery I made this summer, after meeting Nelson Carvalheiro at the Foodblogger Connect conference in London. On that occasion, during a long chat in front of a pizza at Franco Manca’s, Nelson asked me to be a guest on his blog, with a recipe of Portuguese bread. Needless to say I immediately accepted with enthusiasm. Other commitments and various things came in the way, and we have postponed the project. But now, with the upcoming changes, I decided to post this recipe and another one that will be posted on the blog Friday. Pão Alentejano is a long fermentation bread made with sourdough. It positively struck me for its taste, texture and beautiful crispy crust. Discover with me how to do it at home, it will take some time but it is absolutely worth it!

Maroggia’s Mill Cookbook: Cast Iron Pot Wheat and Whole Rye Bread / Il Ricettario del Mulino di Maroggia: Pane in pentola al frumento e segale rotta

Yet another Friday and yet another loaf. There will be changes in the blog and in Maroggia’s Mill Cookbook in general. As you know I embarked this new path of macrobiotic diet in order to solce a health problem, and have no other choice, for Maroggia’s Mill Cookbook, to focus more on the bread (especially ones made with wholemeal flours which are more suitable for the regime that I must follow). I won’t do any biscuits, cakes nor dessert recipes, at least not for Maroggia’s Mill Cookbook as I don’t really think macrobiotic sweets and desserts fit into such column, because they have too many banned ingredients and even though I am allowed to have a little taste of banned foods better not risk to fall into unnecessary temptations. I have in mind a new project, which I will talk about later on. In short from now on, concerning Maroggia’s Mill cookbook, I will publish only bread, breadsticks and crackers recipes.

Raffaele Pignataro’s Panettone / Il Panettone di Raffaele Pignataro

Christmas is coming, by now most of you will have decorated their living room with a properly decorated tree, maybe yoi have put some pomanders here and there, set up the crib and started the countdown on the an advent calendar. I admit, my innate laziness and the luxury of having my sister (up until 3 years ago) to take care of the tree and house Christmas decorations at our parents made me unfit to recreate a proper festive atmosphere in the house. But as I type it comes up to my mind that some bread wreath, from Essen Mag’s shooting, are still lying around. It would take just 10′ to make a nice decoration, something to be hanged on my front door. That said to me Christmas mood is all in the food. All memories, emotions and Christmas images are filtered by special and traditional dishes.

For a special friend: Flavia Ingalls’ Custard Pie / Per un’amica speciale: Torta alla crema di Flavia Ingalls

This recipe is dedicated to a good friend and amazing photographer, Flavia. I have known her for almost a year now, having had the chance to team up with her for many of our works for Migros’ weekly paper, Azione, and get on very well. When we can we have dinners and movie projections at the studio she shares with some other very talented guys. On the 28th of August she celebrates her birthday and knowing of her unconditional love for “Little house on the prairie” I looked up many website in search of a themed present. Until we stumbled upon a book of Vivian Maier’s works while visiting an exhibition and suddenly changed plans. But something “Little prairie” themed had to be there for her birthday! So I looked on the web for a recipe instead and picked this custard pie. Why I am posting it so late? Well I admit that along the months I had to tweak a little the recipe until coming up with this one, which is simply perfect.

Living on my own: Brown rice, lentils and red cabbage / Living on my own: Riso integrale, lenticchie e cavolo rosso

From this month onwards, slowly and not in too categorical way, my blog will adapt to a new lifestyle I find myself forced to adopt due to health reasons. Many things will be banned from my kitchen, some of which are not such a big deal (such as red meat, that I already eat very rarely), and others that will be very difficult to accept and implement (cheese and dairy products, and most shockingly baked goods). Despite the general ban on leavened and baked goods I will continue to post recipes for bread and the like, which will be put to the scrutiny of my faithful guinea pigs. Stopping my kneading routine? No sir! I will not deny that right now, as I am typing on the keyboard my mood is anything but positive. While recognizing that a change is necessary acceptance is still very far from my landscape. Funnily enough this recipe, which I had cooked a little before knowing about this major change, aligns itself very well to the diet I will have follow probably for the rest of my life (even thought some occasional transgression will surely occur). Sure a change of diet doesn’t mean I won’t be having good food and this recipe is proof. But let us read more about the beneficial properties of the ingredients employed in this recipe.