What was Italian cuisine like before the tomato arrived from America? Pasta alla gricia gives us some idea. Widely considered the ancestor of the more famous bucatini all’amatriciana, it is a simple dish that, according to at least one legend, originated among shepherds in the mountains around the town of … Read More
Olive ascolane (Ascoli Style Stuffed Olives)
Olive ascolane—with their soft and savory meat stuffing surrounded by a crisp, breaded crust—are a speciality of Ascoli Piceno in the region of Le Marche, but they have become a staple on the tables of pizzerias in Rome, where I lived for so many years, and elsewhere in Italy. They are perfect for … Read More
Salsicce all’uva (Sausages and Grapes)
The use of fruits in savory dishes was once common place in Italian cooking, as it was in European cooking generally. Giuliano Bugialli, for example, tells us that the original duck à l’orange was a Tuscan dish. But with some notable exceptions like mostarda for boiled meats and strawberry risotto, it’s become a … Read More
Grigliata mista di carne (Mixed Grilled Meats)
If you want to make a big impression at your next cookout, try a grigliata mista di carne , a platter of mixed grilled meats including fresh and cured cuts of beef, veal, pork, lamb and chicken or other poultry. Italians love to grill just like other folks, but the Italian approach to grilling is … Read More
Cinghiale in agrodolce (Sweet and Sour Wild Boar)
Genuine Italian cookery generally has straight-forward taste profiles. As I’ve said before, one of the best ways to tell if a recipe is really Italian is to count the ingredient list: you should have your doubts about any recipe with over, say, seven ingredients; more than ten, and you should turn the page. Well, here’s … Read More
Il Gran Bollito Misto (Mixed Boiled Meat)
We usually think of boiled meat as a by-product of making broth, a humble if comforting dish for parsimonious souls. But in northern Italy, particularly in the Piemonte and Emilia-Romagna, they’ve transformed the dish into a regal spread. Traditionally, a true Gran Bollito Misto includes seven different cuts (tagli) of beef … Read More
Polpettone in umido con funghi (Meatloaf in Tomato and Mushroom Sauce)
As the temperatures dip, I find myself seeking out comfort foods. And what says ‘comfort’ more than a good meatloaf? And, yes, Italians make meatloaf too. They call it a polpettone or big meatball. Makes sense if you think about, doesn’t it? We’ve already seen Angelina’s southern Italian style meatloaf, stuffed … Read More
Minestra maritata (The Original Italian “Wedding Soup”)
“Wedding soup” is a popular Italian-American dish made with escarole and tiny meatballs simmered in chicken broth and adorned with small pasta, typically of the tiny acini di pepe (or “peppercorn”) type. It is so popular, in fact, that it has been marketed as a canned soup by Progresso under the … Read More