From Rome With Love, Bettoja Hotels’ Chefs Share Their Favorite Easter Recipes With Harlem

Since we still cannot travel to Italy right now, the fabulous chefs of Rome’s hospitality group Bettoja Hotels are sharing some of their authentic dishes for a delightful and flavorful Easter menu for Harlemites and others.

The chefs have handpicked their favorites in the hopes to bring Bettoja hospitality into your homes.

There are also a few vegetarian dishes available.

Lamb Chops

Chef Renzo Di Filippo, Massimo d’Azeglio Restaurant, Hotel Massimo d’Azeglio

Ingredients (four people)

• 12 small ribs
• Two eggs
• 1 cup of breadcrumbs
• 1 ½ tablespoon of parsley
• 3 tbsp of thyme
• 3 tbsp of rosemary
• 3 tbsp of oregano

For Caponata

• 1 cup onion
• 1 1/7 cups courgette (zucchini)
• 1/3 cups of red peppers
• 3 cups of eggplant
• 4/5 cups of tomato
• 2 ½ cups of olive oil

Take three lamb chops, tenderize the meat and then dip each slice into the beaten eggs.

Prepare the breadcrumbs adding parsley, oregano, rosemary, and thyme, and breading the chops before frying them in olive oil until golden brown.

Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat.

When the oil is hot, add the lamb and cook until nicely browned on both sides and cooked to your liking.

Heat oil in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat and then prepare the caponata adding in the pan aubergines, zucchini, peppers, onions, and cherry tomatoes.

Transfer the lamb to plates with the caponata and serve.

Neapolitan Pastiera

Chef Antonio Vitale, Roof Garden Restaurant, Hotel Mediterraneo

Ingredients

Filling

• 3 cups sheep’s ricotta
• 2 ¼ cups + 1 tbsp sugar
• 6 eggs
• 2 ½ cups cooked wheat
• 4 lemon zest
• 1 tsp orange blossom water
• 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 7/8 cups mixed candied fruit
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
• 3/8 cups butter
• 1 ¾ cups milk
• 2 tbsp of Limoncello

Pastry

• 4 ¾ cups of flour
• 6 egg yolks
• 1 ¼ cups + 2 tbsp of butter
• 1 ½ cups of sugar
• 1 pinch of salt

Instructions for the pastry

Pour the flour onto the work surface and make a well in the middle and put in the center the sugar, butter flakes cold, and a pinch of salt.

Form a ball with the pastry and put it to rest for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator covered with transparent food wrap.

Cook the wheat in milk over low heat, adding 30 grams of butter, the four peels of and a sugar teaspoon. When the mixture becomes creamy, turn off under the heat and leave to cool.

Mix well the ricotta cheese, previously sieved, with the sugar. Add always stirring, the 6 egg yolks one at a time.

Continue adding all the wheat now cold (remember to remove the lemon peel before) and the egg whites whipped to snow. Stir until the dough is creamy and smooth.

Take the pastry from the fridge and divide by putting aside a third.

Roll out the larger part with the rolling pin at a height of about half a centimeter trying to form a regular disc.

To avoid using other flour while you lay it you can help yourself with two sheets of parchment paper and pass over the rolling pin to flatten it.

Grease a 28 cm round baking tray and cover with the disc of pastry by removing the edges that exceed the pan. Add the pasta scraps to the one previously set aside and roll it out again.

This time form a rectangle and cut many strips about 2 cm wide by cutting them with the toothed paste cutter wheel.

Pour the ricotta and wheat content into the pastry-coated pan and level with the blade of a knife. Do not fill it to the top, but leave 2/3 centimeters between the edge and the filling. Complete by crossing on the surface the strips of pasta just created maintaining a distance of 3 cm.

Cook the Neapolitan pasta in preheated oven to 160 º C for about 80 minutes.

Sprinkle the surface of the Neapolitan pastiera with icing sugar before serving.

Bettoja Hotels

Located in the heart of Rome, surrounded by the famous artistic and cultural wonders of the Eternal City, Bettoja Hotels is a family-run hotel chain born from the passion of the Bettoja family for hospitality.

The Bettoja group was born in Rome in 1875 and has bourn witness to the history of Italy since its Unification. With its four facilities, 650 rooms in total, and a number of business meeting rooms, Bettoja Hotels are the perfect mix of tradition and innovation.

Hotel Massimo d’Azeglio, the first property to be acquired by the group, maintains its “Umbertino” style and exudes all the charm of the Risorgimento: it boasts a precious cellar of fine wines where the suggestive Italian atmosphere of the turn of the century reigns supreme.

The Hotel features one historic restaurant- the Ristorante Massimo D’Azeglio which is part of the Italian Historical Places Association, and three modern meeting rooms which can accommodate up to 180 people theater style.

The Hotel Mediterraneo stands out for its severe and monumental luxury and is amongst the best examples of Art Déco in the capital.

A classic example of 1940s architecture, the interiors are dominated by wood and marble and the recurring sea theme, from which the hotel takes its name, is clearly evident throughout the structure.

With its seven meeting rooms that accommodate up to 120 people theater-style, two restaurants, and a Roof Garden that boasts a 360 ° view of the capital, it is the largest building of the group, and one of the tallest in Rome.

The Hotel Atlantico, also located on the Esquiline, welcomes guests in a charming building from 1935 with 3 meeting rooms with natural light with a maximum capacity of 45 pax theater-style.

The Bettoja offer has now added the presence of Hotel Nord Nuova Roma, a 3-star hotel, which boasts cozy rooms, three meeting rooms for up to 50 people, and a splendid terrace overlooking the Baths of Diocletian.

The Bettoja Hotels, booking@bettojahotels.it, +39 06 46 205 689, www.bettojahotels.it

Photo credit: 1) Source. 2) The Bettoja.  3) The Bettoja. 4) Source.