I adore new beginnings. They don’t always have to be the beginning of a new year, but any new adventure. When I first left the USA in 1984,I had no idea I would end up living in Italy. It was real culture shock actually living here rather than being a tourist. Learning to function in…
Buglione- A Summer Stew
In my husband’s family, Buglione was always on the table in Summer. His father worked at the city’s main fruit and vegetable market in Novoli. There was was always seasonal fresh fruits and vegetables on the table. His mother was a great cook with simple seasonal produce. Summer hasn’t really decided if it is here…
Easter | Torta Pasqualina
Ligurian Easter Savory Tart Buona Pasqua, Happy Easter, Passover and April Fool’s Day! This year it seems like we are always having something to celebrate. Spring came in on March 21 and in Florence we celebrate Tuscan New Year’s on March 25th. This year Easter is early. April fool’s day. I am wondering how…
Seasonal Vegetables: Twice-cooked Cauliflower
At the weekly markets, you can tell the real farmers as they only have what is in season.The stands with bananas and pineapple simply buy their products and resell at the wholesale market, which makes it hard to really know what is in season. Even Italy has access now to out of season produce from…
Eating in Summer| Shopping not Cooking
This summer we are having a drought and record breaking heat wave. The hills around my house we have a lot of hay for the animals, which turns the them golden. A touch of green from the woods, chestnut and oak trees and then grape vines and olive trees. This year the grapes and olives…
Tuscan Fried Baby Artichokes | Carciofi Fritti
Certain recipes bring me back in time, to cooking in Andrea’s mom’s kitchen. Tina was great. She was a simple but fabulous cook and I learned a lot from her and her sister Vivetta who owned a restaurant at the sea. I do several of her recipes often and the Tuscan fried baby artichokes are…
Dining with the Diva | Spinach and Ricotta Flan
Here is one of my first FB live cooking classes making a traditional Spinach and Ricotta Flan,a sformata.They are commonly made with a base of bechamel instead of the ricotta. In Tuscany, we have such lovely ricotta and it is used in many ways, Crespelle alla Fiorentina, Ravioli Gnudi or a Torta Pasqualina. On this…
Market Day Menu: Chickpeas and Beets
Creating a market day menu for me is like being on one of those cooking shows every time I shop. In my own village, Certaldo, we have our large weekly market on Wednesday. They bring it all in, not just food. This is like the mall coming to you, you can get almost anything you…