Where would Italian food in the US be without Marcella Hazan? As much as I treasure my Campanian and Puglian food roots, I am forever thankful for the horizons that Marcella’s 1973 Classic Italian Cooking opened up for me. And even almost 40 years later, she continues to inspire. Here … Read More
Pesto alla trapanese (A Sicilian pesto)
One of the great joys of summer is the appearance of juicy, ripe tomatoes in the marketplace. Tomatoes that, for once, actually taste like tomatoes! And, of course, think about tomatoes and you’ll immediately think about pasta. There’s something about fresh tomatoes and pasta that was just meant to be. … Read More
Caponata alla siciliana
I have to admit, Sicilian food has always been something of a mystery to me. Many Sicilian dishes remind me of Angelina’s Campanian cooking—and Sicilians actually lay claim to melanzane alla parmigiana, one of her signature dishes—but there is something ‘different’ about some of the taste combinations you’ll find in Sicilian … Read More
Granita di caffè (Coffee Granita)
As the summer draws to a close, it’s time to finish our trilogy of Italian frozen desserts. We have already explored the delights of gelato and sorbetto, and now it’s time to finish our trilogy with a post on granita, a kind of country cousin to the first two. Most commonly … Read More
Pasta alla Norma (Sicilian-Style Pasta with Eggplant)
This, one of my favorite summertime pastas, comes from Sicily. Along with pasta con le sarde, it is perhaps the most famous of Sicilian pasta dishes. And it is a fairly simple dish to make, the only slight complication coming from the initial preparation of the eggplant. To make pasta … Read More
Insalata di arance rosse (Blood Orange Salad)
I recently found some blood oranges from California at the market–and I love blood oranges–so I made a blood orange salad as ‘dessert’: you just peel and slice the oranges, sprinkle over some black olives (Gaeta or nicoise are best), bits of red onion and parsley. Season with a bit … Read More
