This year, during a wonderful trip to America, I learned how to make amazing pancakes for breakfast! More than the recipe, what I was missing was the technique… in fact, I was always trying to get rid of the lumps in the batter, but I discovered that they’re actually important for making the pancakes fluffy and super soft!

Fall has definitely arrived—at least here in Milan—and I’ve decided to bid a final farewell to the nice weather with these chocolate and pear muffins! In fact, just from the cover photo, you can see that I actually made this recipe back in September. I was sure the bad weather was coming, but we were spared until early November—not bad, I must say! So here’s the recipe for chocolate and pear muffins.

The first recipe this fall is for apple and raisin muffins—they’re delicious! We can even pretend they’re “healthy”—after all, there’s clearly fruit in them! All joking aside, I don’t know about where you are, but here in Milan we’re having a fantastic start to fall! I hope you’re having fun and that this has helped you get over some of that so-called “back-to-school stress”! :D . Let’s jump right into the recipe and the shopping list for apple and raisin muffins!

Chiacchiere, bugie, cenci, frappe, crostoli—or whatever you call them in your area—have a very long history, which I’ll share with you here. I found it on an interesting Facebook page (LINK), from which I’m also borrowing the image that very clearly illustrates how widespread the name is in Italy! "Chiacchiere trace their origins to frictilia, fried pastries that women used to make in honor of the deities who protected fertility, specifically during Carnival. These pastries come in numerous recipe variations and perhaps even more so in their names, which frequently vary from province to province, reflecting the vast linguistic and dialectal diversity found in Italy, as well as its history." Cute, isn’t it? Did you know that? Let me know in the comments what you call these treats! This time, the recipe is from my dad: I spent an afternoon with him learning the art of making chiacchiere :). The ingredients are for six people, and it takes about an hour to make them!

Chocolate cake is a treat that every child goes crazy for, but adults love it too. Today I’m sharing a version I’ve adapted to suit adults’ tastes, but it can easily be adjusted for children by omitting the rum; the rest of the recipe remains the same. I find that rum gives this cake a unique and distinctive aftertaste, and it pairs perfectly with dark chocolate. I use the bottle cap as my measuring unit for rum. The amount can vary depending on your taste; I use one cap for every egg yolk I put in the cake, so in this case, that’s 4 caps. All you have to do is try it and let me know what you think by commenting here or on social media!

It’s impossible to resist these mouthwatering treats donuts And, to avoid deep-frying, I decided to try making them Baked And the result was amazing. They’re fluffy, delicious, and easy to make—perfect for breakfast. I chose to sprinkle them with sugar, but you can frost them or coat them in chocolate however you like.

Today I wanted an apricot tart that was a little different from the usual—softer and more crumbly…so I asked Anita for the recipe for her apricot tart, which I remembered being really good! In just a few simple steps, you’ll have a cake that the whole family will love. This recipe for apricot tart is amazing, and success is guaranteed!

Lemon Curd The first time I tasted lemon curd, I was 15 years old and it was my first trip to England—I fell in love with it right away! It’s a **very **easy-to-make spread and truly delicious. It’s also very versatile—it can be used on tarts or simply spread on bread for a tasty snack.

This cocoa egg-white cake was created to use up the leftover egg whites from previous recipes. It’s a soft, delicious cake, and the egg whites give it an indescribable lightness. You can easily customize it with chocolate chips or fruit of your choice, or slice it and fill it with Nutella, milk cream, or apricot, strawberry, raspberry, fig, or pear jam.

Black Focaccia I’ve already shared the recipe for black pizza with you, and I wanted to try making focaccia with the same flour! I think it’s really delicious, and I hope you’ll like it too :) Let me know what you think!