I am a sucker for unique pasta shapes. I just can’t help myself. Traditional varieties are also fun, like bucatini and radiatore, but if I come across pumpkin-shaped pasta, like I did recently at Trader Joe’s, I just have to grab it. I wasn’t sure how sturdy the little pumpkin pastas would be once cooked,
Tag: Italy
Cacio e Pepe is an Italian pasta dish that translates to cheese and pepper. It’s a long-time standard of Roman cuisine, and one I think everybody should have in their pasta repertoire. Recently my daughter asked if I’d ever made it, and I never have. As much as I love and respect the simplicity of
One of the goals during my recent New York City trip was to visit Eataly. I’ve been intrigued by the whole Eataly concept since it was built. It claims to be the largest Italian market place in the world, and at 50,000 square feet, I believe it must be. The famous names behind Eataly include
When I prepare meat, it’s usually for my husband. I don’t dislike meat, I just prefer avocados, and fish. I even eat tofu. On a special occasion I will certainly enjoy a good filet with my guy, but it’s just too heavy for me. So this lovely spring risotto with peas and a little bacon
The most well known version of Italian polenta, in my experience, is the soft and creamy porridge style – what we call grits in the United States. Savory and hearty for breakfast or as a dish served similar to risotto – topped with braised mushrooms, grilled shrimp, or simply with cheese. If you want a
Got stale bread? Make panzanella! Panzanella is an Italian salad made with stale, or at the very least, leftover bread, and you wouldn’t believe how wonderful it is. I’m sure its origins are peasant-based, because the peasant approach to making meals is all about using everything available to you, without any waste. And that means
When I was 18, in 1974, I went with my mother to France. I’d been there before – my mother was born in France. But on this trip we were not only going to visit family in her lovely hometown of Nancy, we were also going to visit my mother’s aunt. Because I was born
Sometimes I hang on to a cookbook just because there’s one perfect recipe in it. And this is one of those recipes, although fortunately, there are plenty of other recipes in this cookbook that I love. But I’d keep the book just for this cake. Here’s the book, by Patricia Wells, published in 1993: I
I wrote a post in late 2012 after I started my blog, called “My New Favorite Ingredient.” I had about 4 followers then, and so I would like to re-introduce this ingredient on my blog. The ingredient, or product, was given to me by my friend who has Hungarian parents. The product? Paprika Cream, sometimes
I have to apologize. Seriously. To all of the people who followed me at the beginning when I was first writing this blog. I mean, I thought I was a good photographer. I really did. I had spent years taking pictures of my kids and my dogs. And I took lots of pictures on vacations.