Fiocchetti with Gorgonzola cheese in butter and thyme with pear sauce, speck crisps, and balsamic vinegar pearls

Peel and roughly chop the pears and cook them in the vegetable broth. Season to taste and blend everything with an immersion blender until smooth and homogeneous.

Slice the speck into thin strips and sauté in a non-stick pan until crispy. In a saucepan, combine the agar-agar and balsamic vinegar and heat.

Let the mixture cool slightly, then use a syringe to drop the liquid into the vegetable oil, previously chilled in the freezer for 1 hour, to create balsamic vinegar pearls.

Cook the Fiocchetti with gorgonzola cheese in salted boiling water, drain, and sauté in a pan with butter and thyme.

Spread the pear sauce on the plate, place the Fiocchetti with gorgonzola cheese on top, and garnish with crispy speck and balsamic pearls.

Chef Vito Amato, Junior National Italian Chef.