Neapolitan Pastiera: the infallible recipe (and tricks) of chef Cristoforo Trapani

Those born in Campania, Naples carries it in their heart all their life, even once away from home. What if a recipe like the pastiera one it can make a trip home, it is inevitable that it becomes a sweet full of emotional meanings. The aromas of a homemade pastiera, that unmistakable look of grated lemon peel, the bite of cooked wheat mixed with the softness of ricotta are things that immediately evoke the nostalgia for the sea, for the warmth of the people, for home recipes.

The young man knows something about it chef Cristoforo Trapani (born in 1988), born and raised in Piano di Sorrento and today at the helm of the La Magnolia restaurant of the Hotel Byron in Forte dei Marmthe. Here he brought a Michelin star, but above all an idea of ​​cuisine that has its roots firmly in his native land. A strongly identifying proposal, made up of dishes that have become iconic, such as his tomato rigatoni with buffalo cream and basil, which long ago were also the protagonists of an episode of Masterchef Italia.

But what most of all brings home the chef I am the sweets of the holidays. This is a bit like what happens to all those who live far from their homeland: nothing like that perfume that comes out of the oven at dawn on Sunday morning is capable of recalling childhood and the joy of family tables. .

So, for Easter, the dessert of chef Cristoforo Trapani could only be the pastiera. And we let him tell us his recipe, which you can find below, and some tricks of the trade, which you can find in the gallery above:

INGREDIENTS:

For the shortcrust pastry:
• 125 g buffalo butter;
• 100 g sugar;
• 50 g eggs;
• 60 g egg yolks;
• 300 g farina;
• 3 g sale;
• Grated lemon zest;
• Grated orange peel;

For the stuffing:
• 300 g of buffalo ricotta;
• 250 g of cooked wheat;
• 170 g of sugar;
• 5 eggs;
• 1⁄2 vanilla bean;
• 1 pinch of cinnamon;
• Drops of water from a thousand flowers or water from orange flowers;
• 1 grated lemon peel;
• 75 g of candied citron;
• 75 g of candied orange;

For the wheat:
• 250 g cooked wheat;
• 400 g buffalo milk;
• 70 g buffalo butter;

PROCEDURE:

For the shortcrust pastry:
Knead the shortcrust pastry with the classic method: in a bowl fitted with a leaf, soften the butter, without working too much, add the sugar, the lemon and orange zest. Add the eggs, egg yolks and salt and mix everything together. Finally add the flour, taking care not to work the dough too much. Chill in the refrigerator for at least four hours. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about 0.4 mm and line a mold of 24 cm in diameter.

For the stuffing:
First, cook the wheat with the milk and butter. Boil, allowing the mixture to dry. Then cool and blend half of the grain. Divide the egg yolks and whites. Mix and whisk together the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and egg yolks. Then add the well-drained and sifted ricotta, the grated lemon peel, the wheat and the wildflower or orange blossom water. Add the whipped egg whites, with movements from top to bottom so as not to disassemble the mixture. Pour the mixture into the pan, previously lined with the shortcrust pastry and cover with strips of dough, as if to form a basket.

Bake in a preheated oven at 170 ° C for about an hour / an hour and a quarter, the pastiera will be ready when it is well swollen and golden.

CHEF TRICKS IN THE GALLERY