This cheese tortellini recipe idea without red sauce is one of my favorite easy dinners for kids. And we made it out of need on one very, very cold night. (And then kept making it and making it!) There was an ice storm. Way before the cheese tortellini recipe idea came in. I don’t have…
spaghetti nests with bocconcini “eggs”, the perfect leftover (and picky eater) solution
FOR SOMEONE WHO WAS BORN IN ITALY my four-year-old is very anti-spaghetti these days. She suddenly thinks it’s too hard to eat. This didn’t used to bother her, but I guess it does now. Sigh. But before we swear off the stuff, I thought I’d try something…and it worked.
Our Most Popular Casserole Recipe Ever: Sausage, Rice, Zucchini & Cheese
PHOEBE WASN’T EXACTLY PLEASED. Suddenly my four-year-old is opposed to everything being combined into a one-pot dinner. “Only one thing?”, she asks as incredulously as only a preschooler can. And to that I say (at least in my head), “When you start doing the dishes my dear, we can use all the pans for every…
pan-fried chicken Milanese, a family-friendly recipe from “The Fresh 20” by Melissa Lanz
THE THING ABOUT COOKING DINNER IS, the whole process can get complicated. Even daunting. What to make, when to get to the store, what to do with the rest of that huge bag of kale… One of the things that I’m enjoying about Melissa Lanz’s book, “The Fresh 20” (which you have an opportunity to…
ravioli with peas and pancetta
A BOWL OF PASTA DOESN’T ALWAYS MEAN TOMATO SAUCE. One of the easiest ideas I’ve learned from the Italians is to substitute traditional red sauce with something much simpler: extra virgin olive oil, fresh herbs and a sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Dinner’s on the table in 20 minutes, and it’s a really good…
Frittata with spinach, pancetta & ricotta (a Barefoot Contessa makeover)
MY BIG INDULGENCE IN ITALY, other than one trip to the Gucci outlet and one million bowls of gelato (which was probably more expensive in the long run!), has been an international subscription to the Food Network magazine. I’ve definitely learned a lot from Italians when it comes to food, family and the combination of…
homemade ham & pineapple pizza
NO ONE LOVES A SPIN-OFF MORE THAN ME. I’m a huge fan of Hawaiian pizza so it wasn’t even a question that we’d turn our pork & pineapple skewers into kid-friendly ham & pineapple pizza sooner or later. Just don’t tell the Italians… The flavor is so nice, we might try this again with the healthy deep…
Sausage & spinach with raisins, pine nuts & rice
THIS ONE STARTED WITH BUDDY. Do you know the Cake Boss? I’m sure you do but I didn’t. In Rome, we have a bit of American TV but it’s a small selection and always a bit behind. Anyway, it appears that in the time I’ve been away from the States, one Buddy Valastro has become…
no-cook dinner: antipasto with ham, cheese, breadsticks, melon and more…
IT’S BEEN OVER 90 DEGREES EVERY DAY in Rome for weeks. This is a normal summer in Italy but that doesn’t mean we’re not melting! Particularly those of us from the Pacific Northwest where it simply doesn’t do this. Ever. My Floridian husband, however, is soaking up the sun, humidity and all the heat for…
homemade deep dish pizza with pepperoni (with a surprisingly healthy ingredient)
THERE ARE TWO IMPORTANT THINGS to say about this pizza: First, it’s (pretty) good for you. Second, it’s only moderately popular at our place. {Wah, wah.} Estelle and I seem to like it best…which makes Paul and Phoebe something of pizza purists. This is after all, Italy…
Roman chicken with peppers
THIS WAS A GREEN EGGS AND HAM kind of night. Phoebe didn’t even want to try one bite and certainly had no intention of eating a pepper. But then she did. “Mmm. That’s good!” I couldn’t help myself. I had to call her on it! After all this time (after all, we’ve had nearly 3…
Baked risotto with sausage, barley & fresh green beans
AS THREATENED PROMISED, baked risotto has made its way into our weekly repertoire and here’s why: the kids love it! Plus, a baked version of this traditional Italian dish is easy to make before they even get home from nursery school. Sitting on the stove, it’s ready to be warmed again at dinner time. No…
whole wheat penne pasta with pesto & beans
THIS DINNER WAS DONE IN 15 MINUTES. As if that wasn’t enough of a mini miracle for this mom, it was also eaten. Happily. Heartily. And so another spin-off series begins… Get ready kids. There’s more pasta on the way! And more, and more…
Baked risotto with bacon and peas
SPIN-OFFS ARE A VERY BIG PART OF MY master plan (rubs palms together yet controls the urge to laugh maniacally. Probably because that would be weird. Anyway…). Estelle LOVES rice these days so without driving everyone crazy, I’m going to try as many variations as I can, as often as I can. Also, Phoebe thinks…
Turkey sausage meatballs and easy pasta with peas
WE’VE JUST RETURNED FROM A THREE-WEEK TRIP to the US where we plan to relocate at the end of 2012. North Carolina looks like our future destination but first all things related to jobs, houses, schools and the other million details that make a life must align. (Wish us luck!) In the meantime, I’ve stocked…
Pizza with asparagus, ricotta and lemon
NOTHING SAYS SPRING IS HERE LIKE the arrival of asparagus. And it’s delicious, so I’m in. Actually the little guys did pretty well with the asparagus pizza. They each ate a piece or so, and in this house, that’s a win. (Plus Phoebe loved helping make this simple dish.) Mixed with creamy ricotta full of…
Baked spaghetti with sausage and beans
SOMETHING WEIRD IS HAPPENING in Rome. It’s snowing. And not just a little bit; we’ve got 6 to 8 inches of the fluffly stuff outside our door. This kind of weather calls for comfort food, pronto.
Arrosticini, meat on a stick (aka the easiest sell ever)
FOR PICKY EATERS OR TODDLERS (which are basically the same) sometimes it takes a stick. In Italy, they do amazing little kabobs called arrosticini, which are actually made from lamb. It’s a specialty dish from the Abruzzo region but often found everywhere. However, I’m guessing that: a. lamb is harder to find at your grocery…
Straccetti, arugula salad with sizzling strips of steak and Parmesan cheese
STRACCETTI IS A CLASSIC ITALIAN MEAL, so naturally I’d never heard of it. That was before I moved to Rome and discovered that Italian food is more than pasta, tomatoes and cheese. (But they do that very well.) One of my favorite summer meals has turned out to be a version of the Big Salad…
Italian style pasta & cheese cups
A PORTABLE LUNCH DOESN’T GET MUCH BETTER than this. With a play date coming up, Phoebe and I set out to make lunch for her and a play pal but there were strings attached. It had to withstand a trip across Rome via stroller. That’s where this new recipe came in. Continuing on my Sneaky…