Ricotta all'arancia (Orange Ricotta sweet delight!)

Back from my time in my native Italy, here I am... Beautiful pictures, most of them in my head, memories, good and bad and... colours... Italy, my country, is blessed with "colour"... blue sky, blue sea, dark green olive leaves, lizards and geckos and yellow... lots of yellow, lots of sky... and sun!

I feel so inspired when I'm there. I see beauty in everything and I feel so lucky!

This Summer, as every Summer, we visited a Dairy Farm called Tenuta Vannulo, in Campania. I managed to get very close to the buffaloes who seem to have a truly enviable lifestyle. They are so happy, plodding along in the hot sun, covered in mud. They turn round and look at you when you say "CIAO!"

Buffalo milk makes the most delicious ricotta cheese ever! I just love eating it as it comes... it's creamy, looks beautiful, smells of rich milk and it's just really yummy!

One afternoon I decided to make a sweet, using ricotta, oranges and some figs I just picked from one of our trees and... this is what I made!

RICOTTA ALL'ARANCIA

(Ricotta and orange

pudding)

Makes 4 delicate servings

Ingredients:

3 oranges

500g (1lb 2oz) ricotta

25mls (2 1/2 fl oz) honey

5tbsp sugar

2tbsp water

2tbsp orange liquor

( I used the BIG GM!)

or limoncello

To serve:

4 slices orange

fruit of your choice

This is a very easy and light sweet... small, but quite rich portions of Italian delight!

Before you start, cut two of your oranges in half, squeeze the juice and reserve in a bowl. When you have done this, peel the remaining third orange and cut the peel into thin strips .

Place the orange peel in a small saucepan with the sugar, water and the liquor. Cook on a low heat until the peel is tender and golden.

Place your delicious ricotta in a glass bowl with a tbsp of sugar, add the juice from the oranges and mix, until you obtain a soft, deliciously creamy mixture (I also added some grated orange rind to add texture and extra flavour!)

You are now ready to finish off your sweet. Divide your ricotta into four equal portions. Arrange each one onto a slice of orange placed on a plate. Pour some runny honey over each portion, followed by some of the juices in which the orange peel was softened.

Arrange some of the caramelized orange peel over each portion, so your pudding looks pretty, then add fruit of your choice. I had fresh figs with mine, because they added colour and looked very pretty.

My ricotta tasted delicious and was light, fruity and very Italian indeed!