We don’t often think about it, but meats also have seasons. Just as lamb is a talisman of the spring, autumn and early winter is pork season. In the days before freezers, it was the time of year when pigs were traditionally slaughtered. The colder weather acted as a natural … Read More
Pollo in padella (Pan Roasted Chicken)
Even with nearly 600 recipes posted over ten years of blogging on Italian home cooking, I still find there are some basic recipes I’ve managed to miss. The other day a reader wrote in asking if I had the recipe for an old time family chicken dish, which, when it … Read More
Girello al limone (Eye Round in Lemon Sauce)
Girello al limone is an unusual dish from Edda Servi Machlin’s fascinating cookbook, The Classic Cuisine of the Italian Jews: Traditional Recipes and Menus and a Memoire of a Vanished Way of Life. This recipe was, for me, full of surprises. I was not quite sure what to expect from … Read More
Ragù di lenticchie (Lentil Ragu)
As long time readers may remember, my very favorite pasta when I was a kid was Angelina’s austerely simple but delicious pasta e lenticchie (Pasta with Lentils). I liked it so much so that most of the time I’d prefer to eat pasta e lenticchie even over her extraordinary Sunday … Read More
Chicken Francese
October is Italian-American Heritage month, and long time readers will know that each year, around this time, we feature an Italian-American dish. This year, we’re serving up Chicken Francese, a perennial favorite you’ll find on the menu of just about every Italian-American restaurant in the country. Despite its fame, the … Read More
Pasta alla crema di peperoni (Pasta with Bell Pepper Cream Sauce)
The bell pepper may hail from the New World, but Italians have embraced it whole-heartedly. It appears in an extraordinary range of dishes, and you can find a good number of those recipes right here on this blog. But Pasta alla crema di peperoni, or Pasta with Bell Pepper Cream … Read More
Carciofi in fricassea (Artichokes in egg and lemon sauce)
Artichokes and eggs get along very nicely, don’t they? Artichokes are a classic filling for frittata and if you’ve ever tried it, you’ll know why. They’re delicious baked with egg or fried in egg batter. Or what about an egg, sunny side up, as a topping for braised artichokes? There … Read More
Calamari ripieni (Stuffed Calamari)
Everybody, it seems, loves fried calamari. But there are lots of other ways to enjoy this tasty mollusk. It’s delicious braised with peas in the Roman manner, for example, or with greens, after the Florentines. But I think calamari really comes into its own when it’s filled with a savory … Read More