This creamy polenta recipe with sautéed mushrooms is the best quick-and-easy weeknight comfort food. A thick hearty bowl of polenta topped with savory mushrooms and a bit of cheese truly hits the spot on cooler evenings. But this recipe is also a light enough meal to enjoy during warmer months too. And it is a…
This easy white bean soup is one of my favorite weeknight meals to make when I’m craving something comforting, yet light and healthy. It’s a quick and easy soup and takes about 30 minutes to make from scratch. So there’s no need to plan ahead or pull out your slow cooker. We have cooking tips…
Pasta Bolognese is such a popular comfort food, but do you know its origins? Bolognese is a kind of ragù (the Italian word for meat sauce), originally from the city of Bologna, Italy. It’s a tomato-based meat sauce simmered low and slow with a trio of aromatics (celery, onion, and carrots) and a good dose…
Maybe it’s summer nostalgia, but I’ve been craving antipasto salad. You know, the kind that you can typically find at your neighborhood pizzeria that’s covered in olives and pepperocini and loaded with dressing that you can sop up with fresh baked garlic knots. If you’ve been craving antipasto salad too, we have the whole scoop…
Looking for some of the best pasta recipes? I don’t know about you, but I’m missing travel right now and seeking comfort in my kitchen. And my favorite comfort food, hands down, is pasta. It’s alike a warm hug in a bowl, it’s filling, and there’s always a box of it in my pantry. So,…
This limoncello recipe came from a kitchen towel I found at the open air market in Sorrento, Italy. With only four ingredients, homemade limoncello is actually quite easy to make. All it takes is a little patience as you wait for the lemon oils to infuse the vodka. I have the limoncello recipe posted here…
Cavatappi is a toothsome pasta, named for it’s curlicue corkscrew shape that’s perfect for holding on to a savory sauce — and you’re going to love this lemon ricotta sauce we have below. This recipe is inspired by a dinner we had at a Sicilian wine estate just outside Catania during our food tour of…
This post is sponsored by La Cucina Italiana While visiting the Emilia Romagna region of Italy this summer, I took a cooking class just outside of San Marino to learn how to make a rustic pasta with an interesting name — strozzapreti. How Strozzapreti Became Known As The Priest Choker Strozzapreti is a typical pasta…
There’s nothing I love more than coffee, except maybe a biscotti with my coffee. Well … then there is coffee gelato with biscotti. Biscotti is actually short for “biscotti di Prato” meaning a twice-baked cake from the Italian city of Prato. While I’ve never been to Prato, if their claim to fame is biscotti and…
It’s been so hot this summer I found myself searching my own blog for Italian gelato flavors so make this sweet refreshing yummy Nutella flavored goodness … a chocolate hazelnut gelato recipe with step-by-step photo instructions. Walking through the streets of Rome, it’s easy to get lost. The roads twist and turn through moments of…
Wonder what happens when you get a group of people together in the morning that love food? Breakfast lasts aaaaall daaaaaaay! That’s my kind of morning.
When visiting sunny Sicily, having an almond granita is a must! You’ll find street carts and small cafes scooping granitas (semi-frozen dessert slushies) into cups with a small spoon and a straw. Granita is a lot like an Italian slurpee, a sweet slushy drink that’s much easier to sip than it is to eat —…
One of the things I love about this tiramisu recipe is that it’s easy to make and quick to impress. And it makes for a fascinating dinner party conversation since tiramisu is one of those desserts with a mysterious origin story. Having been to Italy several times now, and doing a bit of research, it seems…
Sausage and onions are one of my husband Pete’s favorite meals, so I created a way to make it somewhat healthy (i.e. vegetables) with this Italian Sausage Skillet with cannellini beans, tomatoes, Italian sausage and spinach. Inspired by our recipe for Portuguese Sausage & Beans, this one-skillet dinner is low carb and faster to make….
Yes, this lemon linguine recipe truly comes from an Italian contessa. Just outside of the city of Catania, in the Sicilian countryside, is a sprawling farm with charmingly rustic 17th century stables and buildings. During our Southern Italy food journey with EF Go Ahead Tours, our guide brought us out to this rural farmhouse owned…
I’ve written down this lemon pasta recipe on a napkin so many times for friends that I thought I should actually shoot it and add it to the blog. It’s a zesty five ingredient lemon pasta recipe that’s one of my favorites to throw together when I’m short on time. Not only is it quick…
Renewed and revised, I first tried these lemon cottage cheese pancakes while staying at The Four Seasons Los Angeles in Beverly Hills. Instead of the Cali-style breakfast of fresh mixed juices characteristic of LA culture, I was lured into a bit more of an indulgent breakfast. The protein in these lemon cottage cheese pancakes certainly…
Some might think it cliche to have pizza in Italy. For me, it was a personal mission to taste at least a couple of different slices and bring home some fresh new ideas for toppings. This red cabbage and Gorgonzola pizza was one of them. One afternoon, my husband and I went for a walk…
I’m gearing up for my 2nd marathon – the Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, D.C. It’s now less than a month away and as my excitement increases … so does my appetite! The calories expended during our longer training runs (14 miles to 20 miles) has me hunting for more creative and tasty ways to…
“experience nature and the seasons through fine food, while bringing the exotic to your table … ” I just love a challenge. And this month, Marx Foods is daring foodies to a Blogger Mushroom Recipe Contest. Each blogger that signed up received samples of a couple of different types of mushrooms to experiment with and create an original recipe.
If the thought of pizza for breakfast brings to mind cold leftovers, think again! This breakfast pizza recipe will change your mind.
I had lunch with my friend Jimmy recently where we were both talking about our marathon/half-marathon training schedules. I made the decision to make running a habit when I started baking and re-creating these fabulous (but sometimes fattening) breakfast recipes from Inns. Jimmy decided to start running when his roommate, Yvie, moved in. You see,…