All we need is love…

… and food! My tradition of Easter celebrations has changed over the years, yet it has always been a time to celebrate with good food, great friends and the omnipresent home made Limoncello! Some weeks ago I started preparing the menu… so for the starter we prepared a selection of cold cuts from Cilento like soppressata & salsiccia piccante, then some traditional cheeses, from Cilento as well, like the famous caciocavallo, ricotta stagionata and scamorza bianca.

[caption id=”attachment_352" align=”aligncenter” width=”300" caption=”Antipasto salumi e formaggi del Cilento”]

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These were served with a pear and fig jam spiced with vanilla and accompanied by this curly-wurly home made bread seasoned with sun-dried tomatoes, olives, pine nuts and thyme.

[caption id=”attachment_353" align=”aligncenter” width=”300" caption=”Sun-dried tomatoes & olives bread”]

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To follow, we prepared home made egg-tagliatelle pasta and served them with a fresh tomato and artichoke sauce topped up with some grated smoked ricotta cheese. The artichoke hearts used were fresh and this smoked ricotta made a perfect combination with this fresh sweet sauce since it gave it that smoky BBQ flavour.

[caption id=”attachment_348" align=”aligncenter” width=”300" caption=”Pasta with fresh tomato & artichoke sauce”]

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Everything went down well with a selection of white wines to freshen up ourselves in the perfect sunny afternoon we were blessed with! Then for the main course we traditionally prepared the lamb. We had two legs of fresh lamb, of Maltese origin, which we roasted in the oven dressed with olive oil, garlic and fresh oregano and left slow cooking in some white wine for a couple of hours. The result was excellent — a melt in the mouth lamb which was served with an olive and mint paste, roasted potatoes and crusty bread.

‘Any space for dessert?’ Not that anyone really had any space left in their stomachs yet how can you refuse a most challenging dessert coming straight from Neapolitan tradition — the Pastiera. It is a short-crust pastry tart prepared traditionally at Easter time, filled with ricotta, cooked wheat, candied peel and orange flowered water. As soon as you cut through the tart a fresh smell of Springtime flows through and as you taste it you can understand its unique, aromatic and soft flavor!

[caption id=”attachment_349" align=”aligncenter” width=”300" caption=”Pastiera Napoletana”]

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To close — a good espresso coffee and loads of home made limoncello; or why not try the mandarincello?! Anyone knows of a better way to enjoy Easter Sunday?! Passionately prepared food enjoyed and shared with treasured company!