Well, autumn is well and truly upon us. And there’s no vegetable that marks the new season quite like the pumpkin. Even here in the US, where food markets have almost entirely lost their sense of seasonality, you can still count on the appearance of pumpkins and other hard squashes … Read More
Pasta allo scarpariello (Shoemaker’s Pasta)
Pasta allo scarpariello is one of those pasta dishes that you can whip up on the fly, in the time it takes to cook the pasta: you lightly sauté garlic in olive oil (add a pinch of hot pepper if you want a kick) then cherry tomatoes, split in half, and … Read More
Carciofi alla romana (Roman Style Artichokes)
Artichokes are back in season! There is scarcely any vegetable more typical of Roman cooking, perhaps of all Italian cookery, than the artichoke. One of the most iconic Roman artichoke dishes is called, appropriately enough, carciofi alla romana or ‘Roman Style Artichokes. Stuffed, trimmed but whole, with garlic and herbs, … Read More
Frandura di Montalto (Ligurian Potato Pie)
I learned about this week’s dish, a Ligurian potato pie called frandura di Montalto, from fellow food blogger Josephine Wennerholm, author of one of my favorite Italian cookery blogs, Frascati Cooking That’s Amore. Jo, who lives in the Alban Hils outside Rome, says she learned about frandura on Italian TV … Read More
Zuppa di lenticchie e porri (Lentil and Leek Soup)
Regular readers of this blog will know that lentils are my favorite legume. I adored my grandmother Angelina’s pasta e lenticchie as a kid, and I still love just about anything made with lentils, including of course soup. Zuppa di lenticchie or lentil soup is a winter standby in Italian … Read More
Fagiolini e patate (Green Bean and Potato Salad)
It’s a testament to the vastness of Italian cookery that, even after 14 years of blogging, I find that I’ve managed to miss an uber-popular dish like this staple of summer tables, fagiolini e patate or Green Bean and Potato Salad. Well, better late than never… If you haven’t tried … Read More
Melanzane alla tarantina (Taranto Style Eggplant)
Eggplants might just be my favorite summer vegetable. In fact, eggplant parmigiana is probably my single favorite dish, but it is quite hefty eating as well as quite a multistep production to prepare. Sometimes you just want something lighter and easier to make without skimping on taste. Today’s dish, melanzane … Read More
Focaccia barese
Neapolitan pizza has taken over the world, but Italy abounds with lesser known regional flatbreads like focaccia genovese from Liguria, schiacciata from Tuscany, sfincione from Sicily, just to name a few. Today I’d like to show you one of my personal favorites, from Puglia’s capital city Bari: focaccia barese, also … Read More