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Browsing Tag: Italian

Pasta alla Gricia

Today’s recipe is a classic, simple Italian dish that definitely satisfies – especially on this snowy, winter day. As many of you know from previous recipes using guanciale, I think this ingredient adds a special type of magic to these Italian recipes (pasta all’amatriciana,  spaghetti alla carbonara, and penne arrabbiata ) and should be sought out before just substituting thick-cut bacon. The guanciale renderings are the star of this dish as it is those renderings that form the sauce – that and starchy, pasta water. I used the tips from the Serious Eats recipe to produce a velvety sauce rich in the slightly smoked pork flavor that is so well suited to Romano cheese. There are several keys to this dish that I think…

Pepperoni and Mushroom Pizza

Everyone is cooking and baking more during the COVID-19 lockdown, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have the dishes you normally pick up on the way home or have delivered. Sure, you can call UberEats or DoorDash to handle your cravings, but what if you took this opportunity to make it yourself.  This pizza is one such dish – perfect for making at home while you are stuck inside. Of course, it takes a little preparation by picking up the pepperoni, cheese, etc during one of your essential trips to the store, but it is well worth the planning. Since this post uses two previous posts, I am only going to reference the link for the pizza dough here and provide a simpler…

Apple Olive Oil Cake

This morning as I was checking my email, a recipe popped out from the computer and I had to make it. This recipe, compliments of Suzy at The Mediterranean Dish looked and sounded perfect for this unseasonably chilly late September morning. I had all the ingredients and I had the time – Ana was still sleeping – and I thought this would be a wonderful treat for her when she woke up. I made a few minor tweaks based on my own experience and preferences, but basically used the same process Suzy did. Those tweaks were to substitute Zante currants for the golden raisins and used a mixture of Gala and Granny Smith apples. The results were delicious and you should definitely make this Fall treat soon! Save…

Easy Tiramisu

I really like this dessert and frankly just skip making it at home because of the whole custard in a double boiler aspect. Well, thanks to Gemma Stanford of the blog Gemma’s Bigger, Bolder Baking,this dessert can be made in about 10 minutes. Yep, that’s right… 10 minutes. The key is to skip the custard and whip up a filling that most will never realize does not include eggs. So I used her recipe as a start and cut it down to make a single, very large portion (haha, I know I shouldn’t but I will!) or an easily shareable version that will definitely impress a dinner date. Now you can enjoy tiramisu at home with this simple and delicious…

Pasta alla Norcina

I want to give a hearty thanks to the gang at Mad and Delicacy for sharing this recipe recently. After seeing this delicious and simple dish, I knew I had to make it for one. This pasta dish is perfect for a quick weeknight meal and a budget conscious diner. Originating from Nursia in the central region of Italy – a town well known for scenery, truffles, and sausages – this dish is similar to many regional favorites like Penne Arrabiatta, Pasta all’Amatriciana, Pasta alla Genovese, Pasta Puttanesca, Spaghetti alla Carbonara, and a host of others. Made with just pasta (like penne), Italian sausage, Parmesan cheese, butter, and cream, it definitely is not a diet friendly dish though.  Oh well, you can’t have everything…

Orecchiette with Italian Sausage and Spinach

I found this dish researching some other recipes I want to make and the simplicity really struck me. A one pot pasta dinner that really works? Well, the gang at Serious Eats seem to think so, so who am I to question it? The truth is, this dish is super simple and really delicious! The sausage creates the base flavor, the spinach adds its supporting flavors, and all of it is bound to the pasta with a little cream and a heap of Romano cheese. While this dish may not make the weight loss cookbooks, it makes mine for being a simple, delicious one pot pasta that satisfies the need for a quick meal.  So if you are seeking a way to enjoy spinach and pasta, give this…

Italian Sausage and Ricotta Meatballs in a Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

OK, now that I have your attention with that beautiful recipe title, I am sure you want to know what it is. Well, it is meatballs in a roasted red pepper sauce. Doesn’t that sound delicious? I thought so, that’s why I made it. I used mild Italian sausage, whole milk ricotta, and panko crumbs for the meatballs to create a mild flavor that will not compete with the robust sauce. Mentioning the sauce, it is simply flavored so the roasted red peppers shine. It seems that this dish would be one dimensional, but the beauty is in the sum of all the parts. The sausage renders its juices into the sauce, the sauce gains a silky mouth feel with that lovely pork flavor…

Mapo Ragù

This dish comes from New York’s Momofuku Ssam Bar by way of Sam Sifton and the NY Times. I saw this dish in a recent email and thought ‘dang, that looks good!’ and upon reading more, I just knew I had to make it. Chefs David Chang and Tien Ho have created a deeply flavorful fusion of Korean, Chinese and Italian cuisine with this dish. Of course, I made a few minor adjustments in order to cook this dish for one. This dish follows closely on the tails of its distant cousin Italian recipe – Pasta Genovese – the slow cooked onion sauce with beef. Except for needing to cook the onions a lengthy time, the similarities stop there. The rest of this dish…

Pasta alla Genovese

Tonight’s pasta dish is one I had never heard of until I read about it on the NY Times Cooking site. Like several of the recent pasta dishes I have posted, this one has a multitude of variations. From my research, I went with a base recipe that I figured was the closest to the original/classic preparation. Similarly, like those other pasta dishes, this one also has just a few ingredients. The big difference is in the time it takes to make this dish. Genovese meat sauce takes many hours of cooking for the onions to break down and meld into the fork tender beef, essentially becoming one as ‘the sauce’. I will admit to being excited to make it after seeing this…

Panettone

Last year I baked a Simple Stollen for Christmas. This year, I just had to try my hand at baking a traditional Italian Christmas bread – panettone. This delicious fruit studded sweet bread is perfect for Christmas morning with coffee or tea (or whatever you prefer). Researching this bread was a bit of work as there are so many different recipes with so many differing steps, but I finally settled on using the King Arthur Flour Overnight Panettone recipe. Of course, I made a few minor changes. First, I used different dried fruits – golden raisins, zante currants, cranberries, and pineapple. Second, I did soak the dried fruits overnight but did not include the soaking liquid in the dough per their suggestion. Third, I used candied peel instead…