Tortino di Michele (a recipe from Osteria dal Capo)

Tortino di Michele

Prep time: 10 minutes; Cook time: 35 minutes; Serves: 6

What you need:

• 500g ricotta
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 200g pancetta
• 2 1/2 tbsp Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated

What you do:

• Preheat your oven to convection 180ºC (360ºF)
• Fry pancetta in a dry pan over medium-high heat until crispy (about 10 minutes)

• In a medium-large bowl, add the ricotta

• Add the egg

• Add the salt, pepper and nutmeg

• Add the Parmigiano-Reggiano

• Stir

• Add the cooked pancetta

• Stir

• Put muffin liners into muffin tin
• Add ricotta mix

• Bake for approximately 35 minutes [If you do not have a convection oven, you can bake at roughly 385 F for 45 – 50 minutes. NOTE: I have not tried this method, if you do, please let me know how it turns out and if this needs some adjustments.]

• Serve with Simple Sauce (recipe below)

Simple Sauce

Prep time: 2 minutes; Cook time: 35 minutes; Serves: 4-6

What you need:

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in half
• 1 chili pepper
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 700g tomato passata (you can also use crushed tomatoes)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 pepper
• 10 – 15 fresh basil leaves

What you do:

• In a large deep frying pan over medium-high heat
• Add the oil
• Add the garlic and pepper

• Toss in the oil until the garlic gets brown and the pepper gets slightly blistered, about 2 minutes

• Add the tomato passata (be careful to remove the pan from the heat before you add the passata as it will splatter when added to a hot pan)
• Stir
• Add basil, salt and pepper

• Bring to a boil
• Reduce heat to low

• Simmer for 30 minutes
• Serve with Tortino

This sauce is also good for a pizza base. Leftovers can be added to any tomato sauce or used with spaghetti or other cooked pasta.