Cherry, Lemon and Ricotta Bombolini

Cherry sauce: Place all the ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.

Bombolini: Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl and stir in the salt and sugar. Add the cherries and toss to coat in the flour.

Whisk the eggs in another bowl then whisk in the vanilla, lemon zest and ricotta.

Add to the flour and using a large spoon, gently combine but don’t over mix or the bombolini will be tough. The batter will be very thick.

To cook: Heat 4cm of oil in a deep medium saucepan to 170°C or until a cube of bread dropped into the oil turns golden in 20 seconds.

Using two teaspoons, drop small spoonfuls of the mixture into the oil, but don’t overcrowd the pan. Cook for about 40 seconds each side until golden brown and puffed. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen towels.

Combine the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl and toss the warm bombolini to coat in the sugar. Makes 35-40 small bombolini