The Italian Dish

I'm Moving!

2009-09-13T05:18:00.003-04:00

The Italian Dish food blog is moving and I'm very excited.Blogger has been a wonderful platform for me and they couldn't make blogging easier. But after blogging for so long now, I've reached a point where there were a lot of things I would like to do with the blog that I just couldn't do with Blogger. So thank you, Blogger, you've been great, but I'm moving to Squarespace. Squarespace is a

Italian Potato Salad with Green Beans, Tomato and Pancetta

2009-09-07T10:33:00.031-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. To read this post please go to: http://tinyurl.,com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Plum Almond Cake

2009-08-30T17:06:00.016-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog location as of September, 2009. This post is now here. Please jump on over to the new site to read this post and my newer posts. Thanks!)Last year at this time, when plums were in season, I posted a recipe for Chez Panisse's Plum Tart that people still e-mail me about. This year, for plum season, I wanted to share a recipe for an incredibly easy dessert

For Tomato Season: Roasted Tomato Soup with Parmesan Crisps

2009-08-23T14:29:00.020-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now here. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Pasta with Roasted Beets, Beet Greens and Pine Nuts

2009-08-16T10:03:00.009-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/ycg3jor. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Cherry Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream (with Cherry Pie)

2009-08-07T15:36:00.024-04:00

So many people are looking for cherry ice cream recipes right now, I thought I would go ahead and share this wonderful version of the usual cherry ice cream we make. The combination of chocolate and cherries together is delicious. I paired this with a homemade cherry pie and thought I would go ahead and include that recipe for those of you who might want a good pie recipe. You can make any

Food & Wine in Oregon

2009-08-02T11:39:00.006-04:00

It has become a summer tradition for us to make a trek to the Pacific Northwest. For three years we have gone to Seattle, as you may have read in this post from last year and we absolutely love that area. This year, however, we decided to finally check out Oregon. We had heard and read about the great food and wine culture there and the beautiful coast. And boy, did Oregon deliver.We first

Daring Bakers: Milan Cookies with Lemon Ice Cream

2009-07-27T01:18:00.001-04:00

The July Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.For this month's Daring Bakers Challenge, I was excited to see that we could make Milan cookies. I guess everyone is familiar with the classic Pepperidge Farm line of Milano Cookies, so these were fun to make

Zucchini Gratin: Finding Ways to Use All That Zucchini

2009-07-14T14:12:00.009-04:00

People really want zucchini recipes right now, and I'm glad to give them one. In the summer, we're all thinking of ways to use up zucchini but not keep making the same old boring zucchini bread over and over. So here are some ideas to help you consume all that zucchini.If any of you have read the wonderful book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver, you know how she writes about

Radicchio Risotto With Grilled Radicchio

2009-07-05T16:00:00.017-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z4souPlease hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)When Brian and I took the boys to Italy, we wanted to eat lunch at a place near the Vatican that a lot of these Italian travelers recommended. It was a lunch we never forgot. We still talk about it and laugh. The place is Dino and

Slab Pie for the Fourth of July

2009-06-28T13:06:00.023-04:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST is now at http://tinyurl.com/ybkfq9w. Please hop on over there to read this post. Thanks!When you need a dessert for a lot of people, this is it. This beautiful pie is baked in a rimmed sheet pan and serves at least 12 people. It's perfect for the Fourth of July because cherries are in season right now. If you have

Fettunta - or the Best Garlic Bread You'll Ever Have

2009-06-21T21:13:00.004-04:00

There are many ways to make garlic bread and I certainly make it different ways. But this way is by far my favorite. In Italy, to celebrate the first olive oil of the season, they make this simple fettunta - or "greased slice". It's simply grilled bread, rubbed with a garlic clove, drizzled with the best olive oil you have, and then sprinkled with coarse sea salt. You won't believe how great

Chocolate Panna Cotta

2009-06-14T14:26:00.015-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now here. Please hop on over to my new site to read this post. Thanks!)

Sgroppino - Italian After Dinner Drink

2009-06-07T10:07:00.010-04:00

(Please note that I moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now here. Please jump on over to my new site to read this post. Thanks!)

Bouchon Bakery's "Nutter Butter" Cookies

2009-05-28T21:48:00.016-04:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST is now at: http://tinyurl.com/ybxf63e . Please hop on over there to read it. Thanks!The last time we were in Napa Valley, I drove by Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery and I couldn't believe the line outside the door. But that makes sense because anything that Thomas Keller does is going to be wildly popular. Thomas

Pizza Quattro Stagioni

2009-05-23T14:47:00.008-04:00

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know that every Tuesday night in our household is pizza night. I love that because I never have to think about what to make that night. I just get the dough going sometime in the afternoon. I let it proof and then I punch it down, break it up into individual dough balls and then let those rise. We all fix our own personal size pizza. I usually

Rigatoni with Fava Beans and Pecorino

2009-05-17T10:53:00.017-04:00

This is the beginning of fava bean season and many people are not sure how to prepare this spring vegetable. They are becoming increasingly popular and you can find them at farmer's markets and even some grocery stores. Some people call them broad beans, but most likely they will be labeled as fava beans. These beans are very popular in Italy and many Italians like to eat them in the most

Asparagus Frittata

2009-05-08T07:41:00.015-04:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST can now be found here: Asparagus Frittata. Please jump on over to the new site to read it. Thanks!

Meatless Meals: Tomatoes Stuffed with Tuna and Cellini Beans

2009-04-30T20:29:00.021-04:00

Although we certainly are carnivores in my family, I love to eat meatless meals and try to eat about three dinners a week without any meat. For those interested in the health and environmental benefits of eating less meat, you can read books by Mark Bittman and Michael Pollan, who both still enjoy an occasional steak. On our weekly pizza night, I always fix a vegetarian pizza for myself (with

Daring Bakers: Cheesecake with Roasted Rum Pineapple and Pineapple Flowers

2009-04-27T01:40:00.005-04:00

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbe's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.For this month's Daring Baker's challenge, we were supposed to make cheesecake, but do something different and wonderful to it. I've always wanted to make these pineapple flowers and thought about a roasted pineapple and rum topping I had made a while back for a cheesecake.

Roasted Pepper and Mozzarella Bites

2009-04-15T07:55:00.005-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Happy Easter

2009-04-08T09:49:00.009-04:00

I'm on vacation this week with my family (at a place that has free wireless in the lobby - always a plus) but I wanted to post something for Easter. I obviously won't be cooking this week, but I would like to steer you to a post I wrote last year, showing how to make the traditional Italian Easter Bread. It's a sweet, soft and really delicious bread that I think you will love. If you're going

Chocolate and Peanut Butter Pudding Parfaits

2009-04-02T07:50:00.003-04:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September 2009. THIS POST can now be found here: http://tinyurl.com/yd68z9r Please jump on over to the new site to read it. Thanks.I love parfaits. They are such pretty things to make, with all kinds of possibilities from what ingredients you are going to layer to what glasses you will serve them in. For these, I used our small stemless

Daring Bakers: Spinach Lasagna with Bolognese Sauce

2009-03-27T06:10:00.002-04:00

The March 2009 Daring Bakers challenge is hosted by Mary of Beans and Caviar, Melinda of Melbourne Larder and Enza of Io Da Grande. They have chosen Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna from The Splendid Table by Lynne Rossetto Kasper as the challenge.There are many kinds of lasagna and even in Italy every cook has his own recipe. But this is the real, traditional lasagna that is made in the Emilia-Romagna

Salmon in Pomegranate Sauce

2009-03-23T12:49:00.013-04:00

Every spring I order real wild Copper River salmon from Alaska. I get enough to last us all year and put it in my freezer. It's so much better than the farm raised salmon in the grocery store and fresher than the wild salmon they sell that's been sitting out, for who knows how long, defrosted in the fish case. Some of that stuff looks pretty sorry. I order my salmon from this place and it

Il Diplomatico

2009-03-19T06:42:00.000-04:00

When I've read about Giuliano Hazan's (yes - Marcella's son) cooking classes, I see that he makes this dessert often. I've always wanted to make it and I finally got around to it. Imagine my surprise when I saw that he uses a store bought pound cake for this! I couldn't believe it, but hey - it works. This cake is sliced and brushed with an espresso/rum mixture, filled with chocolate mousse

Spatchcock Chicken

2009-03-12T15:59:00.022-04:00

I've cooked plenty of whole chickens and I think it's a great way to easily fix a whole bird. It's very simple and you can place herbs and lemons inside the chicken for extra flavor. But my favorite way to fix a whole chicken is to spatchcock it - to butterfly it. There's a couple of reason why I prefer this method. First, I love dark meat and when you butterfly a chicken, the thighs get nice

Pasta Roll With Spinach and Tomato Sauce

2009-03-05T09:35:00.001-05:00

My Italian blogger friends, Marie over at Proud Italian Cook and Maryann at Finding La Dolce Vita, are hosting their second annual Festa Italiana, a virtual potluck of Italian dishes. I wanted to make something really special for this, so I did a Pasta Roll, stuffed with spinach and dressed with tomato sauce.This roll can be an entree or a side dish. It can also be a great vegetarian dish -

Daring Bakers: Valentino Cakes

2009-02-28T10:36:00.000-05:00

So it's Daring Baker's Challenge time again! This month, the February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef. They have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.The Valentino cake is a flourless chocolate cake and it is very dense, moist and rich.

Has It Been One Year? It's My Blogiversary

2009-02-18T07:39:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it's been one year since starting this blog. It's been such a fun outlet for my love of cooking and along the way, I've met some incredible fellow bloggers from all over the world. I still can't get over the amazing creativity, passion and talent that exists in the food blog world. There are some people that are truly outstanding and yet so generous and helpful. If some of you

My Mom's Zucchini Lasagna

2009-02-11T07:03:00.008-05:00

Mom and my brother, George, in NaplesPlease note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009.This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over there to read this post at my new site. Thanks!

World Nutella Day - Nutella/Banana Pastry Purses

2009-02-05T08:31:00.001-05:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST can now be read here. Please jump on over to the new site to read it. Thanks!

The Launch of The Daily Colander

2009-02-04T08:48:00.000-05:00

I wanted to announce something that I've been working on for some time now. I am launching another blog called The Daily Colander. I love information and I love it when a blog steers me to things I never would have found otherwise. The Daily Colander is a blog about all things food related. I will link you to interesting items all around the web, from great cooking videos to the latest in

Daring Bakers: Tuiles/cornets from the French Laundry

2009-01-26T17:37:00.000-05:00

This month's Daring Baker's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux. Karen is in the Netherlands and Zorra is blogging from Spain. The challenge was to make either sweet or savory tuiles and I chose the savory. The

Scallops in Orange Sauce and Dried Herbs

2009-01-25T11:59:00.001-05:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post can now be read here. Please jump on over to the new site to read it. Thanks!

Sausage with Peppers and Onions (Healthy Style!)

2009-01-20T13:01:00.003-05:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST can now be read here. Please jump on over to the new site to read it! Thanks!

Italian Pizzelle Ice Cream Sandwiches

2009-01-09T07:14:00.002-05:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)"Seize the moment. Think of all those women on the 'Titanic' who waved off the dessert cart." - Erma BombeckI had to start you off with that quote so you would feel better about this post. This is real indulgence. My husband and

Roman Style Artichokes and Marcella Hazan's Perfect Lunch

2009-01-02T14:55:00.000-05:00

I just finished reading Marcella Hazan's recently released autobiography, "Amacord". We all know Marcella Hazan as the Queen of Italian cooking but when she and her husband, Victor, first moved to the United States, she wasn't much of a cook. As a newlywed in a foreign country, she poured her efforts into learning how to cook so that Victor, who came home for lunch every day from work,

Mosaic Biscotti for Christmas (and a Video)

2008-12-20T07:04:00.000-05:00

I made 225 biscotti yesterday for Christmas. Yes, it took a long time, but it was so very worth it. These Mosaic Biscotti are so beautiful and just look like Christmas to me. They contain hazelnuts, chocolate, pistachios and cranberries (my addition). These come from the Queen of Desserts, Gina DePalma, the pastry chef at Babbo. There is a reason Mario Batali hired Gina. She's

Stuffed Zucchini

2008-12-13T09:47:00.001-05:00

If you read this blog, you know that I love to stuff vegetables, as I did here and here and here. It's a way to get people to eat vegetables who otherwise wouldn't and it can also be a great way to make a special dish ahead of time. You assemble the vegetables, refrigerate the dish and then pop it into the oven right before you need it. I really love doing that because it frees me up to

Pistachio Cookies and Vetri

2008-12-06T15:42:00.002-05:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y975dwf . Please hop on over there to read it. Thanks!

Caramel Cake - Daring Baker's November Challenge

2008-11-29T10:59:00.000-05:00

I was scared to make this cake.When I saw what this month's Daring Baker's Challenge was, I was excited because it was something sweet and the last couple have been savory. This cake comes from Shuna Fish Lydon, who is a professional pastry chef and writes the great food blog, Eggbeater. I started reading all the comments by people who have previously attempted this cake and had real problems

Last Minute Lemon Shrimp Pasta and a Review of Chicago's "Quince"

2008-11-24T21:17:00.000-05:00

We had to go to Chicago this weekend for a wedding and we got to have dinner one night with our oldest son, Barry, who goes to school there. I've always wanted to try "Quince", the restaurant which occupies the space where the famous five star "Trio" and Grant Achatz used to be. We had a great dinner there. The menu had me stumped because I wanted to try almost every single thing on it. And

How to Make Homemade Gnocchi

2008-11-15T09:54:00.003-05:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

2008-11-08T14:00:00.003-05:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Almond Raspberry Cake

2008-11-02T13:59:00.000-05:00

I just finished reading Patricia Wells' wonderful book, "We'll Always Have Paris . . . and Provence". This famous cooking teacher has written a fun and interesting book about her life which includes some of her favorite recipes, too. She raves about this cake in her book saying she could eat the whole thing! She and I are alike when it comes to dessert. She says she can usually pass on

Black Pepper Fettuccine with Parsnips and Pancetta

2008-10-27T15:23:00.000-04:00

This is a recipe from the Babbo cookbook, which I absolutely love, by Mario Batali. The combination of pancetta and parsnips is just about perfect. I love to make homemade pasta and this black pepper fettuccine has a lot of zip to it. You can add as little or as much pepper as you like. If it's freshly ground, of course, it's going to be zippier. My farmer's market closed up shop this week

Scallops in Saffron Sauce

2008-10-21T10:50:00.000-04:00

This recipe is from The Silver Spoon cookbook, the enormous compilation of Italian recipes published in this country in 2005. This book has been in print in Italy for over 50 years and is considered the classic Italian cookbook, the book that every bride receives as a gift. It has been updated and adapted for the American cook. This recipe for Saffron Scallops is a great example of what the

Bomboloni

2008-10-15T15:37:00.000-04:00

Bomboloni. Little Italian doughnuts. Don't you love the name? It's fun to say. And they are fun to make. The dough is not hard and they take about 30 seconds to cook. It's fun to watch them turn from flat discs into little puffs as they fry. And they are so delicious made fresh (they're great the next day, too). Sometimes these are made with a stuffing of jam. Del Posto, Mario Batali's

Roasted Squash Ravioli with Sage

2008-10-09T10:12:00.001-04:00

Let's talk ravioli. If you haven't made it, you probably think it's hard, right? It's actually easy and fun and if you make the filling ahead of time, it really doesn't take that long to make them.There are many ways to make ravioli and I think I've tried them all. You can roll out the sheets of pasta with something as basic as a rolling pin (a lot of work). But a little equipment makes the

Stuffed Eggplant

2008-10-02T13:56:00.000-04:00

Even if you're not a big eggplant fan, this is a dish you still might like. I personally love eggplant but in this dish, the eggplant is really used as a stuffing with other ingredients. Get yourself a grilled or toasted piece of crusty bread and you can spread the stuffing on the bread. Add a glass of red wine and it's a perfect light dinner.Stuffed Eggplantfor recipe only, click here2

A16 Food + Wine Cookbook Winner!

2008-10-01T12:15:00.000-04:00

We have a winner of the cookbook from A16, the wonderful Italian restaurant in San Francisco. It's Claudia from Cook, Eat, FRET! If you don't know of her wonderful blog, please hop on over there and check it out. She is always whipping up something interesting. I hope she enjoys the book, because I know what a lover of Italian food she is! Congratulations, Claudia!

Daring Bakers: Lavash Crackers with Peperonata Topping

2008-09-27T05:00:00.000-04:00

It's Daring Baker's time again! The challenge this month was from Shelly from Musings From the Fishbowl and Natalie of Gluten a Go Go. The Challenge: make Lavash crackers and create a vegan and gluten free topping or dip. The Lavash crackers are from Peter Reinhart's "The Bread Baker's Apprentice".I was excited about this challenge because Lavash crackers are basically identical to Italian

A16 Food + Wine Cookbook Giveaway

2008-09-21T09:17:00.000-04:00

Post a comment to win a chance for this beautiful book!I've been waiting for this book to come out and it's finally here! And it was well worth the wait. A16 is an Italian restaurant in San Francisco which prides itself on cooking authentic food from the Campania region of Italy. It is named after the highway that connects Naples to Puglia, the "A-16". This is the highway from which the

Tuscan Bean Soup

2008-09-18T10:41:00.003-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Plum Tart

2008-09-11T14:51:00.004-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Tomato Harvest

2008-09-02T18:02:00.000-04:00

The farmer's markets are full of tomatoes right now and I've made tomato soup and tomato sauce but one of my favorite things to do with fresh tomatoes is to roast them. If you have a lot of tomatoes that you want to put to use, try using them this way. I usually use Marcella Hazan's method - slow roasting them in the oven with garlic and chopped parsley. The slow roasting dries them out and

Daring Bakers - Chocolate Eclairs

2008-08-27T20:57:00.000-04:00

It's time for the Daring Baker's Challenge! I recently joined this incredible group of food bloggers who challenge themselves to create the same recipe every month. It's a group that was formed by Lis of La Mia Cucina and Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice. This group has grown to over a thousand members! We all make the same recipe each month, which is kept a secret, and then at the end of the

Pasta Puttanesca

2008-08-11T15:53:00.000-04:00

This pasta is a great dish when you don't know what to make for dinner, you don't have anything defrosted and you want something that can be made from ingredients right out of your pantry. Well, I can make it on any given day with what I have in my pantry, which always contains canned tomatoes, capers, anchovies and olives - and your pantry should always have these items, too. They add great

Italian Party Flank Steak

2008-08-02T21:12:00.000-04:00

Today I just finished reading Michael Ruhlman's book "The Soul of a Chef" and I had to laugh when I thought about last week's post, which addressed the habit of American restaurants undercooking vegetables. That exact topic popped up a couple of times in the book. Ruhlman was taught at the Culinary Institute of America that undercooking vegetables, especially green vegetables, was a no-no. And

Speechless in Seattle

2008-07-25T12:33:00.002-04:00

Well, we're back from our Seattle trip and it was a food lover's dream. We had such a great time and of course, I selected several restaurants before we left for us to try. I mainly used the awesome Urban Spoon website to find the restaurants. Check them out, if you don't know about them. More on the restaurant scene later. First, I want to show you some pictures from my favorite place in

Torta di Nada

2008-07-14T14:14:00.000-04:00

I'm leaving tomorrow for a wonderful week in the Pacific Northwest, one of our favorite places. We've been going out there every summer for three years now and we really love it. Going to Seattle's Pike Place Market is a cook's dream. It's so frustrating, though, when you're just visiting and don't have access to a kitchen. The local fresh fish and the incredible produce are really something

July 4th Dishes

2008-07-07T15:59:00.000-04:00

It was a great July 4th weekend here. The weather was picture perfect, my youngest son, Nathan, turned twelve and we decided to have a big party. Parties always make me happy. I had a slightly ambitious menu and ended up cooking about 15 dishes from scratch. I had some help (thanks, Linda and Binder!) because I was going to crash and burn without it. Anyway, there were a couple of dishes

Eggplant Parmesan

2008-06-28T17:26:00.000-04:00

I have an Italian cousin, Laura, who lives in Turin. Her son Fabio speaks English really well and we correspond via e-mail. He sent me this recipe from his mother (grazie, Laura!) for the way they fix Eggplant Parmesan. It's what I love about Italian cooking - so perfectly simple and fresh.Don't forget to salt the eggplant - remember my previous Eggplant Rolatini post? I explained the

Umami and the Italian Nonna

2008-06-20T15:58:00.000-04:00

What's a Japanese word doing in an Italian food blog? Because it's something every Italian nonna knows about when it comes to adding flavor to dishes. And if you don't know what umami is, you will. It's one of the hottest subjects in the cooking world right now.We all know there are four tastes - salty, sweet, sour and bitter. But researchers have identified a fifth taste and that is umami -

Focaccia Bread

2008-06-16T12:48:00.002-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/2ck8tll. Please hop on over and visit me at my new site. Thanks!)

Stuffed Artichokes

2008-06-03T11:31:00.000-04:00

Aren't these beautiful? These are Big Heart artichokes which I found at Papa Joe's, in Birmingham. They're much bigger than the regular globe artichokes in the local grocery store. These are special, but you can certainly make this recipe with globe artichokes, which I usually use.If you've never prepared an artichoke before, give it a try. Once you've done the first one, it's a cinch. It's

Stracciatella Tortoni Cake

2008-05-26T19:15:00.001-04:00

In Italy, when you go to a gelato shop, stracciatella is the vanilla gelato with chocolate chip shavings in it. The gelato shops, of course, were a real hit with my kids. This tortoni is lighter than gelato, but still has the chocolate chip shavings in it. It's not really a cake, but a frozen dessert. It has a wonderful almond and amaretti cookie crust. The chocolate sauce is outstanding. It

Lasagna with Red Pepper Tomato Sauce

2008-05-18T21:34:00.000-04:00

This is a recipe I adapted years ago from Giuliano Bugialli, the famous Italian cooking instructor in Florence, Italy. This lasagna is totally homemade, from the noodles to the bechamel sauce. It contains no meat and is very light. The noodles are rolled out very thin and the recipe uses bechamel sauce instead of ricotta cheese. The tomato sauce, though, is really outstanding. The addition

Cherry Ice Cream

2008-05-11T12:11:00.000-04:00

Fresh ice cream is such a treat. If you've never made it, go out and buy an ice cream maker and get ready. When berries are in season, there's nothing like fresh ice cream. And I mean fresh - right out of the ice cream maker. You can put the ice cream in a plastic container and freeze it, but it's not the same as eating it right when it's ready. And it's absolutely pure - no fillers or

Asparagus Risotto

2008-04-29T15:24:00.001-04:00

It's asparagus season and fresh asparagus is so good, I want to use it any way I can. There's a farm across the road from us and they have their fresh asparagus for sale. I had some for breakfast the other morning and wow. You forget what really fresh asparagus tastes like after so long! What a difference. If you're buying it now, here's one delicious way to use it. This risotto is a

Farm Eggs

2008-04-27T20:57:00.000-04:00

Look at these beauties! Remember my post back in February complaining about having to buy grocery store eggs? Well, the new hens over at Flying Goat Farms in Mason are finally laying! I've great fresh farm eggs again. What a difference. Take a look:Can you see how orange the farm egg is compared to the paler grocery store egg? Well, that makes a very big difference in the taste. And if you

Roasted Cauliflower and Broccoli Soup

2008-04-21T22:23:00.000-04:00

This is a really simple soup, but you won't believe how delicious it is. I had made it and photographed it, but never posted it. Then I read the latest post from Cookiecrumb over at "I'm Mad and I Eat" and I had to post this. She's been pulling out her old cauliflower and broccoli plants (sigh - she lives in California. That's why her plants are already old). Anyway, it made me think of this

Porchetta

2008-04-18T14:17:00.000-04:00

In Italy, this is a common way to fix pork loin which can be dry and bland, because it is so lean. I never make pork loin because of that, unless I butterfly it and stuff it somehow and cook it for a long time. The flavors used here - sage, rosemary, salt, and garlic - are classic flavors in Italy to use with pork. Use good white wine for the sauce and then pour yourself a glass.1 center cut

Pasta Fresca

2008-03-30T19:12:00.002-04:00

My oldest son was home from college this weekend and I definitely wanted to fix a classic meat sauce for him, a bolognese sauce, which he loves. But which pasta to fix? I could make farfalle, which he likes a lot and holds the sauce well. But having him home just seemed to call for a fresh fettuccine, which is really a labor of love and the traditional pasta to accompany a bolognese sauce.

Eggplant Rollatini

2008-03-26T16:23:00.000-04:00

This makes a delicious vegetarian entree or a filling side dish. You all know how to make risotto now - remember my risotto post? For this recipe, however, instead of making a saffron type risotto, I make it with a little tomato paste and very light beef broth. You can certainly use vegetable broth if you want to keep it a vegetarian dish. This dish is great because you can make it in the

Italian Easter Bread

2008-03-19T15:27:00.003-04:00

(Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. This post is now at: http://tinyurl.com/y9z5k38. Please hop on over and read this post at my new site. Thanks!)

Almond Tart

2008-03-16T13:46:00.000-04:00

This is one of our favorite desserts. In fact, Brian and I think this could be the best dessert we've ever had. And that's not surprising because it's Lindsey Shere's Almond Tart from Chez Panisse and it was the most popular dessert on that menu for thirty years. I have to provide dessert for a progressive dinner this weekend and I knew this was what I was going to fix. I fixed a couple of

Finding Recipes on the Internet

2008-03-13T10:00:00.000-04:00

How many of you use the internet to find recipes? A lot of people do. But the best place to find recipes is on food blogs. The content of some of these sites is amazing. They just don't give out recipes, they offer a lot of great information and amazing food photography. Deb and Alex over at Smitten Kitchen have a post

Farro Salad

2008-03-08T17:03:00.000-05:00

This is one of my favorite dishes. Sometimes I make a big batch of this and then have it for lunch for a few days. It's easy and a very healthy dish. Farro has become quite popular now and can be found on a lot of menus at good Italian restaurants. It is an ancient grain that has been eaten in Italy for eons. It's very similar to spelt. In fact, some people claim they are the same thing and

Penne with Salmon in Vodka Sauce

2008-03-07T11:35:00.001-05:00

Please note that I have moved my blog as of September, 2009. THIS POST can now be read here. Please jump on over to my new site to read it! Thanks!

Stuffed Peppers

2008-03-06T19:52:00.000-05:00

I love stuffing vegetables. I love to stuff tomatoes, peppers and zucchini. When you bake peppers like this, you can make a stuffing out of a lot of things - a rice pilaf, risotto, any kind of tiny pasta or even quinoa. These are stuffed with Israeli Couscous, sometimes called pearl pasta. And that's exactly what it is - little pasta. They are fairly bland, so you have to give them a little

Polenta

2008-03-04T22:05:00.000-05:00

Throw out all your polenta recipes and just follow Bill Buford's instructions in Heat. Really. What he learned about polenta at Babbo is the real deal (and it's a darn funny read). Polenta takes more liquid than any recipe out there says (I hope Marcella Hazan doesn't read food blogs!) and it really is better the longer you cook it. Oh, and by the way, even though Mario recommends instant

Pignoli

2008-03-02T13:03:00.000-05:00

Brian and I go to an Italian conversation group on Sunday nights and tonight is the last class for this session. I wanted to take something to hand out to everyone and I figured what better then these Pignoli - Italian pine nut and almond cookies. Brian loves these cookies and I even love them, and I'm not much of a cookie person at all. These are very light and have no egg yolk or butter in

Pizza: the Homemade Kind

2008-02-28T19:16:00.000-05:00

Having a real wood burning pizza oven in your home is fantastic. The oven can reach temperatures that a regular oven just can't. And that's one of the secrets to having great homemade pizza. Oh - okay, well, that's not me in the picture and no, that's not my pizza oven. But wouldn't it be great to have one? For all of us who don't, and that's just about everyone I know, you can still do

Pasta With Shrimp and Sicilian Pesto

2008-02-25T13:43:00.000-05:00

I've been reading Faith Willinger's newest book, "Adventures of an Italian Food Lover." It's quite a fun read. She takes you all over Italy and profiles lots of her friends and includes "254 recipes from my very best friends." And she's not kidding. She knows everyone. For those of you not familiar with Faith Willinger, she is quite famous in the Italian foodie world. She is an American who

Bolognese Sauce

2008-02-24T13:05:00.001-05:00

Ask ten Italian cooks for their Bolognese recipes, and you will get ten different recipes. Similar, but different. Some add milk, some don't. Some use a combination of meats, some use only beef. It goes on and on. I've made a lot of meat sauces, but this is my favorite. I have to say, though, I really don't measure anything, so it's a little different every time. But that's the fun of it.

The Dreaded Grocery Store Egg

2008-02-23T14:59:00.000-05:00

Anyone who really knows me knows that I adore eggs. They're my favorite thing. I could eat eggs three times a day. I love them cooked every way - but when they are scrambled, they absolutely have to be very softly scrambled, not completely cooked until they are firm, which is the mistake most nonegghead people make. I love them softly boiled, hard boiled and over easy. But, sadly, I allow

What's So Scary About Risotto?

2008-02-19T16:40:00.000-05:00

Don't we all love risotto? It has been so cold here in Michigan for so long now that it's really time for some risotto. There are so many people, though, who would love to be able to make it but are scared to try. They've heard it's difficult, takes forever to cook and requires constant stirring (this part is sort of true - it does require a lot of stirring, but not constantly). It's