Mozarella, pesto and prosciutto sandwich

It’s funny how autumn seems to have sneaked up on us without us being here. When we left the country only four weeks ago it was still middle of summer. Bright and hard light, but now that we’ve come back the light is all of a sudden so much softer and has that autumn quality to it. What is it really that makes you realize that autumn is upon us? What is it exactly in the light that changes? Yes, the sun is going lower in the sky, but I don’t think that is the only thing that really changes, is it? It feels different, it smells different too!

I love autumn; I truly do. I love autumn storms and rain and cold weather and snuggling up on the couch indoors… Ok, after a few weeks of bad weather I do long for sunshine again, don’t get me wrong, but I am truly an “all-weather” girl. And an “all seasons” girl too. Although, maybe they could make the seasons a little shorter. Three months is really too long for bad weather, so maybe we should have seasons that last – mmm – let’s say 1,5 to 2 months max. O, we could have a slightly longer summer, that’s no problem, but for the colder seasons 1,5 months would be sufficient. And while we’re on the subject; can I then also please have a real winter? The ones where you have ice and snow and not just boring rain and grey skies? (because that I do NOT like!)

O well, I guess so much for wistful thinking…

I have nothing fancy for you today, just a little snack to enjoy with delicious ingredients. A good piece of bread, some homemade pesto on top, add some chunks of buffalo mozarella and top with a slice of prosciutto ham and a bit of basil. Now that is a good lunch anytime of the year!

Prosciutto, pea and mozarella salad

I really felt like eating something healthy today. After a weekend full of unhealthy stuff… it was about time! I had spend the weekend going through my (enormous) pile of cooking magazines and re-organized everything by title. You see; I have this magazine addiction which can take on very large proportions. I have to clean my ‘office’ once every so many months or it would be impossible to enter the room due to the piles and piles of magazines. Because; apart from having the addiction I also have a hard time letting go. Which means that there is stuff there that I really should be tossing out…

So yesterday I finally managed to do just that. I tossed out ALL magazines with the exception of all the cookings mags. I can always keep them with the excuse that they contain valuable information that I might one day need aka recipes… Considering the amount of cookbooks I also have, I really don’t need all the magazines but it’s just so much fun! I can spend days reading my cooking magazines and yes, I do re-read them. They are (for now) all neatly arranged by title; Delicious, Olive, GoodFood, Donna Hay and then there is the pile of things I buy at random. I have German magazines, but also Italian ones!! And really; I do not speak more then two words Italian (Ciao and the equivalent of goodmorning, which I don’t know how to write…)

But ok, they are all neatly arranged, so I decided that today I needed to cook something from the latest Good Food which had a stack of great recipes in there and for lunch I wanted to have a salad, so I chose the Crispy prosciutto, pea & mozarella salad with mint vinaigrette.

Now the supermarket was out of mint, so that didn’t help and there was no other store anywhere in sight. I also did not have the option to use fresh peas so these came out of a can as you can – unfortunately – tell by the color. O well, the taste was quite lovely, even though I did not use the dressing that it was supposed to have.

For dinner I made another recipe from the same magazine which featured green asparagus, also prosciutto, cherry tomatoes and pasta and was absolutely delicious. No pictures though, so I will have to eat it again which is absolutely no punishment!

Here is the recipe of the salad: (serves 2)

4 slices of prosciutto

100 gr peas, fresh or frozen

1 ball of buffalo mozarella (aprox. 125 gr, torn into large pieces)

For the vinaigrette:

Juice 1/2 orange

1 tbsp olive oil

small handfull of mint, leaves finely chopped, plus extra small leaves to serve.

1. Heat a fryingpan. Without adding any oil, fry the prosciutto slices untill wrinkled and crisp. Place on a sheet of kitchen roll, leave to cool, break into large shards then set aside.

2. Boil the peas in a pan of salted water for 2 minutes untill just tender. Meanwhile, mix all the vinaigrette ingredients together, season, then set aside. If making ahead, do not add the chopped mint until ready to serve, as it will discolour. When the peas are cooked, drain, then run them under cold water until completely cool. Pat dry with kitchen paper.

3. To serve, divide the mozarella between 2 plates, scatter the peas over and sit the prosciutto shards on top. Drizzle the dressing over and around and scatter with the mint leaves.

Young potatoes with herbal creamcheese and prosciutto
Starter or lunchdish (4 people)

12 young potatoes, leave the skin on
Oil for greasing the baking tray
2,5 tbsp olive oil extra vierge
1 large clove of garlic, pureed
2 tbsp finely chopped flat leaf parsley
1 tbsp finely chopped thyme leaves
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh basil leaves
150g creme fraiche, ricotta or creamcheese
12 slices of Italian prosciuttoham
85g watercress

Boil the potatoes for 15 min. in boiling water with plenty of salt. Leave them to drain well and cool them down slightly.
Preheat the oven to 240 degrees C. Divide the potatoes over a lightly oiled baking tray or cover with baking paper. Press each potato flat with a spoon or other tool. Sprinkle with olive oil and add salt and pepper.
Bake the potatoes for about 20-30 minutes or untill crispy and golden brown. Leave to cool for about 10-15 minutes.
Whisk the garlic, herbs and creme fraiche (or ricotta or creamcheese) together in a bowl and put a spoonfull on top of each potato. Put a slice of prosiutto on top and serve the potatoes on a bit of watercress.

Preparing: 20 min. Oven; 30 min, Cooldown; 30 min.