Winter is time to get your Limoncello going for the year! Using the whole grain alcohol, it only takes 3 days, not 40 to make. So if you start today, it will be ready for the holidays. I like to peel my organic lemons with a potato peeler, over the jar I am going to…
Zuppa di Ceci e Farro con ‘Nduja
This year nature is taking revenge around the world. We had horrible storms and flooding again in Florence a few weeks back and this week a cyclone hit Sardegna. What makes it all worse is the over building of homes in the wrong places, as soon as a storm comes, the land no longer holds…
Sicilian Spaghetti-O’s
I am not Italian-American and have no Italian blood in me. I was never a big fan of the Italian-American food I had in America, for me the portions were HUGE and too many courses. NOW I get it! After living here for 30 years, I get it. I can see where a lot of…
ExtraDolcemente Pisa
There is a lovely artisanal sweets fair in Pisa yearly. I participated in creating a dessert using olive oil for one of their online events. I created a sweet sformata, a flan sort of a cheesecake, based on a friends savory dish. I have been making olive oil gelato since I first heard about it…
MELT- book review and contest
I recently received a copy of MELT: The Art of Macaroni and Cheese from my IACP friend Stephanie Stiavetti in California, she and her friend Garret McCord wrote a really lovely book focusing on Artisan cheeses and recipes from around the world. Grown up Mac and Cheese. After reading through the book I chose what…
Exploring Chianti- Hotel Palagina, Figline Val D’Arno
While researching for my Food Guides. I starting with the area on the 222 wine road. My dream is to expand to the other regions of Chianti as well. My mother-in-law was from Figline Val D’Arno, so it seemed like a natural first addition. It was the home of Barone Ricasoli, who created Chianti, what better…
My Green Summer- Verjus
The summer started green in Gascony with my friend Kate as we played with green walnuts. When I came back we started with our green tomatoes. It was a late summer so we enjoyed them green as they were not turning red. Like the southern part of the USA, we also do fried green tomatoes,…
Melting!
We had a very, very wet spring and summer was late in coming. But now, it is here full blast. Temps are hitting 100 and humidity at over 80% in Florence. Prosciutto and melon, salami and cheese, mozzarella and tomatoes, tuna and bean salad. So many options for NOT cooking. But, I am cooking. Classes…