I have officially started my classic italian cooking challenge, #freyacooksclassicitalian, following recipes from Marcella Hazan’s The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. Her book is divided into seperate sections for appertisers, soups, risotto etc. So this week I started with the first recipe in the appertisers section – Ricotta and Anchovy Canapes but I made bruschetta instead. Firstly, I have to say sorry to Marcella – I am a student so I cannot always afford the best ingredients, but I will try my best. I think the anchovies I used were definitely what she warned to stay clear of – just too much salt.
The recipe was very simple, I just put all the ingredients together into my cute mini food chopper until it was a creamy paste, and my fresh Italian style baguette slices where lightly toasted in the oven.
A little bit of black pepper and extra virgin olive oil and it was ready! Sort of resembles hummus doesn’t it?
My verdict: I think one or two less anchovies would have been better, the original recipe says 8 but I think it over powered the ricotta and was just too salty. Although the anchovies I used may have been saltier than more expensive ones you can buy.
