Childhood Memories and a Few Sauces from Sicily
I was reorganizing a few cabinets the other day and came across some old photo albums – those old photo albums that many of us …
Fava bean and mint “torta rustica”
It’s springtime in Los Angeles. The rain seems to be over; the days are getting warmer and longer; plants are growing and flowers blooming all …
“Wild” Mushroom Risotto
A few years ago I finally got around to reading Michael Pollan’s decade-old book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma. I loved the entire book, but as I …
A modern Coniglio in Porchetta
The first and only time I served a whole, intact rabbit was several years ago for Easter dinner (insert humorous comment about serving a bunny …
Simplifying Life and a Blood Orange Crostata
Over the past few years, I have had a growing realization that that the things I treasured most had nothing to do with the things filling my …
Nesting in Winter: Spaghetti Nests (Nidi di Spaghetti)
Winter. In all its frosty glory…how I pine for spring! To be fair, winter in my hood has been fairly mild this year. No snow …
In Search of Castelluccio Lentils
While in Umbria on vacation a few years ago, we went in search of fabled Castelluccio lentils. We had seen these lentils for sale when …
Detoxing Italian Style: Fabulous Fennel
Buon anno, tutti!! With the holidays behind us, many of us have gone a bit overboard with the continual stream of cakes, cookies, libations and …
Mussels and Shells in a Saffron Tomato Soup
With Christmas Eve fast approaching, it’s time to starting thinking about that uniquely Italian-American tradition of the Seven Fishes. Probably born from the Italian tradition …
Drunken Octopus Salad
Octopus is finally available again in seafood stores in Southern California. In Italy, being able to buy freshly fished octopus is nearly a birthright. Along …
The crostata revisited
Way back in 2009, one of my first food posts was for an apple crostata. I just ran into a friend at church this weekend who …
Calamari ripieni alla marchigiana (Stuffed squid)
While we were in Marche, Italy this spring, we had stuffed calamari prepared by my cousin’s wife, Maria, several times. These beautiful squid from the …