Pollo alla Cacciatora is an Italian classic. It means chicken prepared in the style of the hunter’s wife (traditional recipes usually do not assume that the wife would hunt herself), which is chicken stewed in tomatoes with herbs, wine, and … Continue reading Pollo alla Cacciatora (Chicken in Tomato Sauce)
It is interesting how you can vary even the simplest of Italian recipes. I make pasta with broccoli often, and I often make it like I described in this post with anchovies, garlic, and chilli. I cook the broccoli and … Continue reading Pasta with Broccoli and Pancetta
I created this dish because I wanted to make something that was both very nutritious and also tasty. I don’t believe in ‘super foods’ (which is mostly a way to make you pay more for foods that aren’t necessarily more … Continue reading Brown Rice Pilaf with Lentils, Beef, and Bell Peppers
Many foods we still enjoy today were invented to be able to conserve food before we had refrigerators and freezers. A famous example is dried, or salted and dried, fish. In Italy this is known as baccalà for dried cod, … Continue reading Bacalà alla Vicentina (Dried Cod Braised in Milk and Olive Oil)
Bacon-wrapped turkey is so simple that it is hardly a recipe. To make it sound better, I’m calling these medallions. That just means pieces of turkey breast. The most important thing is that they are delicious. Turkey breast is lean … Continue reading Bacon-Wrapped Turkey Medallions
This is my favorite kind of food blogging. I thought of something to prepare for dinner on the train back home from work, using what I knew was in my fridge. I prepared and photographed it, we enjoyed it for dinner, … Continue reading Pasta Casserole with Salmon and Spinach (Pasta al Forno con Salmone e Spinaci)
I love recipes that use all parts of an ingredient. When I saw the recipe for deconstructed duck fried rice on Simon’s blog Stranded on the Island, which uses the duck breast, skin, and fat from the skin, I decided straight … Continue reading Duck Fried Rice
Cold smoking is a technique that preserves food (and gives it a wonderful smoky flavor and aroma) just by smoke, without heat. To get a really nice smoky aroma, it is best to cold smoke for 24 hours. This means … Continue reading Cold Smoked Halibut
Parsley root is exactly what it sounds like: the root of a parsley plant. They can be cultivated in a size as large as parsnips, and from their appearance they could easily be mistaken for parsnips. But they have a … Continue reading Pasta with Parsley Root
Wolffish is one of my favorite types of white fish, as it has a better flavor and texture than cod and its relatives. For this recipe you could also use another white fish that doesn’t flake easily (as flaky fish … Continue reading Breaded Wolffish with Anchovy-Braised Peppers
I thought it would be nice to make acetani with pistachios instead of almonds, and the result was amazing. Unlike acetani, the flavor of the orange zest blends in to support the pistachios, rather than being the star. These delicious pistachio-orange … Continue reading Pistachio Orange Cookies
Crème Brûlée is one of the best known and most delicious of French desserts. I used to make it often about a decade ago, long before I started blogging. Back then I made it so often that I got tired … Continue reading Crème Brûlée
For this traditional French onion soup, I used the recipe of fellow blogger Stéphane of My French Heaven. Because I wholeheartedly agree with him that onion soup should be made from… onions! Of course we want to top it with … Continue reading Traditional French Onion Soup
This French-style apple tart is special because of the almond paste filling. If almond paste is not available, you can substitute with ground almonds and sugar. It is best to use tart apples for this tart, for a nice contrast … Continue reading Apple Almond Paste Tart
This is an original dish I created because I had some leftover trimmings from the salmon that I smoked. The sauce was inspired by Sandra’s recipe for speedy smoked salmon mousse. The earthy flavor of the celeriac works well with … Continue reading Celeriac Gnocchi with Smoked Salmon (Gnocchi di Sedano Rapa con Salmone Affumicato)
It has been a while since I had last cooked a recipe from Biba Caggiano, my favorite cookbook author. Rabbit in piquant sauce is something I had prepared before more than a decade ago, and I remember the rabbit turned … Continue reading Rabbit in Piquant Sauce, Stovetop Braised or Sous-Vide (Coniglio in Salsa Piccante)
There are many versions of ragù alla bolognese that do not have much to do with the original from the city of Bologna. They may be tasty pasta sauces, but in my opinion they should be given another name such … Continue reading Ragù alla Bolognese: Pressure Cooked, Sous-Vide, or Traditional?
Enchiladas is Spanish for something like ‘covered in chilli’, and refers to tortillas dipped in chilli sauce. In this version corn tortillas are dipped in chilli con carne, stuffed with cheese, and baked with more chilli con carne and cheese. I saw … Continue reading Cheese Enchiladas with Chilli con Carne
This dish is simple and decadent at the same time. Delicate fresh pasta is stuffed with pungent gorgonzola, and served with a creamy sauce of foie gras. The combination is delicious. Since we love foie gras and we love blue … Continue reading Ravioli with Gorgonzola in Foie Gras Sauce
Sometimes I fall in love with a recipe at first sight. This is what happened when I saw Pork and Almonds on Dave Chrichton’s blog Fine Dining at Home. Dave wanted to create a Spain-inspired dish, and served oven-roasted pork … Continue reading Pork with Almonds and Paprika
The recipe for this cake with pears and dates is from Tuttacronaca, an Italian blogger who has unfortunately stopped blogging. It has some similarities to the sticky date pudding I posted recently, as it also has dates, caramel, and cognac. … Continue reading Date and Pear Cake
If you haven’t decided yet what your appetizer will be for Christmas dinner, this just may be it. You still have time to cure and smoke the salmon. Or you could cheat and buy the smoked salmon, but make sure … Continue reading Whiskey Cold Smoked Salmon with Salsify
I’ve posted a recipe for lobster risotto before, a very elegant dish with a mild lobster flavor in the risotto itself. That version requires 1 lobster (of about 650 grams or 1.5 lbs) for every two servings. If you like … Continue reading Lobster Bisque Risotto
No fancy stuff today, but simple honest Italian home cooking. Frittata is the Italian solution to leftovers. Just add some eggs and turn it into a wonderful meal. Although I have been blogging about Italian food for over four years, I’ve … Continue reading Roasted Cauliflower Frittata
This dish is a play on the classic pappardelle al ragù di cinghiale. Since I had made a big batch of the sous-vide version of wild boar ragù, I thought it would be fun to stuff ravioli with the solid part … Continue reading Ravioli al Ragù di Cinghiale (Wild Boar Ravioli)
Ragù di Cinghiale is a famous pasta sauce made with wild boar meat and tomatoes from Tuscany and Umbria, served over a sturdy type of long pasta like pappardelle or pici. I’ve already posted a classic recipe for Pappardelle al Ragù … Continue reading Wild Boar Ragù Sous-Vide (Ragù di Cinghiale)
How about insalata caprese for dessert? Most of us love the famous combination of tomato, buffalo mozzarella, and basil as a savory dish. But it is also delicious as a dessert with the basil transformed into ice cream. The technique for … Continue reading Basil Ice Cream with Tomato Confit, Mozzarella and Balsamic Syrup
Sometimes fresh borlotti beans are available at the market in Amsterdam. The pods are so pretty that they look like they were designed by an artist. I had picked up some and decided to turn it into a minestra using … Continue reading Pasta and Fresh Borlotti Beans Soup (Pasta con i Fagioli Freschi)
Sometimes I use ‘transitivity’ to come up with new dishes. A relationship between two objects is transitive if whenever an object A is related to an object B, and B is in turn related to an object C, then A is also related to … Continue reading Tuna and Carrots with Cumin
A simple classic from Italian kitchens: spaghetti with sausage and cream. This comfort food is even more simple than pasta with sausage and bell pepper, or with porcini, sausage, and cream. And it can be prepared in the time it … Continue reading Spaghetti with Sausage and Cream (Spaghetti Salsiccia e Panna)
