What can I say? Forza Azzuri!!!

My husband says I get angry over anything and too easily. I think it's just my temper, sometimes I overreact over things that are not so important, it's true, but it's not always easy for two completely opposite characters to get together.
I'm usually very active and feel I have million things to do and never half the time I need. He's always sleepy, tired, empty. It takes a big event to shake him and get on move. Painting the horrible living room walls is certainly not a big event for him. Cleaning up the garage even less. There's usually a big gap between "let's do" and doing it for real. But...
There is one BIG event in this period: the Soccer World Cup taking place in South Africa.

So important that he's taking a whole afternoon off to be at home 4 p.m. and see his beloved national team playing an important match at Soccer World Cup. Good for him!!!

If only he hadn't missed so many important things over past years because he could never get home by 5 or 6 or 7 p.m.

But this soccer frenzy or crazyness is a bit contagious, my daughter asked me yesterday to prepare green-white-red pasta (meaning to put on the same plate some green-pesto pasta, simple cheese pasta and tomato pasta). She got her little flag ready.

I'm not proposing green-white-and red pasta today, but a dish that has all three colours of the Italian flag, yes!
These days I seem to have two ingredients always at hand, one is cherries (you'll see more of them in the following posts) and zucchini.
Zucchini are my far too favourite vegatable. So versatile and healthy. You can eat them raw (I made a rice salad yesterday with the first zucchini from my garden, and I added it just sliced - wonderful), grill, boil, steam, stirfry. You can use them for an appetizer, side or main dish.
And these simple, quick ricotta cakes are a perfect example.
You can serve them any time of the day (ok, I don't usually have eggs and vegetables for breakfast, but you're free to do so if you're used to).
You can bake it in one bigger dish, cut into squares and serve as an appetizer (warm or cold).
Or simply prepare a nice, rich salad and serve it as a quick weekday lunch or dinner.
I simply love dishes like this.

Super easy, super moist, super tasty!



Zucchini Ricotta Mini Cakes

500 g ricotta cheese (or similar fresh cow milk cheese)
250 g shredded zucchini
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
Salt and pepper
2 TBspoons grated Parmigiano Reggiano
6 cherry tomatoes
2 TBspoons fresh marjoram leaves
little oil for ramekins

Turn the oven on to 200°C. Lightly oil 6 rectangular or square ramekins (or you can use one bigger dish).
Whisk together the ricotta cheese, the whole eggs and the egg yolk in a mixing bowl. Stir in the shredded zucchini and marjoram leaves (to your taste – I didn’t really measure it, maybe a TBspoon or more). Season with salt and pepper.
Fill the ramekins up to ¾.
Half the cherry tomatoes and place two halves in each ramekin (or only one if your ramekins are too small) pushing them lightly down into ricotta mixture.
Sprinkle the surface with grated Parmigiano and a few marjoram leaves.

Bake them for about 25 minutes, until nicely golden. Let them cool and serve, either warm or cold (a little better while still warm, but will keep well for a few hours).



Ricottine al forno con zucchine e pomodorini

500 g ricotta di mucca
250 g zucchine grattugiate
2 uova
1 tuorlo
sale e pepe
2 cucchiai di parmigiano grattugiato
6 pomodorini ciliegini
2 cucchiai di maggiorana fresca
Un po’ di olio per le cocottine

Riscaldate il forno a 200°C. Oliate leggermente 6 stampini rettangolari, possibilmente cocottine di ceramica oppure uno stampo più grande (rettangolare o quadrato)
Mettete la ricotta, le uova e il tuorlo in una terrina e mescolate bene.
Unite le zucchine grattugiate e le foglie tritate di maggiorana. Salate e pepate.
Distribuite il composto nei stampini riempendoli per 2/3.
Tagliate i pomodorini a metà e guarnite le ricottine. Cospargete la superficie con il parmigiano grattugiato e qualche foglia di maggiorana intera.
Cuocetele per circa 25 minuti o finché sode e dorate.
Servitele tiepide o fredde.



Tortice od ricotte i tikvica

500 g sira ricotte (ili drugog svježeg kravljeg sira)
250 g naribanih tikvica
2 jaja
1 žumanjak
sol i papar
2 žlice naribanog parmezana
6 cherry rajčica
nekoliko grančica mažurana
malo ulja za kalupiće

Zagrijte pećnicu na 200°C. Pripremite 6 četvrtastih keramičkih posudica (možete peći i u jednoj većoj). Malo ih nauljite.
U zdjeli pomiješajte sir, cijela jaja i žumanjak. Dodajte naribane tikvice, usitnjene listiće mažurana (sačuvajte malo cijelih listića) posolite i popaprite po ukusu.
Podijelite smjesu u posudice tako da dopire do 3/4 visine. Prerežite rajčice na pola i utisnite jednu ili dvije polovice u smjesu od sira (ovisno o veličini posudica). Pospite s malo naribanog parmezana i par listića mažurana.
Pecite tortice oko 25 minuta, dok lijepo ne porumene.
Poslužite ih mlake ili hladne.