Vignarola is a celebration of spring and tastes just like spring in a dish. Prepare it at that magical moment when winter turns to spring and artichokes are still in season but you’re heralding the arrival of fresh spring peas and fava beans.Make this dish vegetarian or add some umami-rich pancetta or guanciale to the...
Recipes
Yeast and Sourdough Starters
One of the unexpected consequences of the pandemic has been a surge in home bread-baking and sourdough starters, partly due to a shortage of bread and yeast in stores. Many people sheltering at home began creating their own yeast, or sourdough starters, for bread-baking. It was also a lovely way to spend time with family...
Spaghetti Carbonara with Artichoke Wedges
The inspiration for this Spaghetti Carbonara with Artichoke Wedges recipe came from the March 2021 issue of the Italian culinary magazine, Sale e Pepe. I tweaked it to fit my own taste and it’s absolutely delicious. The addition of artichokes to the recipe takes it to another delicious level by adding seasonal globe artichokes. It’s...
Ossobuco alla Milanese
Ossobuco alla Milanese is one of my favorite recipes. It’s a special and flavorful dish and one that I love to serve to guests. Make sure to purchase the veal shanks from a great butcher!Ossobuco is most often associated with Milan and the Lombardy region and dates back to the Middle Ages. To prepare it...
Dark Chocolate Cake: fudgy and simple
Dark Chocolate Cake: fudgy and simple! I’m constantly on the hunt for delicious, easy to prepare dark chocolate layer cake that uses ingredients you almost always have on hand. So far my favorite is the flourless Torta Caprese but it’s also nice to have a great recipe for a classic rich dark chocolate layer cake....
Miso Caramel Sauce
I’m someone who really loves my sweets, but I do love a salty, umami touch to desserts to elevate them to nirvana level. Case in point is this wonderful miso caramel sauce that’s divine drizzled warm on ice cream. Miso caramel sauce is super easy to make but you do have to exercise care in...
Taralli, delicious snack food from the Puglia region
Taralli are one of the most iconic foods from the Puglia region. Eat them any time of day as a delicious snack food (stuzzichini) or served as an antipasto with aperitivi. They are made either plain or with a variety of flavors like fennel seeds, hot chili pepper (peperoncino), or even sweet. The flavorings are...
Perfect Poached Eggs
If you’re an egg lover then you will definitely agree that there’s nothing more wonderful than a delicious and beautifully formed poached egg. It seems to be the simplest thing imaginable to make but for the longest time it was something that eluded me. Yes, it’s true, that anyone can make a misshapen scraggly looking...
Umami in Italian Cuisine - Podcast Episode 45
Although umami is most frequently associated with Asian cultures and foods some of the most umami rich foods in the world are inherent in Italian cuisine: anchovies, aged Parmesan cheese, tomatoes. History of umami in culinary culture Umami has been a major factor in cuisine worldwide for many centuries although it was only given a...
Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese - Episode 44
Buffalo mozzarella has a porcelain white color and is known as the pearl of the table. It’s a flavorful fresh stringy textured cheese with a very thin rind. When you cut into it its delicious white milky liquid seeps out. Buffalo mozzarella is typically made into round shapes often weighing 1 kg each. Sometimes...
Pork Sausage and Lentils (Cotechino e Lenticchie)
Pork Sausage and Lentils (Cotechino e Lenticchie) Serves 4-6 Pork Sausage and Lentils is a traditional New Year's dish in Italy. Lentils are purported to bring wealth and good fortune. In Lombardy dialect zecchini - coins from the 1500's - were also called lenticchie, which gave rise to lentil's association with prosperity and good health....
Traditional Italian Christmas Cookies and Holiday Desserts - Podcast Episode 40
Holiday baking is one of the cornerstones of the holiday season and many of us have recipes for traditional Italian Christmas cookies and desserts that stem from family and local traditions. Almost every single town and region throughout Italy has fabulous holiday recipes and many of these have been adapted by Italian Americans and Italian...