La Dolce Vita

It truly is the good life when Italian desserts are a part of it. Tonight, as I mentioned in my previous post, was my first dessert from the "Everyday Dolci" chapter. The first section was "Everyday Fruit" and the first recipe was Fruit Salad with Cannoli Cream. Yum. At the beginning of the section, Giada explains how much Italians love their fruit for dessert and how you shouldn't do the recipe unless you're using fresh fruit. Well I must be some sort of rebel, because I had to go with the frozen selection (what?!?!?). More about that later.

The first thing you make in this recipe is the cannoli cream. For me, this was a lesson in reading the directions COMPLETELY before proceeding. You start by combining 1/3 cup ricotta cheese (I used part-skim though the recipe calls for whole-milk) and two tablespoons of whipping cream. Then, using an electric mixer, you beat 1/3 cup more whipping cream with three tablespoons of powdered sugar and a pinch of cinnamon. I thought I was supposed to beat this all together with the ricotta till soft peaks formed. The soft peaks never formed, though the mixture did get thicker and more whipped cream-like. I looked to the recipe to see if there was a hint as to how long it would take to generate soft peaks and read "Fold the ricotta into the whipped cream." Oops. As I said, this was a lesson in reading directions...but I must say the cream tasted JUST as good.

I set the cream in the fridge while I proceeded with the rest of the recipe. You next have to combine 12 ounces of fresh strawberries with 1/2 pint of fresh raspberries along with a tablespoon of granulated sugar and a tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. I had to use frozen fruits since the grocery store apparently doesn't import fruit from warm climates and only has these berries in season. I also decided to be authentic and use an actual half of a lemon for my lemon juice which was probably more than a tablespoon, but who measures unless they're baking? This mixture is supposed to sit for 20 minutes and is to be tossed occasionally. I DID follow these instructions correctly.

As that sat, I toasted the three tablespoons of almonds for the topping. I used the electric frying pan which has proven itself time and again. It saves me many a pointless trip up to the kitchen for small, short tasks. I love it!

As those toasted (did I mention this was also a lesson in multitasking?), I peeled two kiwis to add to the fruit. I've decided that no food should be allowed to have terrible skin that needs to be peeled unless it is easy to do so. Have you ever tried peeling a kiwi? It starts off just fine, but as you have most of it peeled and are just trying to get the last bits of fuzziness off, it starts slipping out of your hands and making your hands cold (if you keep them refrigerated) and you start to question whether or not they need to be completely peeled. Then you feel the skin and realize yes, they really do. Anyhow, after peeling both kiwis I cut them up and tossed them with the rest of the fruit.

Once the almonds were done toasting I let them cool off and began to assemble the dessert. You spoon 1/4 of the fruit mixture into a bowl, top it with 1/4 of the cream, then sprinkle some toasted almonds on top. Dee-lish. The fruit was sweet and tart thanks to the lemon juice bringing out it's natural flavors combined with the sugar. The cream was thick and smooth and the toasted almonds brought out the dash of cinnamon. Overall, it was fantastic. I may or may not have licked the bowl in the comfort of my own room. I'm not lying.

The dessert chapter is the last in the book which means that next week, we start all over again! We're back to antipasti with a nice crostini recipe. I won't reveal too much, you're just going to have to check back and see what's in store!