Focaccia
This traditional bread is also the base for a pizza mix so if you put some tomato sauce and mozzarella on the top you will get a classical Pizza Margheritta. You can also freeze the dough once you have rolled it out. Then if you feel like fresh bread next morning take it out just before going to bed, overnight it will defrost and rise to be cooked in just 15 minutes the next morning.

Ingredients

Plain flour
Fresh yeast

Method

• Mix a small amount of fresh yeast with 1/2 litre tepid water and a half teaspoon of sugar.
• Mix again after a few minutes to makes sure everything has dissolved.
• Add 500g of flour to make a dough that is not sticky but is still soft.
• Let the dough sit in a warm place for an hour or two until it doubles in volume.
• Kneed it for a couple of minutes and make into balls about the size of a billiard ball.
• Let these rest for about an hour in a warm place then gently roll out to dinner plate size.
• Brush olive oil over the top and sprinkle with salt.
• Make lots of holes in the surface with a fork or skewer, about 1/2 inch apart and cook in a pre-heated oven 200° C for about 15 minutes or until brown on top.

Zuppa di Fungi (Mushroom soup)
A variation on the theme of "Pasta Fagiole" or "Pasta Fazul" as the Dean Martin song has it. (You need a big sauce pan) I invented it for a group from the Chinese consulate, being told that both they and their host, an Italian industrialist could not eat cheese but loved pasta and mushrooms. It is now a favourite amongst our friends.

Ingredients

300g tagliatelle (also known as fettuccine)
30g dried porcini mushrooms
1/2 tin borlotti beans (haricot or red kidney beans can substitute)
500g of fresh mushrooms, oyster for instance.
1 carrot
1/2 onion
1 stick of celery

Method

• Soak the dried porcini in 1/4 litre of tepid water for about half an hour while you get on with the rest.
• Finely chop the onion, carrot and celery and brown slowly in olive oil, slice and add the mushrooms, sauté slowly.
• When cooked add 2 litres of water (stock can be added) and bring to the boil. At this point you can either mash up the beans and add to the mix, or if you have an immersion blender just throw them and give the mix a 30 second belt with the blender.
• By now the dried porcini should be re-hydrated so take them out and add them to the soup and carefully pour in the water they have been soaking in, being careful not to add the last bit of liquid in the bowl as there will be bits of sand and grit at the bottom.
• Add salt and pepper to taste and boil for at least half an hour.
• Fifteen minutes before serving crunch the tagliatelli up in your hands to make pieces no longer that an inch then boil in the soup mix, garnish with chopped parsley.

Polpette (meat balls)
The problem with this dish is that like roast potatoes, there is never enough of them. In Italy they should be served after a pasta dish with a side vegetable and bread, however I know many people who love them with mash.

Ingredients

For the Polpette:
600g minced beef
3 Italian sausages
Half an onion, finely chopped
Finely chopped fresh sage
100g parmesan cheese
100g breadcrumbs
An egg

For the sauce:
4 fresh bay leaves
4 cloves of Garlic
2 chilli (fresh if you can)
1 tin chopped tomatoes
1 glass white wine

Method

• Skin the sausages and mix with the rest of the ingredients then form small balls a little smaller than a ping pong ball.
• Sauté slowly in olive oil in a large frying pan. When browned on the outside take out of the pan and put in a warm place.
• Place the bay, garlic and chilli in the pan with the oil and juices from the polpetti and warm slowly until the garlic turns golden and the bay leaf starts to discolour.
• Remove the bay, garlic and chilli, add the white wine and tomatoes, if the mixture is too runny, reduce to an almost creamy consistency (this sauce is great for pasta too).
• Add the polpetti, cover with a lid and cook slowly for a further 10 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Soufflés
Not in the least bit traditional or particularly Italian though served in quite a few restaurants here. These chocolate soufflés have enough cholesterol to take a few minutes off your life but are wonderfully crunchy on the outside but soft in the middle, a chocoholics dream.

Ingredients

450g dark cooking chocolate
150g butter
50g flour
6 eggs

Method

• Soften the chocolate in a bowl over boiling water then add the butter, egg yokes and flour in that order stirring in each ingredient at a time.
• Whisk the egg whites and fold into the mixture.
• Pour into 6 individual aluminium foil baking cups and place in the freezer until hard, an hour should be enough.
• When you want to serve place in pre-heated oven at 200°C for 20 minutes before tipping out onto individual dishes.
• Garnish for kids with hundreds and thousands, for adults with fresh mint and if you want to show off, pour a little brandy over the top and light just before serving.