EASY DESSERTS WITH BASIC INGREDIENTS RECIPES

Steps:

• 1. For the dough, pile the flours and 1 level teaspoon of sea salt onto a clean surface and make a well in the centre.
  2. Add the yeast and sugar to 650ml lukewarm water, mix together and leave for a few minutes, then pour into the well.
  3. Using a fork and a circular movement, slowly bring in the flour from the inner edge of the well and mix into the water. Continue to mix, bringing in all the flour – when the dough comes together and becomes too hard to mix with your fork, flour your hands and begin to pat it into a ball.
  4. Knead the dough by rolling it backwards and forwards, using your hands to stretch, pull and push the dough. Keep kneading for 10 minutes, or until you have a smooth, springy, soft dough.
  5. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm place to to prove for 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.
  6. For the sauce, peel and finely slice the garlic, then pick the basil leaves and finely chop the stalks.
  7. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan on a medium-low heat, add the garlic and basil stalks, then cook gently for a couple of minutes, or until the garlic is lightly golden, then add most of the basil leaves, the tomatoes, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
  8. Leave the sauce to tick away for around 20 minutes, or until smooth, breaking up the tomatoes up with a wooden spoon. When the time’s up, taste, and season to perfection.
  9. To assemble the pizzas, divide the dough in half. Wrap one half in clingfilm and freeze for another day. With the remaining half, divide the dough into 4 equal balls.
  10. Flour each dough ball, then cover with clingfilm, and leave to rest for about 15 minutes – this will make them easier to roll it thinly.
  11. Dust a clean surface and the dough with a little flour or semolina, and roll it out into a rough circle, about ½cm thick.
  12. Tear off an appropriately sized piece of tin foil, rub it with olive oil, dust well with flour or semolina and place the pizza base on top. Continue doing the same with the remaining dough, dust with a little flour so you can pile them up. Cover with clingfilm and place in the fridge.
  13. When you're ready to cook them, preheat the oven to 250°C/500°F/gas 9.
  14. At this stage you can apply your topping: spread the tomato sauce over the base, spreading it out to the edges. Tear over the mozzarella and scatter with the remaining basil leaves. Drizzle with a tiny bit of olive oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper.
  15. If you can, cook the pizzas on a piece of granite in your conventional oven – if not, cook them one by one on pieces of tin foil directly on the bars of the oven shelf, towards the bottom of the oven (If you're going to cook your pizzas on the bars of the oven, make sure they're not too big – otherwise they'll be difficult to manoeuvre). Cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the pizzas are golden and crispy.
  16. Here are some of my favourite topping ideas: Mozzarella, anchovies, chilli, capers and parsley Smoked pancetta, mozzarella, fresh chilli and tomatoes Egg, prosciutto, artichokes, olives, mozzarella, tomato sauce and basil Green and red grapes, rosemary, pine nuts and ricotta Potatoes, mozzarella, rosemary, thyme and tomatoes Slow-roasted shredded pork with thyme, Taleggio and lemon-dressed rocket

Steps:

• 1. Heat the stock. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic, trim and finely chop the celery. Finely grate the Parmesan.
  2. In a separate pan, heat the oil and 1 small knob of butter over a low heat, add the onions, garlic and celery, and fry gently for about 15 minutes, or until softened but not coloured.
  3. Add the rice and turn up the heat – the rice will now begin to lightly fry, so keep stirring it. After 1 minute it will look slightly translucent. Add the vermouth or wine and keep stirring — it will smell fantastic. Any harsh alcohol flavours will evaporate and leave the rice with a tasty essence.
  4. Once the vermouth or wine has cooked into the rice, add your first ladle of hot stock and a good pinch of sea salt. Turn the heat down to a simmer so the rice doesn’t cook too quickly on the outside.
  5. Keep adding ladlefuls of stock, stirring and almost massaging the creamy starch out of the rice, allowing each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next. This will take around 15 minutes. Taste the rice — is it cooked? Carry on adding stock until the rice is soft but with a slight bite. Don’t forget to check the seasoning carefully. If you run out of stock before the rice is cooked, add some boiling water.
  6. Remove the pan from the heat, add 1 knob of butter and the Parmesan, then stir well.
  7. Place a lid on the pan and allow to sit for 2 minutes – this is the most important part of making the perfect risotto, as this is when it becomes outrageously creamy and oozy like it should be. Eat it as soon as possible, while the risotto retains its beautiful texture.