Garlic, olive oil, red pepper, parsley. The pasta Italians make at midnight when the kitchen is empty. Aglio e Olio Mondays used to be a thing in our house, but we drifted away from that, replacing it with takeout way too often. Well, it’s time to get back to basics. Sometimes I run the two busy…
Beef Braciole, stuffed beef rolls slowly simmered in tomato sauce, are Italian comfort food at it’s best. Beef Braciole is classic Italian comfort food and a great dish to make on a wintery Sunday afternoon. Stuffed beef rolls, simmered slowly in tomato sauce so the flavors from the stuffing infuse the sauce and the meat…
Thin cut Chicken Paillard quickly browned on both sides and topped with a peppery, lemony Arugula Salad is an easy, healthy and delicious weeknight meal. Chicken Paillard topped with a salad was one of my staple meals when I waited tables at my Father’s restaurant. It was quick and easy enough that I didn’t feel…
Fragrant and flavorful with olives, capers and a light tomato sauce, Red Snapper Livornese is a seafood lover’s dream and may even make a few converts. A wonderfully pungent dish from Livorno on the western coast of Tuscany, Red Snapper Livornese, was a mainstay on my Father’s menu and one of the first recipes I…
Always a crowd pleaser, Chicken Marsala is a classic dish that is actually quite easy to make and can be ready to eat in under 30 minutes. Chicken Marsala is a simple, but delicious old Italian classic. Sometimes in my quest to find new recipes and dishes I forget about my old favorites. Quite a while…
How do you make Zeppole, the classic fried dough treat served at Italian Festivals even better? Add Ricotta Cheese of course! Growing up I was always used to seeing the plain flour based zeppole at festivals, your traditional fried dough, which I still love. But I find myself making ricotta zeppole more often lately. I…
Chicken Parmigiana with breaded chicken cutlets, marinara sauce, parmigiano and melted mozzarella cheese is a classic Italian-American comfort food. I know on Labor Day weekend you are supposed to grill. But the forecast had been calling for rain on Sunday and I had just recently made a batch of Marinara Sauce. So, I thought what better way…
I first had this dish at a small restaurant in Positano on the Amalfi Coast called O’Capurale and was blown away by how flavorful yet light it was. Pesce all’Acqua Pazza means Fish in Crazy Water. Many American interpretations of this dish seem to take this translation extremely literal. They really accentuate the “crazy”, using…
In modern times the term Pesto has become a generic name for just about any combination of herbs blended with garlic, olive oil, nuts and cheese. However, the original Pesto is from Genoa in the Liguria region of Italy and is basil based and contains pignoli (pine nuts). Some people are turned off by the…
Summer is flying by and I am feeling a little self-imposed pressure to get in all of the great Summer recipes I had planned on. I may not get them all in but it really would have been a shame if I didn’t make this espresso granita with whipped cream. This is a really great…
