GOAT'S CURD AND LEMON PANCAKES

Goat's curd - a creamy, fresh and mild goats cheese that is made by straining the whey from milk - is heaven. I smooth it onto rye toasts with a sweet/savoury honey walnut pesto, or I toss it through cooled, cooked potatoes with crushed garlic and thyme for an easy potato salad.

It's easier to make than buy - though Neals Yard Dairy do a delicious unpasteurised version at about £8 a yogurt pot sized tub (not cheap but it's worth it). Better to make your own by straining wholemilk goat's yogurt through a muslin or clean dishcloth overnight, neatly tied up over a bowl, so the whey drips away, and the solids thicken.

These pancakes make for a perfect weekend breakfast, piled high on a plate and drizzled with honey. You can swap the curd for ricotta for a classic version, but the goat gives a gentle tang that makes them completely moreish when balanced with sweet fruit and sticky syrup. Makes 6-8 small, fluffy pancakes.

Goat's curd and lemon breakfast pancakes

30g unsalted butter, plus extra, melted, for brushing

3 medium free range eggs

200g goat's curd, plus extra to serve

20g caster sugar

zest of a small lemon

50g plain flour

honey, raspberries and nectarines to serve

1. Melt the butter in a pan and leave to cool. Separate the egg whites into a large scrupulously clean bowl, and the yolks into another.
2. Whisk the goat's curd, sugar, lemon zest into the egg yolks until smooth. Fold in the butter, followed by the flour.
3. Beat the whites with a clean hand whisk to stiff peaks. Stir a tablespoonful of  whisked egg whites into the yolk mix to loosen, then gently fold the rest in, using a metal spoon, being careful not to knock the air out.
4. Brush a pan with a little butter and put over a medium heat. Gently dollop 6-8 large tablespoonfuls of the mixture into the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden and speckled, and just cooked through.
 5. Plate up immediately, dousing the pancakes in honey and top with fresh fruit. Serve with extra curd if you like. 

PIZZETTE BIANCHE

I've been on a mad hunt for firm, smoked ricotta for months and months, ever since I grated some into a sauce with nduja and homemade passata at work (that fella Francesco Mazzei won my heart from the first mouthful). I still haven't got my grubby hands on any - and that's because it's a very seasonal (and very shy) cheese.

I did find, to huge delight, a ball of sweet, creamy, woody smoked provola. This has completely eased the search - and, dare I say, possibly gazumped the smoked ricotta. Get some - it's total heaven. And put it on littles pizzas to share before dinner. 

PIZZETTE BIANCHE

with smoked provola and 'n'duja

(makes 8 little white pizzas for nibbling or 4 large ones)
Takes 15 minutes to make, plus proving, 10 minutes to cook

7g sachet of fast-action dried yeast

½ tbsp caster sugar
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
300ml lukewarm water
500g Tipo '00' flour or strong white bread flour
1tsp fine sea salt
50g finely ground semolina flour

for the topping

1 x 250g ball of smoked buffalo provola (available from good Italian delis and Natoora)

few teaspoons of 'n'duja (as above)

grated lemon zest (optional)

parsley leaves to serve

1. Mix the yeast, sugar, oil and half the lukewarm water together and set aside for 10 minutes to fizz and froth. Combine the flours and salt together in a bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour the yeast mix and the rest of the warm water into the well and gradually beat in the flour with a fork, until the dough starts to come together.  Knead in the bowl for 5-10 minutes until the dough is soft and elastic. Cover the bowl with clingfilm and leave to rise in a warm place for an hour until almost doubled in size.

2. Preheat the oven to 180C/fan160/gas 4. Knock the dough back on a lightly oiled surface and roll into 8 little balls (or 4 large ones). You can leave it in the fridge at this point for up to 3 hours, wrapped in clingfilm until ready to use or freeze it, tightly wrapped in clingfilm, for use another day.

3. Scatter the table with the semolina. Flatten each ball into a circle, pressing the dough out with your fingertips, and stretch with a rolling pin into 8 x 1/2cm thick circles. No need to be neat.

4. Place the rolled dough onto lightly oiled tin foil or a floured baking sheet. Tear on the scamorza to top the dough, then drop small dots of the nduja on top. Slide onto a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes until the edges and base of the pizzas are crisp.

5. Remove from the oven and slice while still baking hot and the cheese is stringy. Top with lemon zest, if you like, and the parsley then season and serve on pretty wooden boards.

[THIS RECIPE IS A TWEAKED VERSION OF ONE THAT WILL APPEAR IN MY FIRST COOKBOOK THE RECIPE WHEEL (EBURY), AVAILABLE TO PREORDER ON AMAZON FOR RELEASE IN JULY]

LEMON TAGLIATELLI

On a day when weather is heavy, hot and bright - and after months of book writing and recipe testing - the only thing called for in my kitchen is a little light relief (and a burst of sharp citrus). Lemon tagliatelli is recipe that is understated, painless to produce and refreshingly clean tasting. A good squeeze of lemon juice and a scattering of zest, in all their simplicity, do just enough to seep into and coat long strands of taglatelli, and impart a clear, fresh and fragrant flavour. The dish needs little else, other than plump, unwaxed lemons and a few salty morsels to balance, to produce the most simple and elegant of suppers.

Lemon tagliatelli

Serves 2

Ready in 15

200g tagliatelli

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to drizzle

1 large garlic clove, crushed

2 anchovy fillets in oil, finely chopped

zest of 1 unwaxed lemon, juice of 3, plus extra zest to serve

parmesan, freshly grated, to serve

handful fresh basil leaves

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the tagliatelli and boil for 8 minutes, or according to pack instructions, until al dente. Drain, reserving 2 tbsp of the pasta water, and refresh under cold water. Toss through a little olive oil to prevent the pasta sticking.
Meanwhile, heat the 2 tbsp of olive oil in a wide, deep frying pan over a medium-low heat. Add the garlic and anchovy and stir for 2 minutes until the anchovy begins to melt into the oil. Add the lemon zest and juice with the pasta water and season generously. Bring to a simmer.
Add the drained tagliatelli to the pan and toss through the lemon sauce until warmed through and completely coated in the sauce. Dish into bowls with a little more zest. Top with plenty of parmesan, a drizzle of best extra virgin olive oil and basil leaves to serve.