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….
Make-Ahead
Pasta and Bean Soup – Pasta e Fagioli
Pasta and Bean Soup – Pasta e Fagioli I don’t know why I never posted my mother-in-law’s delicious recipe for pasta and bean soup – pasta e fagioli – but there you have it: it slipped through the cracks somehow. It was just when I made it the other day that I realized I had…
Easy Chocolate Truffles
My sister made these Easy Chocolate Truffle for a recent cookie exchange party and as she described them to me I knew they were a winner! Then when I saw a picture of them I was completely sold. The flavor is so rich and delightful, and incredibly chocolatey, you think you’re eating truffles. And so…
White Chocolate with Dried Fruit & Nuts
White Chocolate with Dried Fruit & Nuts is so easy to make: A guest brought this to a party at our home: white chocolate with pistachios and dried fruits. Tasty and gorgeous! So easy to make: Melt 300 grams of white chocolate over double boiler, then use a metal spatula to spread thinly on oven…
Radicchio Ravioli with Chestnut Cream, Sizzled Pork Jowl and Fried Sage
When fall rolls around it’s time to make dishes that bring together some of the season’s best ingredients. Radicchio Ravioli with Chestnut Cream, Sizzled Pork Jowl and Fried Sage is one of those dishes! This recipe was adapted from a La Cucina Italiana recipe. Since these delicious ravioli can be made in advance and frozen they…
Homemade Blackberry Jam
The first year we made homemade blackberry jam Maurizio picked the berries and I did the cooking and canning. Blackberries have so many seeds which we find unpleasant in jams and tarts so I decided to remove them. It’s a laborious, time consuming task and I cursed myself the whole way through making the jam…
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing
One of the best loved cakes worldwide is undoubtedly Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing. Beyond the fact that the flavor is divine it’s simple to make as it can be done entirely in a food processor. And if a cake can be nutritional Carrot Cake is right up there as it’s laden with carrots….
Lemon Lavender Cake
Lemon Lavender Cake Serves 8-12 This cake is a great way to use fresh, seasonal lemons and lavender. You can never go wrong with a lemon cake and the delicate hint of lavender adds something unique and magical to this dessert. It also makes a beautiful presentation when topped with a few sprigs of fresh…
Ciambellone Breakfast Pound Cake with Fresh Blueberries
Most Italians have a go-to coffee bar for their breakfast: usually an espresso or cappuccino and a cornetto (a croissant). If you get to the bar on the late side you might find you’re out of luck on the pastry side. You’ll almost always find the bar’s homemade ciambellone, which is quite similar to a…
Ricotta and Pear Filled Pasta Sacks
Pears are delicious when in season; I adore baked pears and pear tarts but my favorite by far are these delicious ricotta and pear filled pasta sacks. I first tasted these ricotta and pear filled pasta sacks at one of our favorite restaurants, located in the northern Lazio hill town, Civitá Castellana. We’ve not been…
Red Wine Cookies (Ciambelline al Vino Rosso)
Red Wine Cookies (Ciambelline al Vino Rosso) They make a nice gift, along with other biscotti, for almost any occasion: Red Wine Cookies (Ciambelline al Vino Rosso) are the best way to use up leftover red wine. How many times have you had a party or dinner guests and you find a few bottles with…
Roman Style Stuffed Artichokes
Roman Style Stuffed Artichokes are delicious served with a few slices of lemon and some calamint leaves. All winter long the market is full of globe, or Roman, artichokes. There are so many delicious ways to prepare them, but the best way is Roman style stuffed artichokes, or Carciofi alla Romana. I usually buy artichokes…