Tastes of Tuscany

Baked Red Peppers filled with Four-Cheese Souffle

Katie Caldesi says: These make a great lunch or dinner party dish, they are light and colourful and easy to serve with just some dressed salad leaves on the side. Use a different combination of cheeses depending on what you have in your fridge but try to make sure one of them is blue to inject a real punch of flavour. Use either the traditional red peppers that we are familiar with or look out for the Romano variety that are long and thin. If you use these however, the cooking time will be less by around 5 minutes. These peppers can be re-heated later or the following day and the souffles will rise again.

• 4 red Romano or bell peppers
• 150ml milk
Half a small onion, peeled
• 1 bay leaf
• Good pinch of nutmeg
• Salt and pepper
• 25g butter
• 20g plain flour
• 75g Parmesan, finely grated
• 50g ricotta
• 50g Talleggio, cut into small chunks
• 75g gorgonzola, cut into small chunks
• 2 eggs, separated

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4.

Make a bechamel sauce by putting the milk, onion, bay leaf, nutmeg and black pepper and a small pinch of salt into a medium sized saucepan over the heat and bringing to a gentle boil. Meanwhile melt the butter in a small saucepan and stir in the flour. Remove the bay leaves and onion from the milk. Cook for a few minutes over a medium heat and then add the mixture to the milk while whisking furiously. When the mixtures are combined, replace the whisk with a wooden spoon and stir until the cheeses are melted. Pour the mixture into a bowl and leave to cool for a few minutes, covered with cling film pressed on to the surface to stop a skin forming.

Prepare the peppers by cutting them in half lengthways through the stalk as well. Pick out all the seeds and put them on a tray in readiness.

Mix the egg whites in a clean bowl with a whisk or electric beater until the soft peak stage. Beat the egg yolks and then add them to the bechamel. Then fold the egg whites into the rest of the ingredients in the saucepan. Spoon the souffle mixture into the peppers and bake at 180C for 25 minutes or until the souffles have risen and become golden brown.

Serve with a glass of chilled Gabbiano Pinot Grigio IGT Delle Venezie

Beef Ragu with Gabbiano Chianti DOCG

Katie Caldesi says
This is a rich and utterly delicious beef Ragu for pasta. The Gabbiano Chianti DOCG matches perfectly with the beef and flavour from the bacon resulting in a full-bodied and robust sauce.

Serves 6

• 150ml olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed
• Pepper and salt
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 2 carrots, finely chopped
• 2 large celery sticks, finely chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1kg minced beef
• 100g pancetta or unsmoked bacon, chopped
• 3 x 400g tins of tomatoes
• 150ml water
• 300ml Gabbiano Chianti DOCG

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and fry the garlic, pepper and salt for a couple of minutes. Add the carrots, celery, onion and bay leaves and leave to cook for 10 minutes or so until softened. Meanwhile, put the tomatoes into a bowl and break them up a little with your hands, wash out the tins of tomatoes with the water and add this to the bowl.

Add the mince and the pancetta to the pan and fry until browned breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Any water in the mince should come out at this point so when you see the mince starting to look dry, add the wine and then reduce for a couple of minutes. When you have done this, add the tomatoes and bring the Ragu to the boil then immediately lower it to gentle simmer. Leave for at 30 minutes adding a little more water if the Ragu starts to look dry, this shouldn't be necessary if it is only just simmering. To be traditionally Tuscan, serve tossed with fresh Pappardelle ribbons of pasta.

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