Yotam Ottolenghi’s Italian recipes | Italian food and drink (2024)

I was given the nickname “goloso” (meaning “greedy one”) at a young age. My Italian father was (and still is) a great cook, and I was an adventurous, enthusiastic eater and keen whisk-licker. Every trip to his native Florence would start with a visit to the bakery down the street, where carpets of flatbreads and tarts with savoury and sweet toppings are as vivid in my greedy head today as they were then. Today’s crostata pays homage to those, while the pork meatballs and clams – unheard of in our corner of the Middle East – are some of the big, exotic flavours that enchanted and seduced me.

80ml olive oil
1 red scotch bonnet, cut a lengthways slit along one side
3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly crushed
200g cherry tomatoes, preferably datterini, halved
3 bay leaves
1 lemon – peel finely shaved, to get 3 wide strips, then juiced, to get 2 tbsp
Salt and black pepper
700g sustainably sourced clams*, rinsed to get rid of grit
80ml dry white wine
3 tbsp parsley leaves, finely chopped
5g basil leaves

I’m a big fan of Tuscan sausages, which are flavoured with fennel seeds, chilli and plenty of fat. They can be hard to come by over here, so I have echoed those flavours in these meatballs.

For the meatballs
1 banana shallot, peeled and roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 egg
¾ tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp fennel seeds, toasted and crushed
Salt and black pepper
400g pork mince
100g pancetta slices, roughly chopped
½ tbsp flat-leaf parsley leaves, roughly chopped
3 tbsp olive oil

Heat a tablespoon and a half of oil in a large, nonstick saute pan on a medium-high flame. Once very hot, fry half the meatballs for four to five minutes, turning them regularly, until golden brown all over (turn down the heat if they stick to the pan or colour too quickly). Repeat with the remaining meatballs and oil. Transfer to a dish (along with any fat) and wipe the pan clean.

During the vendemmia (the Italian grape harvest, which is right about now), you’ll find uva fragola, a grape that tastes like strawberry, stuffed into crostate and scacciate in bakeries all over Tuscany. We don’t get them in the UK, so I’ve paired black grapes with strawberries in this crostata. The dough is very wet and sticky – you’ll need to flour your hands and surface often – but the result is a super-short, flaky pastry that you’ll want to keep coming back to.

For the filling
350g black grapes, halved
150g strawberries, hulled, then halved or quartered, depending on size
3 strips orange peel
1 tbsp lemon juice
¼ tsp vanilla bean paste
2 tsp fennel seeds, toasted and crushed, plus ¼ tsp extra to serve
60g caster sugar
½ tsp cornflour
1½ tbsp rosemary sprigs

In a second bowl, mix the flours, salt, rosemary and two and a half tablespoons of sugar. Squash the butter cubes into the mix with your fingers; you want chunks dotted throughout the dough, so don’t overwork the butter. Add the water, then, using your hands, gather the dough into a shaggy, wet and sticky mess – you’ll need to scrape dough off your hands a few times. Transfer to a well-floured surface and roll into a 28cm x 18cm rectangle, flouring the rolling pin and surface as you go.

Heat the oven to 200C/390F/gas 6. Strain the fruit over a saucepan to catch the liquid that’s been produced, then spoon the drained fruit and aromatics into the centre of the pastry circle, leaving a 5cm rim around the edge. Fold the rim up and over the edges of the fruit, and seal any cracks or holes in the pastry by squashing it together with your fingers, to prevent leakage. Brush the pastry with beaten egg wash (you won’t need it all), sprinkle the remaining tablespoon of sugar evenly over the top, and bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Leave to cool for 20 minutes.

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