Welcome to our three part beginner’s guide to authentic Italian food! Here’s what you’ll find here: Part I: The Varieties of Italian Cooking This post walks you through the principal types of Italian cooking. Everything from true Italian food, the kind they make in Italy, to Italian Diaspora cooking, which … Read More
Columbus Day Special: Chicken Parmesan
It’s become a tradition on this blog to dedicate a post every Columbus Day to Italian-American dishes like the iconic “Sunday Sauce” or the San Franciscan fish stew Cioppino. This year, we present Chicken Parmesan. While Sunday Sauce and Cioppino remain pretty much staples of the Italian-American community, it’s hard to think … Read More
Scarola aglio e olio (Sauteed Escarole)
One of the oldest nicknames for the people of Campania was mangiafoglie, or ‘leaf eaters’, because they were known for their prodigious consumption of leafy green vegetables. It was probably a matter of necessity as much as preference back in the day. Wander around just about any open piece of … Read More
Scamorza alla piastra (Griddled Scamorza Cheese)
Scamorza is a cousin to the more familiar mozzarella. Like its famous relative, it’s a cheese made from stretched curd, formed into a ball but then tied with string and hung up to dry, giving it a more solid texture, as well as its typical ‘pear’ shape. And it’s generally made from … Read More
Pizzette fritte (Fried Pizza Rounds)
I’ve said before and I’ll say it again: is there anything more primally satisfying than fried pizza dough? If there is, I haven’t come across it yet. The Neapolitans have come up with all sorts of tidbits made from fried dough, of which we’ve already seen two examples, zeppole and … Read More
Spiedini e arrosticini (Italian Kabobs)
Summer may be drawing to a close here in the Northern Hemisphere, but there’s still time to get in some more grilling. In fact, grilling is a lot more pleasant in the cooler temperatures of the late summer and early fall than at the height of the summer—standing over a … Read More
Calzoncini napoletani (Neapolitan Miniature Calzones)
It probably won’t come as a surprise that Neapolitan cooks have come up with a vast variety of ways to fry and bake dough. Pizza is, by far, the most famous internationally and most people will have heard of calzones, and zeppoles, but there is much more to the Neapolitan … Read More
Coniglio allo spiedo (Spit-Roasted Rabbit)
Rabbit is one of the most under-appreciated types of “fowl”. Many people have a visceral negative reaction to eating rabbit, since in some countries rabbits are more likely to be pets than a dinner item, but in Italy and other countries, rabbits are highly esteemed for their culinary value and, in these days of … Read More
