(photo: red and yellow peppers fried along side red onion and potatoes, including plenty of hot peppers) The region of Calabria, and the birthplace of my parents, is widely known for its variety of peppers, including the hot and sweet variety such as peperoni di Senise red peppers and corno di toro yellow peppers.  Calabria also boasts a reputation for […]

(photo: a small 55 ml bottle of white truffle infused extra virgin oil from Florence) Prior to my first experience with Calugi’s white truffle infused extra virgin olive oil I must admit I was skeptical of all infused olive oils.  After all, mother nature has already infused the very best extra virgin olive oils with terrific notes of bitterness, sweetness, acidity, etc. so it was beyond me why additives were […]

(photos: discovered on a town street during an Easter walk with our son) One of the cocktail party fun facts I often recite is that the burgeoning field of “happiness studies” correlates life satisfaction via a few simple items, including friendship, travelling, social outings (including participating in sport), and time spent with family.  Of course, some of the non-correlative items are large […]

One of my favorite ways to consume olive oil is via the simple and humble tomato salad.  Our tomato salad is prepared with red onion, basil, dried oregano, Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper and the best extra virgin olive oil we can get our hands on.   Recently, we’ve fallen in love with two extra virgin olive oils that […]

(photo: matzoh pizza with sausage and broccoli rabe – courtesy of Dr. K) Our honorary Jewish Italian, Dr. K., recently put together some exquisite matzoh pizza for his family and I was compelled to ask him for yet another guest post entry.  Enjoy and Zeezum Pasach! Dr. K used Bittman’s olive oil matzoh recipe, which is an adapted Sardinian flatbread.  He used freshly milled hard […]

Spinach risotto is an ideal representation of what finely cooked Arborio or Carnaroli rice is all about, namely, creamy and buttery texture.  The spinach in the recipe below adds another layer of silky consistency and the green color emitted from the spinach makes this a beautiful dish, as well. You can serve spinach risotto as a starter or as a side to […]

  (photo: don’t be fooled by the Carlo Rossi gallon jugs, the contents are 100 percent homemade wine) As many Italian Americans can attest to making homemade wine is one of the culturally defining moments of our group.  Making and bottling homemade wine is practiced by thousands of immigrants and 1st/2nd/3rd generation Italian Americans in the United States.  The process […]

(photo: Fish Sauce dish with squid, scallops, and clams awaiting pasta) Mention pasta to me and my mind drifts to fresh parsley, sliced garlic, dried red chillies, and high quality extra virgin olive oil.  In my view, the four aforementioned ingredients make up the world’s best pasta sauce or condiment.  Sure, one can argue that a well executed tomato sauce (with or […]

One of our more devout readers goes by the moniker of Dr. K., a doctor by training and food lover by way of passion! Dr. K has contributed many guest posts here and his latest is a favorite in the stuffed pasta universe: Whole Wheat Ravioli with Sweet Potato!  Dr. K.’s version of homemade ravioli include whole wheat flour and a […]

The “warm weather” hasn’t exactly arrived here in New Jersey but there are signs of spring all around. Our flowering pear trees have budded and our ancient Forsythias have yellowed and now brighten our otherwise drab landscape.  And our purple bearded Iris have come up along our narrow driveway along with a host of tullips, lillies, and crocus shots.  So, there are signs […]