Star Wars Poe Dameron's Favorite Breakfast ZepPOEle AKA Zeppole

ZepPOEle with Nutella

ZepPOEle with Cinnamon-Sugar

Another fun and exciting post. My children love zeppole for breakfast or snacks. However, in coordination with The Star Wars Mom posts for Star Wars themed food, we have renamed our favorite recipe for zeppole to Zep"POE"le.

We are quite sure this would give Poe Dameron the energy needed to do some serious piloting. How do you think he...oops, no spoilers today. Be sure to find the free printable food label for ZepPOEle at The Star Wars Mom website.


What are zeppole? Well, they are not Led Zeppelin's creation, though for some reason the name always makes me think of Zeppelin. Zeppole are an Italian fried food made with ricotta, that can be made sweet or savory. We make it sweet, sort of like a cross between fritter dough and a doughnut hole. They are this moist cake/bread like texture inside with a crisp outside. Then one can sprinkle with confectioner's sugar, roll in cinnamon & sugar, or smother in Nutella.

My kids like the cinnamon & sugar and Nutella ones the best. For me, they are nostalgic, as they remind me a bit of my Great-Grandmother and Grandmother's recipe for Rubber Necks, which came from Oklahoma.

Star Wars Italian Food:
ZepPOEle Recipe

Ingredients:

• Canola Oil for frying
• 1 cup ricotta cheese, preferably whole-milk
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• (dash of cinnamon, optional)
• 1 dash salt
• 1 cup flour, all-purpose
• 2 teaspoons baking powder 
• Cinnamon & Sugar, Nutella, or Confectioner's Sugar for topping

Directions: 

Heat a few inches of oil in a frying pan, over med-low heat.

In a saucepan combine all ingredients. Over low heat, stir until combined (it's a batter, so it will be sticky). You are not cooking it, just warming it a bit.

Now depending on the size you want, use a teaspoon or tablespoon to drop the dough into the hot oil. I use two spoons, one to help ease the dough off the scooping spoon into the oil. Scoop as many as will comfortably fit in the pan. Fry until golden on one side and turn over. When fully golden, remove from oil onto a plate with paper-towels to drain. Then roll in cinnamon-sugar or coat with Nutella. Serve when warm or cooled, depending on preference. We like them better after they cool.

Delizioso BelGioioso Cheeses: Mascarpone, Ricotta, Romano, Parmesan, Pizza Blend, and Mozzarella.

You know what my kids and I enjoy most about this blog? All the wonderful Italian or Italian-American products we are blessed to taste-test or try out. Chef Bretto has a fondness for sampling food/ingredients and dreaming up his next creation in our kitchen culinary studio.

Today's review is for BelGioioso Award-Winning, Italian-American Cheeses. It won't be complete for at least another week, as we keep trying out the cheeses in various dishes. However, I can tell you, we have immensely enjoyed all the cheeses. They are fantastico! Perfect creaminess, texture, and flavors as they should be.

Let's get this ball of mozzarella rolling. We have on the sampling block:

Mascarpone - Fresh, soft cheese with a sweet, creamy flavor. Think of it as the more delizioso version of cream cheese. BelGioioso was the first American company to manufacture this Italian specialty cheese over here. I use it in my Amaretto Boston Cream Tiramisu recipe.

Ricotta con Latte - Soft, fresh cheese with a creamy, mild and clean flavor. Some Americans try to substitute cottage cheese for this, but it never works in my book. They simply don't compare in texture or flavor. We use ricotta in our lasagna and cannolis.

Pecorino Romano - Hard cheese with a robust flavor. I have come to lust for this cheese in most dishes where I had traditionally used Parmigiano (Parmesan). If I am going to grate Parmesan into the sauce, then I will grate Romano as well. Because it is sharper, it does not require as much as if one tried to flavor a sauce with only Parmesan.

Parmesan - Hard table cheese with a full, nutty flavor. In Italian-American restaurants, this is the cheese the chef brings out and grates freshly onto your meal (Italians do not use it in this manner traditionally). I use it in almost any Italian dish which incorporates cheese, which includes my meatballs, lasagna, spaghetti sauce, alfedo sauce, pizza, etc.

Pizza Blend - Savory combination of mild and sharp, robust flavors. This is a specialty mix of Romano, Fontina, and Provolone (mild). I love adding this to my pizzas. Mozzarella and Parmesan were my old standbys. Then one day, Giada went on about loving Fontina on top of pizza. And the rest is history! I believe this combo sprinkled on top of whole milk Mozzarella and Parmesan make for the most delectable flavored cheesy pizza.

Fresh Mozzarella - Soft cheese with a delicate, milky flavor. When I eat a sandwich, I do not want the cheese to overpower my meat and I like it to be soft and enhance my flavor sensation. This cheese is perfect for my very favorite sandwich in the world: Panino alla Margherita (Mozzarella, Tomato, and Basil). I even added some to my uncured Niman Ranch Pastrami sandwich and found it to be another pairing I like very much. Of course Mozzarella is used in many of my recipes as well. And it is one of those cheeses, that is so enjoyable to just snack on by itself, anytime. Because it is not an intense flavor, it works even in the morning.

Of course I am hoping to try more of their cheeses in my cooking soon. But I have to tell you that I am so grateful that BelGioioso has made enjoying Italian cheese and my cooking adventures affordable and convenient.

If I could request a cheese from them, it would be that they would produce Smoked Ricotta. As it is, I have to make my own from their Ricotta. They make Ricotta Salata, which would be of the same texture, but not the same flavor.

This coming week, as I post some of the recipes we used with the BelGioioso cheeses, I will add them to this page, as well.

Italian Stuffed Tomatoes Recipe

Buongiorno miei amata amici!

When I was growing up it was not uncommon to have fresh, sliced tomatoes with a scoop of cottage cheese on top. While I enjoyed my mother's cooking very much, I wanted to make it Italian!

To me, nothing speaks Italian like Tomatoes and Basil. They are best friends forever! This makes a hearty side dish. I served it with garlic and herb chicken. The scent of these tomatoes baking titillated my senses and gave me hunger pangs.

Stuffing the Italian Tomatoes

Italian Stuffed Tomatoes

• 6 Roma/Plum Tomatoes
• 6 Tablespoons of Ricotta Cheese
• 12 Tablespoons of Parmesan/Romano Cheese
• 1 Tablespoon Parsley
• 1 Tablespoon Garlic/Basil Pesto or 1 teaspoon of minced garlic + 2 teaspoons of finely chopped Basil
• Salt & Pepper to Taste
• 1-2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil
• 6 Tablespoons of Italian Bread Crumbs 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash the outside of the tomatoes and dry. Slit the tomatoes down one side and remove the core and some of the moisture and seeds from the locular cavities within. Place them slit side up in a pan/baking dish coated with olive oil.

Sprinkle Parmesan and Romano Cheese on top of Italian Stuffed Tomatoes

Mix the ricotta cheese with 6 Tablespoons of Parmesan/Romano cheese, the Parsley, garlic and basil or pesto, and salt and pepper. Spoon this in the center of each slit of the tomato to fill the cavity.

Itsa Gooda Italiano Ricotta Gnocchi Recipe

Buongiorno miei amata amici! Fall and Winter are coming quickly upon us. This is the time of year we crave warm, comfort foods. Ricotta Gnocchi is one of my favorite comfort foods.

 Itsa Gooda Italiano Ricotta Gnocchi Recipe

Ingredients:

Directions:

Drain Ricotta Cheese in a strainer for about 15 minutes. Then add it to a mixing bowl and stir in the Romano/Parmesan Cheese, garlic powder, pepper, and salt. Mix in the eggs then slowly incorporate enough flour until it holds together and is not too sticky to roll out. It depends on the moisture of the Ricotta as to how much flour this requires.

Bring a stock pot with the chicken broth in it to a boil. Either roll out the dough into ropes and cut with a pizza cutter into inch sized pieces or just tear off pieces of dough right out of the bowl and add to boiling water. The Gnocchi should drop to the bottom and rise to the top as it cooks.

When all gnocchi has boiled at least 2-5 minutes, then add the butter, garlic, and heavy cream and stir until it starts to thicken. If needed add the milk with flour whisked into it to thicken to your liking.

Add the Basil and Italian Parsley at the end so the fresh basil does not lose its flavor or substitute pesto.