Most Recent Features...
12/16/98 - La Vigilia Napoletana
Recipes
for a Neapolitan-style fish-based Christmas Eve dinner.
12/09/98 - Hanukkah e le Leggi della Razza
Recipes for Hanukkah, and thoughts on one of the darkest episodes in
Italian history.
12/01/98 - Ciambelle
Simple, tasty cakes
to warm kitchen and hearth.
11/28/98 - Cardi
Cardoons, cousins of the
Artichoke, and an essential part of winter in northern Italy.
11/21/98 - Corzano & Paterno
Fine wine
and cheese just outside Florence..
11/11/98 - Ciuppin
The Ligurian progenitor
of the bay Area's Cioppino.
11/03/98 - La Crostata
There are lots of
more elaborate desserts, but in Tuscany there is none quite so imbued with the
spirit of home.
10/22/98 - Pasta al Forno
Lasagne are the
best known, but there's lots more variety to baked pasta.
10/15/98 - Arancini
Not oranges, but balls
of rice, stuffed, breaded and fried. Delicious!
10/04/98 - Minestra Maritata
Wedding soup
is a mistranslation -- the name comes from the fact that meat and greens go
well together.
09/29/98 - More Stuffed Pasta
Lobster,
fish, and a couple of Puglian specilties too.
09/23/98 - Paste Ripiene
Italians have
been making stuffed pasta since well before 1348, when Boccaccio mentioned them
in his Decamerone.
09/16/98 - Radicchio Rosso
The Marvel from
Treviso, an excellent reason for getting excited about winter.
09/05/98 - Distillerie
Going to be in
Italy in late fall? A grappa distillery under full steam is a sight you'll
never forget.
08/23/98 - Grano Farro
It fed the Legions,
and is one of the most healthy grains there is.
08/18/98 - Fabio's Penne, Stuffed Rabbit &
Botromagno's Wines
Fine things for hot weather.
08/12/98 - Ossibuchi & Oltrepò
A wonderful Milanese specialty and the wine to serve with it.
08/04/98 - Spaghetti al Cartoccio!
Or: How
to enjoy an aperitif with your guests and then stun them at the table. Also,
Caponata, one of the symbols of Sicily.
07/30/98 - Pesto Ecc.
When it gets very
hot little refreshes more than paste al pesto.
07/22/98 - Siroppi
Fruit syrups, the
foundations of Italian Ices and wonderful ice cream toppings besides.
07/15/98 - Peppers, Stuffed and Otherwise
Recipes for an amazingly versatile vegetable.
07/06/98 - Bagna Caoda & Other Things
Memories of a wonderful dinner in Piemonte, and notes on superb Tuscan
wines.
06/30/98 - Frittate
Once primarily a way
to expand eggs to feed a multitude, frittate are wonderfully tasty.
06/25/98 - Melanzane
We've come a long way
since when people wondered if the eggplant was healthy.
06/16/98 - On the Importance of Diet &
Excercise
Fun words from Olindo Guerrini, and a ginger-based pasta
sauce.
06/09/98 - Picnic Foods and Other Cool Things
Insalata di riso, Panzanella, Paste all'Ammiraglio... Things to add wonder
to a picnic or refresh on a hot day
05/30/98 - Ciró:
Things are looking up for a little-known Calabrian wine. Also, things to
serve with it.
05/25/98 - Gelati &
Sorbetti
Fantastic refreshers for the summer months, and
wonderful comfort foods rear round.
05/21/98 - Focacce &
Calzoni
More wonderful things from the pizza oven. Also,
tasting notes on a superb Pinot Nero from Marchesi di Pancrazzi.
05/13/98 - Pizza!
Nothing better now that
summer is upon us. Making the dough and topping suggestions too. Also, a nifty
eggplant dish.
05/06/98 - San Cassiano
What happens when
changes in zoning shut down a dairy farm. Also, notes on wines from
Fontanafredda, and Taralli, tasty South Italian snacks.
04/28/98 - La Costoletta
One can do an
astonishing nuber of things with a cutlet!
04/23/98 - Lambrusco
Times are changing
and there are now some spectacular examples of a former spritzmaster. Also,
Tortellini.
04/14/98 - More Pasta
A collection of
pasta tasty recipes for spring and summer.
04/07/98 - Gnocchi alla Sorrentina
A
touching story and a tasty recipe to greet the birth of a little
girl.
04/01/98 - La Pasqua Napoletana
Rich,
sumptuous dishes to celebrate Easter.
03/25/98 - Fontanafredda
Where the King
once went to get away from it all (and see his love) is now a superb winery,
exciting to visit and with wines worth seeking out.
Also, two tasty pot
roasts.
03/19/98 - Andar per Antipasti
Antipasti
vary tremendously from region to region. In Tuscany it's Crostini.
03/10/98 - San Gimignano: La Cittá delle Belle
Torri
A beautiful town, with wonderful wines.
03/04/98 - Polenta: Angelo e Demone
As the
staple food of the northern poor it caused untold suffering; it is now one of
the tastiest, and most versatile keystones of Italian cooking.
02/24/98 - Liquori Casalinghi
Home made
liqueurs are surprisingly easy to make and astonishingly good -- much better
and more varied than the commercial stuff.
02/19/98 - Carnevale!
Merriment in the
depths of winter, with lots of mouth-watering, easy-to-make fritters and
pastries.
02/09/98 - San Valentino!
Tasty ways to
celebrate il Santo degli inamorati, and tasting notes for the 1995
vintage of Montevertine, one of Tuscany's great wineries.
02/03/98 - Lasagne
With (or without)
ricotta, sausages, ground beef, béchamel sauce, tomatoes, or garlic...
There's no one way to make this most Italian specialty!
01/28/98 - Giorgio Carnevale
Fine wines
from Piemonte, and a memorable tasting dinner.
01/21/98 - Il Lesso Rifatto
Once the
commonest meat dishes in Italy, and still an excellent way to prepare the
leftovers from making broth.
Also, tasting notes for several Ligurian
wines.
01/14/98 - Bollito Misto alla Piemontese
Who would ever guess that boiled dinner could be such a delight? With lots
of sauce recipes, too.
01/07/98 - La Sagra Del...
The local
specialties served at town fairs are worth a journey!
Notes on going, and
some recipes, too.
01/02/98 - Gnocchi, Potato and Otherwise
Though Gnocchi di Patata are the best known, there are many other varieties
of gnocchi.
More Features...
