From The Silver Spoon (Phaidon Press Ltd, 2005) Serves 4 About 6 1/2 cups of Vegetable Stock 6 tablespoons butter 1 onion, chopped 7 ounces radicchio, cut into strips 2 cups risotto rice 5 tablespoons white wine 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, freshly grated salt Bring the stock to a boil. Meanwhile, melt half the butter in another pan,…
From Gelato!: Italian Ice Creams, Sorbetti, and Granite by Pamela Sheldon Johns (Ten Speed Press, 2008)One of the most popular flavors in gelaterie in Italy is crema, a simple frozen custard unenhanced by any flavoring. It has a rich yellow color due to the brightness of the yolks of Italian corn-fed chickens. Makes 1-1/2 quarts; serves…
From A16: Food + Wine (Ten Speed Press, 2008) Eggplant vies with zucchini for the distinction of Campania’s most common summer vegetable, and its meaty texture is a natural for pasta. Toothsome penne tossed with chunky bits of eggplant, olives, and tomatoes is so hearty that I almost forget that this dish is vegetarian. Serves 4 as…
From A16: Food + Wine (Ten Speed Press, 2008) Lamb is the most commonly prepared meat in southern Italy, for good reason. Sheep are nimble animals and require less food and pastureland than cows, which are important traits in the rocky, dry terrain of Campania and surrounding regions. The lambs we get from Don Watson of…
From Cucina Napoletana: 100 Recipes from Italy’s Most Vibrant City (Interlink Books, 2008) This is very much a country dish. In areas where meat was scarce or expensive, legumes were often used to provide necessary protein in the diet – with the added benefit that they were filling and could be used over the winter months when…
From Cucina Napoletana: 100 Recipes from Italy’s Most Vibrant City (Interlink Books, 2008) Possibly one of Naples’ best-known traditional dishes, and taken all over the world by the waves of migrants seeking a new life after World War II, parmigiana di melanzane is as tasty as it is familiar. Salting the eggplants before cooking is the key…
After trying countless pizza dough recipes over the years, this Neo-Neapolitan dough from From Peter Reinhart’s Artisan Breads Every Day cookbook has become my absolute go-to. What I love most about it is its versatility—it performs beautifully whether I’m cooking indoors in my home oven or firing up my Roccbox in the backyard. Indoors: I use…
From Seafood alla Siciliana: Recipes and Stories from a Living Tradition (Lake Isle Press, 2009) Here’s another variation on the agrodolce theme, based loosely on a recipe from Charly, chef of Taormina’s Vicolo Stretto restaurant. With red onion crowning each tuna steak, it looks pretty and makes an especially nice warm-weather dish, served at room temperature–like…
Grilled pizza. It doesn’t sound right, does it? Whenever I tell my friends that I am making grilled pizza, they usually give me a skeptical look. It is not until I finish explaining the process that I hear a hesitant, “That sounds good.” Nobody really is completely sold on the idea until they actually taste…
Here is a cookbook that truly understands how Italians eat. “Italian meals are structured in a way that keeps family and friends at the table,” the introduction tells us. The focus on family and friends eating together is a central theme throughout this book. In addition to being family-centric, the Italian way of eating is…
