MAKE THE RICOTTA FILLING

• Combine the cheese, grappa, sugar, egg yolk, lemon rind, white pepper, nutmeg, and salt. The mixture will be be loose, but not runny.
• Set aside.

ASSEMBLE THE STRUDEL BITES

• Brush the muffin pan with olive oil. The muffin pan should have tiny cups about 1 ½ at the bottom of the cup and 1 ¾ at the top (24 up). If the cups are too big they will be difficult to eat.
• Lay one sheet of phyllo dough on the counter and brush it with olive oil. Lay a second sheet of phyllo directly on top and brush it as well. Lay the third sheet of phyllo over the first two and brush it with olive oil.

• Tamp down the phyllo with a wooden muddler, being careful not to rip the dough. If it tears, take another piece because a torn phyllo cup will leak and be difficult to remove from the pan.

• Using two tiny spatulas or two small spoons, fill each cup with 1 tablespoon of filling and then drop 3-4 whole hazelnuts over the filling

FINISHING THE CUPS

• Fold the phyllo dough over itself and close by gently pushing to get the dough to stick to itself.
• Brush the top with olive oil.

• Sprinkle with Praline Powder (see recipe below).

BAKING THE STRUDEL BITES

• Bake in a 350ºF oven for about 25-30 minutes until puffed and golden.

• If you’d like more crunch in your Bites, remove them from the muffin pan and set them on a tray.
• Bake again for 10-15 minutes. The cups will become crispy throughout
• Must be served warm
• If serving later, rewarm before serving.

MIS-EN-PLACE THE RICOTTA CHEESE

• See The Finer Cookie’s article on How to Mise en Place
• Measure the milk into a large pot
• Stir together all the ingredients.
• Cut two layers of dampened cheesecloth and lay into a colander. If you like, clip the cheesecloth in four spots with small bull clips to keep it in place while you pour the cheese into the colander.
• Ready an instant read thermometer.

COOK THE MILK INTO RICOTTA CHEESE

• Starting slowly on very low heat, let the temperature of the milk come to 170º F degrees. To get a proper large curd, this should take about 45 minutes. Stir 2-3 times to keep the curd large. If you heat the milk faster, the curds will be smaller, so it’s best to take your time here.
• As the temperature rises, you will see the clear whey separating from the milk curds. As the milk reaches temperature, the curds will become larger.
• Once the temperature reaches 170º degrees, stop stirring and raise the heat to medium. You will want the temperature to reach 205º-208º F degrees. Test the temperature in the centre of the pot. At 205º, the curd will be large, white and will very softly mound on the spatula. The whey will become clearer and mixture will start to heave as though at any moment, it will burst into a raging boil. Don’t let it. Turn off the heat and let it sit for 10 minutes.

DRAINING THE CHEESE

• Turn the cheese into the cheesecloth lined colander and let it drain for 15 minutes. Add the salt if desired.
• For a very dry, dense cheese let it drain longer.
• For a moist ricotta, let it drain less.

STORING THE RICOTTA

• Roll the ricotta into an airtight container and refrigerate it for future use. It can be used for any application, and in place of store bought ricotta.

REMOVE THE HAZELNUT SKINS

• Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan and remove from the heat.
• Slowly add the baking soda, being careful not to let it boil over.
• Add the hazelnuts and simmer for 3-4 minutes.

• Test the nuts to see if the skins are loosened. They should slide off easily effort. If not, simmer for a minute or two more.
• Pour the nuts into a colander and rinse with cold water.
• Slide the skins off in a bowl of cool water, or under a thin stream of running water and dry the skinned nuts on a dry tea towel.

TOAST THE HAZELNUTS

• Set all 3 cups of hazelnuts on a tray, preferably a perforated tray and set in a 350º degree oven for about 20 minutes. You’ll want the nuts to be toasted through to centre and thoroughly dry. They will taste crisp and be delicious when toasted thoroughly.

METHOD FOR THE HAZELNUT PRALINE POWDER

• Prepare a tray with a Silpat mat or other non-stick surface.
• Measure the whole, toasted hazelnuts and pile them as tightly as possible on the tray, and set aside.
• Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until all the sugar is dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil and without stirring, bring the temperature to 370F/188C. The syrup will caramelize into a deep amber color.
• Once the sugar comes to temperature, pour it directly on the hazelnuts and let cool and harden completely—about 15-20 minutes. The syrup won’t cover all the hazelnuts.

FINISH THE PRALINE POWDER

• Peel off the hazelnuts and hardened caramel and break it into pieces into a food processor.
• Pulse until it is a medium fine powder. Over processing will bring out the oils and make it somewhat pasty. You’ll want to keep some texture and keep it a bit loose.

• I learned about this Praline Powder recipe from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s excellent book: The Baking Bible.