Lemon glazed Madeleines de Commercy

I was always the last one. At least, that’s what it felt like. Its as if I have a delayed reaction to life, growing up and figuring things out, a bit like slow cooking; raw ingredients are placed in a heavy cast iron pot then placed over a gas lamp to slowly cook for hours. At first all the ingredients break down and exude their flavors, before they are fused to create a new deeply caramelized whole. Time is of the utmost importance for a full, well rounded and deep flavor. It is the secret ingredient, the silent partner and an essential must. Easy come easy go.

And so, I disappeared and took time with me to recharge and be inspired, throwing myself into the unexciting comforts of familiar soups and stews of winter greens flavoured with aged Parmesan rinds. Now that winter is coming to an end, I too, along with the darling buds of March am coming out to play with flour, sugar and plenty of vanilla.

These Madeleines de Commercy are adapted from Dan Lepard’s exquisitely wonderful ‘Short & Sweet’. These delectable sponge cakes are quick and simple to prepare, and result in a light and fluffy vanilla explosion.

Vanilla Ricotta Gelato with Strawberries

Its only May and already its far too hot. Following my recent visit to Bologna, the capital of Gelati, and Sicily, the capital of sugar it was time to experiment with the frozen crystals. My way. 

A dusty old ice cream machine that was laying around in the kitchen must have been left by a previous student. It was either too heavy or broken. Too lazy to figure out which it is, I let Chris test it. He took it home and nursed it as if it was a kitten off the street. He gave it a good scrub, plugged it in and made a test batch.

After it received the all clear I came in the picture. First we tracked down the right recipe. We wanted a gelati made without the use of eggs or cream that we could use as a base for any flavor we chose.

On Saturday morning we headed to Parma’s organic market to check the local, seasonal produce. We bought fresh sheep's- milk ricotta and strawberries, I had a vanilla pod and we stopped by the raw milk machine for a top up of the white stuff (raw unpasteurized milk).

We ended up making a ricotta vanilla gelato served with strawberries and chocolate shavings. It was surprisingly easy to make, so much so that we were both left quite shocked from the whole experience. It almost qualifies as a life changing food experience.

The recipe is based on a David Leibowitz’s recipe for a Sicilian style gelato, using cornstarch to enrich the base and NO EGGS. I take a minimalist approach to a recipe and this one has only the bare essentials; ricotta, milk, vanilla, sugar and (the secret ingredient) corn starch, resulting in a lighter ice cream, with an intense flavor. It almost seems unnecessary to have eggs and cream in the ice cream after making this way…

Vanilla Ricotta Gelato with Strawberries

Adapted from David Leibowitz’s recipe. Makes about 3 cups (3/4 liter).


2 cups (½ liter) whole milk


1/2 cup (65 gr) sugar


2 tablespoons (16 gr) cornstarch (also known as corn flour)

1 vanilla bean

1 cup organic sheep’s milk ricotta

fresh strawberries, sliced


1. Mix the 1/4 cup of the milk with the cornstarch until the starch is dissolved and the mixture is smooth.

2. Heat the rest of the milk in a medium-sized saucepan with the sugar.

Split in half the vanilla bean lengthwise, scrape the seeds into the liquid then add the pod.

3. When it almost starts to boil, stir in the cornstarch mixture and cook at gentle simmer for 3 minutes, stirring constantly.

4. Remove from heat, scrape into a bowl through a siv, and chill thoroughly, preferably overnight.

5. Once chilled, whisk in the ricotta until smooth.

6. Freeze the gelato in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.

7. Serve with sliced fresh strawberries and chocolate shavings.