Winter is in full swing and with subzero temperatures, mother nature is showing us who the boss is! Boy is it cold! 

With this cold weather engulfing us this week, I picked any excuse to open up the oven and warm up the kitchen and house. We're only days away from Super Bowl Sunday, so I decided I needed to post a recipe on chicken wings, which seem so fitting for Super Bowl Sunday! I didn't have any pictures of our family's favorite mode of cooking them, so I bought two large trays and decided to make some so I could add them here. A multi-purpose post of a new recipe for you, plus my kitchen was nice and warm!

This recipe didn't make it in my new cookbook, The Five Ingredient Italian Cookbook, but it really is 5 ingredients or less. One word about this and any recipe that calls for only a handful of ingredients. As I mentioned in my book, I can't stress enough how important quality ingredients are. Italian cooking is about quality over quantity, and the outcome is only going to be as good as what you put in.

This delicious dish calls for chicken wings, eggs, parmigiano cheese and breadcrumbs. With a light drizzle of olive oil added before sliding them to the oven. 

Let's start with the breadcrumbs. If at all possible, use unseasoned bakery breadcrumbs, or make your own using older, dried out bread. I don't like promoting the crumbs you find on the grocery store shelf in cardboard containers. They are often stale, flavorless, and the flavor they do carry is usually of cardboard. Visit a local bakery or the bakery department at your grocery store, and get some fresh crumbs. It's actually also very simple to make your own. Dry out some quality bread by leaving it out on your counter for several days, or place it in the oven after it's been turned off. When it's completely dry and hardened, just add it to a food processor and turn it into crumbs.

Let's turn to the Parmesan cheese. The term "parmesan cheese" now captures every form of grated cheese, authentic or otherwise, Italian or local. Please, please, please, do not use the one that shall remain nameless and that comes in a green tub found on the grocery store shelf. That tube is filled with fillers that aren't even cheese. It's actually legal to have a certain percent of wood chips in there, labeled as cellulose. Don't, just don't. Use instead authentic Parmigiano Reggiano cheese (or Grana Padano - the cheaper cousin). Buy a chunk of it ungrated. Check the label to make sure you see the words "Parmigiano Reggiano" (or part of the words) on the label. The term "Parmigiano Reggiano" is actually protected,  so you can be sure you are getting the real thing.  

The other two ingredients are just eggs and the chicken wings. Make sure both are as fresh as possible. With fresh, authentic ingredients, you're in for a delicious Super Bowl snack! 

Now, I will admit, much to the dismay of some family members, I use almost equal parts bread to cheese! This is pretty atypical when making cutlets. Most recipes call for 3 parts bread to 1 part cheese, if that, some even call for less cheese than that. I, for one,  like them very cheese! My motto is "the cheesier, the better!" I've adjusted the recipe below a bit to what is most typical. You can adjust the measurements as you like, these are just suggestions and not written in stone. (No recipe ever is!) 

Parmigiano Crusted Chicken Wings
Serves 4 - 8, depending on appetite! 
​
Ingredients
Cooking Spray
3 - 4 cups fresh breadcrumbs 
1 1/2 cups + freshly grated Parmigiano cheese
​3 medium - large eggs
24 - 30 fresh chicken wings, (wing and drumette separated) 
Salt
Olive Oil

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside. 
2. Add the breadcrumbs and grated cheese to a medium bowl. Using a fork or your fingers, mix well.
3. In a second bowl, lightly beat the eggs.
4. Sprinkle some salt over the chicken wings and working with 1 or 2 at a time, dredge them in the beaten egg. 
5. Remove from the egg, dripping to remove excess, and dredge them in the breadcrumb and cheese mixture. Press to adhere coating. 
6. Place the wings on the prepared baking sheet and continue with the rest. 
7. Once you have coated all the wings, drizzle a bit of olive oil on top, bake them on the second to lowest rack in the oven for 40 -45 minutes, or until golden brown. 

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Ready to make some Italian dinner memories of your own? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned for 2019!
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TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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Let me preface by saying that I have a love/hate relationship with escarole.

It is one of my favorite vegetables, yes. But boy do I hate prepping it! You see, let's just get real, escarole is sandy and dirty. Yup, unlike some other veggies that take little or no time to prep and rinse clean, I mentally have to prepare myself when I'm about to cook escarole. It requires time to chop it and clean it properly, washing it upwards of 4 times in cold water before I feel it's perfectly clean and sand-free to start cooking it. I don't know how they do it on some TV shows! The chop it and add it straight to the pan! I get that *hopefully* it's been washed before, but still, they should warn the audience that it requires proper cleaning before using it. 

Below is a step by step guide on how to clean it and cook it with beans, everyone's favorite way of cooking it, that and in Italian wedding soup, but that's another post. ;) 

Here we have two escarole heads that are on the smaller side. Thankfully! Sometimes I find them when they're huge, requiring even more prepping and washing! 

Remove the outer leaves. Escarole tends to wilt quickly, so use it within a day or two of purchasing it. I had mine in the fridge for 4 days, so it required trashing the outer wilted leaves. Cut the lower end piece, but just cut a very thin layer. I have seen folks chop upwards of a quarter from the bottom. Don't do this, there's lots of flavor there and it's just wasteful! 

Cut the escarole head in half and then cut that half in half again, so you will have 4 quarters per head. Then chop each quarter as you would romaine lettuce or other leafy green. I can't say I've ever measured it, but I'd say it's about 1 inch pieces. Continue with the rest of your escarole and add them to a large bowl. 

I really didn't do a good job at taking pictures of the sand, but here you see sand on the leaves. It doesn't look like much but it's deceiving. 

Bring the escarole to the sink and just start washing the life out of it! For my first wash, I use tepid water. I find that it removes the dirt better than cold water. Let the water run and just wash it fully. When the bowl is filled with water, grab handfuls of the escarole and add them to a large strainer. You obviously don't want to just dump them in there with the water to drain, as you would be adding all that dirty water back. 

Here's the bowl of water after the first wash. The escarole has been removed and is now on the strainer. You can see how dirty the water is! Not very appealing! Rinse the bowl and add the escarole back a second time, repeat the washing steps of washing the escarole well, removing it and cleaning the bowl. I do this at least 3 times, sometimes 4, depending on how dirty the escarole is! 

This is after the 3rd wash. You can see it looks very clean and it's looking a lot brighter. Aww, feeling satisfied, finally!

Add the escarole to a soup pan and add just enough water to cover it by about one inch. You don't need much more. Add salt to taste, at least 1 - 2 teaspoons. As it starts to boil, press it down with a wooden spoon and boil it for about 10 minutes. 

Once it's cooked to your liking (some like it more tender than others), drain it in a strainer and use it as you wish. At this point, you can add it to soups, stir fry it with EVOO and garlic, plate it as a side with a drizzle of EVOO, add it to frittatas, top it with freshly grated parmigiano cheese and breadcrumbs for some crunch, make it with beans, or use in any other way. 

Below are the steps for making it with beans. A classic dish beloved by all southern Italians. Every household has its own way of making this dish. Some boil both the escarole and beans together, but I find that just breakdown the beans far too much. Some skip the boiling step of the escarole all together and just cook it with the beans in EVOO. For me, that keeps the greens far too undercooked. I find that by at least par boiling the escarole first, then just cooking it a bit with the beans with plenty of oil is the most flavorful way. And that's how my mama makes it, and you never want to question an Italian mama! ;) 

Escarole & Beans
Ingredients 
2 large heads of escarole, cleaned and boiled as detailed above
2 15-oz cans cannellini beans, rinsed and trained
2 large garlic cloves, cut in large pieces for removal before serving
3 - 4 tablespoons olive oil (approx) 
Salt to taste

Directions
1. In a large skillet, add all of the above ingredients and bring them to simmer over medium heat.
​2.  Gently mix the ingredients, allow them to cook together so they gain flavor for about 5 - 7 minutes. If it's drying too quickly, add additional oil. 
3. Remove from heat and plate. Serve with crusty Italian bread. 

*See above captions for added tips. 

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Ready to make some Italian dinner memories of your own? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned for 2019!
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TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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For me, it usually hits around 3:00PM. That time of day when both lunch and dinner seem so far away! I usually turn to fruit and something that satisfies the craving. Or the never disappointing coffee with a biscotto. If that doesn't do it, I turn to nuts. The thing with nuts is that while they are healthy, they are also very addictive. I can keep going far past the recommended dose, and then feel guilty about it. It's far too easy to overeat nuts, so recently, I decided I needed an alternative.

My paternal grandparents in Italy owned a bar right under their house. They lived about 20 minutes from our own home and every time we would visit them, they would always be hard at work tending to their clientele. I have vivid memories of walking in and being hit by the smell of wine. There would be men playing cards at the tables, gambling their small income, drinking homemade wine and munching on snacks my grandmother had prepared. 

My grandmother was a savvy businesswoman in her own right and she knew that giving those card-playing men salty snacks would lead to more wine sales! 

I digress.  What does this have to do with chickpeas, you ask? Well, one of the snacks my grandmother made was roasted chickpeas! Far cheaper than nuts, she'd toast these up with plenty of salt (to induce thirst) and serve them to the unsuspecting men. They'd eat them by the handfuls and keep buying wine by the glass. They'd run a hefty tab, all thanks to cheap legumes!

These really hit the spot when afternoon munchies occur. They are healthy, delicious, adaptable and you can keep eating them without the guilt that accompanies eating far too many cashews! Just don't over do it on the wine. ;) 

The recipe below is just for guidelines. You can obviously use whatever herbs and spices you like. I prefer the milder Italian herbs, but some other nice spices that have more of a kick include paprika, cumin and cayenne pepper. Adjust to taste.
​
​I will admit, they really go well with a glass of vino. Just one glass! ;) 

Roasted Italian Herbed Chickpeas

2 15 oz cans chickpeas
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 - 2 tablespoons mixed Italian herbs (or to taste)
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place a clean baking sheet in the oven to heat up. 
2. Rinse the chickpeas and place them on several layers of paper towels or a clean linen kitchen towel to dry. 
3. Place chickpeas in a bowl and add the oil, herbs and salt. Mix well with wooden spoon.
4. Remove pan from the oven and add the chickpeas.
5. Roast chickpeas for 40 - 45 minutes, shaking the pan every 10 minutes so they don't stick. 
6. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet completely before plating them to a serving bowl. 

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Ready to make some Italian dinner memories of your own? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned for 2019!
​
TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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SICILY: SEPTEMBER 10 - 18, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up! ​​

​We moved from Italy to the US when I was almost 11 years old. It was the end of March, so the school year was wrapping up, and although I would start it in Italy, at the small elementary school located right across the street from our home, it would end at the Franklin School in Newton, MA.  We all knew the transition would be difficult, but in my 11-year-old rationale, I saw this as far more of an adventure than scary.  It would be my first time on a plane, and ironically, I recall vividly what I was wearing: purple pants and a purple and hot pink sweater, far too heavy for the season. 

​It’s funny the things we recall, and although 31 years have since passed, I still have vivid memories of my time in Italy, and the yearly trips we would take back growing up. It’s not surprising that most of those memories revolve around food in some fashion or another. Whether it’s family dinners, picking olives in our small plot of land, stopping by the pastry shop on Sundays on the way home from church, throwing on a kiddie apron and baking with mom, or simply coming home from school and finding a delicious lunch freshly prepared by mom. And that’s the beauty of food, these scenes become permanent bookmarks in our mind and, like mom’s famous “S” cookies, one is never enough.

​While every meal is important to Italians, la cena, (dinner) is perhaps the most beloved of them all. Just like the US, daytime is reserved for school, work, errands, appointments and whatever else may come your way.  And while some, in fact, many, are able to return home to have their pranzo (lunch), it is often rushed, and many times, may not include every family member at the table. As such, la cena is a sacred time for Italians. Time to regroup, reconnect, and enjoy dinner at a more leisurely pace.  Much of an Italian’s life revolves around the dinner table, time to gossip, catch up and discuss what tomorrow’s meal will be! 

​“Si mangia?” If I recall correctly, those were my father’s favorite words! “Are we eating already?” or “Butta la pasta,” he’d proclaim, meaning, “throw the pasta in the water.” If my sister and I were working on a homework assignment in our room, mom or dad would come calling us, alerting us that dinner would be served soon and it was time to get ready for dinner, or help was needed in some fashion in the kitchen. Seeing my dislike for homework, I didn’t need a second asking. I would have preferred being in the kitchen all along.  My sister, on the other hand, who didn’t have many domestic inclinations, had to be pulled away from her schoolwork, frequently doing assignments that weren’t yet assigned just to get a head start. A philosophy I never understood! 

​“Ti hai lavato le mani?” That was the first question I would be asked before I was permitted to touch anything in the kitchen. “Did you wash your hands?” I’d put my hands up to my mother’s nose, where she’d get a whiff of our Felce Azzurra hand soap on my hands as validation. I loved and still love that soap, using 3 – 4 pumps at a time, far more than my tiny hands required.  

​Over the course of those years growing up in Italy, I became my mother’s shadow, and frequently “helped” her with the daily chores of a housewife. I use quote marks around the word "helped," as I am sure I was perhaps more of a nuisance, though she never said so, I likely delayed her more than anything! I recall dropping, and breaking, the occasional water glass while attempting to put them away, much to my father’s dismay, or eating most of the peas I shelled while assisting mom with the dinner preparation. “Solo questi ci sono?” “This is all you got out of all that peas you shelled?” My mother would ask. I would say yes, but of course, had likely eaten about a quarter of a pound during the shelling process! I have no doubt that my mother knew what I was up to, especially since inevitably, I would be lamenting of a stomachache soon there after.  “Troppo piselli?” She would ask? “Too much peas?”  With a wink and a nod that said, I know what you’re up to! 

​One of my preferred tasks was setting the table. Then, just like now, we would use a linen tablecloth over the table and I would fold the napkins in half, diagonally, ever so delicately. My father used a cloth napkin, that is what he preferred, but my mother soon realized that cloth napkins were futile with kids, since we’d get more sauce on our face than anywhere else, they would get dirty within one use, not to mention occasionally using them as nose tissues, so best for us to get the paper kind! And boy, did we go through tons of napkins!

 Occasionally at dinner, when something a bit more formal was served, such as a roast, or perhaps fresh pork, my sister and I would be permitted to drink some gassosa. It was a treat to have this soft drink, which closely resembles what we know here as 7Up, minus the lemon and lime. And this was the time where I would butter up my father for an even greater treat. I'd look at my dad, playfully. He knew what I wanted without asking. I would look at him, he at me, and then we’d both look at my glass. I’d give him a pitiful look. “La vuoi rosa?” “Do you want me to turn that pink?” And I did. And he would add a few drops of red wine, no more than a teaspoon or two, into my glass. And my drink would turn pink, my kiddie wine. We’d bang our glasses together and proclaim “salute!” To our health.

​La cena for an Italian family is sacred. It’s a daily celebration of life. It was then, and for my Italians and Italian Americans, it still remains so, I am happy to say. Memories are made, laughter is shared and yes, delicious food is eaten. But even when the meal is a simple soup or just some pasta al pomodoro, it turns out, it’s less about the food, and all about the family and the memories. Oh the memories…. 

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Ready to make some Italian dinner memories of your own? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned for 2019!
​
TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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It's corny and a cliche to say the least, but writing a cookbook really is a labor of love. For me, it really brought me back to my life in Italy, to when I was young and the highlight of the day was running home from school, seeing my mom behind the stove, smelling lunch and enjoying a most delicious, freshly made meal.

My elementary school was directly across the street from my home. One of the beauties of living in a small town in southern Italy is that everything is a stone's throw. But seeing my home from my school was a double-edge sword. It was comforting that I could look out and see my mom in our terrace, many times hanging clothes, but it also made me that much more homesick. I wanted to be there with her, cooking, cleaning, petting my dog Billy, or "mock" sewing clothes for my Barbies. I was known for cutting the sleeves of old sweaters, flipping them upside down and giving Barbie a new, sleeveless dress! I was so crafty! 

I really credit my mom for my love of cooking. My dad, a greengrocer and great cook himself gets some credit too, but my mom was always the primary cook, so everything I know, I credit her. But it goes beyond knowledge, really, she instilled in us an appreciation for dinnertime that I still value immensely. And while what she prepared for us mattered, of course, it was really about the time spent at the table. 

Mealtime was, and still is, a time for catching up, for discussing the day's happenings, for reconnecting after a day at school or work. Lucky for us all, we really kept that tradition going when we moved to the States. 

Writing this book really brought me back to those days. On many occasions, I consulted with mom, because let's face it, Italians are great cooks but rarely do they write any recipes down! Testing and retesting the recipes with my mom was the highlight of putting this book together. Why test recipes that we've made all along, you might ask? Because cooking for your family and cooking for the book is a different endeavor. 

"We have to measure the oil?" My mother would ask, with such a surprised look! "Yes! We do when writing a book!" This was an entire new concept for my mom. 

My mom's favorite measurement? "Quanto basta!" Quanto basta is the enemy of a cookbook writer. It basically means, "until it's enough." How much oil do we add? Quanto basta, of course!  How do you know when it's enough??? That's a question I asked my mom countless times growing up. Her reply, while looking at me straight in the yes, "You'll know!" "But how?" "YOU WILL KNOW!" 

Recipes are really guides more than anything, and this book is no different. I want you to use this book as a guide. Nothing is written in stone. If the recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of parsley, by all means, use 1, or 3. Does the recipe call for lemon zest, but you prefer orange? Than change it. You are your own chef when in your kitchen. 

The main goal of this book is to get you sitting next to your family at dinnertime, to enjoy each others company and to create memories around some saltimbocca. ;) 

Pick up your own copy of The Five Ingredient Italian Cookbook: 101 Regional Classics Made Simple by clicking here. ​

AND THEN, THIS HAPPENS! 

"You should write a cookbook!" "When is the cookbook coming out?" "Are all of your recipes in one place?"

These are the questions most asked from my culinary students. They like the ease of my recipes, the straightforward language used, no laundry list of ingredients. My philosophy to cooking is, well, you're in the kitchen and you're out, because, well, there's life outside of cooking and eating. 

I have been cooking or learning recipes all of my life. I stood next to my mom's side as she prepared sauces, soups, braciole and sweets. Boy, did she bake while I was growing up! My school bag was always filled with treats for my 'merenda' or mid-day snack. The tables have turned a bit now and I bake for her! She says she no longer has the patience for it, I don't know about that though, I think I just spoiled her! "Yours are better than mines anyways!" she claims, I don't know about that either! 

I started collecting recipes when I was 9 or 10 years old. The way some girls collect Barbies, I collected recipes. We lived in Italy at that time, so perhaps it's not much of a surprise. I have notebooks filled with mom's recipes, family recipes, tested recipes, made up recipes, great recipes, crappy recipes. My notebooks are rather crusty from years of spilled food on them. Some of the ink is smudged. Many of the pages, well, they're stuck together. Some day I will organize all of the thousands of recipes. That's what I tell myself. But that day hasn't come, in fact, I don't think it ever will. I rather like the crustiness on the pages, it reminds me of when I made a given dish. 

​And then, there was my father. He was a greengrocer, so our home was always filled with delicious and seasonal produce. The meals my mom turned out with some very humble ingredients were amazing, food for the soul really. It is for sure those memories that shaped my desire to be in the kitchen, to feed people, and to teach folks some culinary skills, because I want them to also have those memories with their families. 

After years of feeding friends and co-workers and having people tell me I should open a restaurant (no thanks!), I decided it was time to indeed, start my own business. But it would not be a restaurant. 

My business certainly had to include cooking, but also include my other passion, traveling to Italy. It had to include writing, writing about food and travel, of course. But the recipes couldn't be complicated or time consuming, because, well, even this Italian doesn't like those! And just as my luck would have it, much of Italian cooking isn't complicated or time consuming!  

And so, in time, the cooking classes took off, with lots of repeat students. And the culinary tours took off. And I started writing about food and travel for several notable outlets. 

But the students wanted more. They wanted a cookbook. And that's how The Five Ingredient Italian Cookbook was born. 

Italian cooking isn't complicated, isn't always fancy and is rarely loaded with an exaggeration of ingredients. Italian cooking bases its flavor on quality ingredients, not quantity. Italian cooking is seasonal, fresh, family-friendly and loved by all.

This book wouldn't have been possible without my mom's help. But she helped far more than providing some recipes and ideas. She instilled in me an appreciation for home cooked meals and family time that I never could have learned in any cooking school. And for that, I am thankful.

Pick up your own copy of The Five Ingredient Italian Cookbook: 101 Regional Classics Made Simple by clicking here. 

For the past few years, my mother has become my (unofficial, and unpaid!) proofreader for all my recipes for my cooking classes and my blog posts on this site. I do this for a number of reasons, which ultimately help me, but also help the students in my cooking classes and also you, my dear reader. For one thing, she has what I call “beady little eyes.” I swear she will spot a typo a mile away!  It’s not unlike her to snoop around this website, find a typo in a 2-year old post and call me out on it! Now, I know better and send her everything before it's posted here or printed for the students! 
 
Secondly, well, since she has always been my culinary educator, instructor and teacher, and many of the recipes I use in my cooking classes and what you see here are hers, I find it only fair that I let her read and review them, just to make sure I have everything just right and approved by her! 
 
Recently, I handed her a batch of recipes to proofread before photocopying for the students in a cooking class, and this was her reaction:

“Sauce? You’re teaching them how to make sauce? But it’s so easy and quick, doesn’t everybody already know how to make sauce?” Oh, the things we take for granted living in an Italian household. I had to break it to her slowly, that no, unlike our household, not everyone prepares several batches of sauce a week! She was saddened to learn of this. 
 
She is right though, as she always tends to be, and a simple, basic and straightforward tomato sauce is perhaps the easiest thing you can cook, and it’s by far the most versatile recipe you will ever use. The ingredients are few, and the prep takes five minutes at most, the cooking anywhere from 20 – 25 minutes. And the use? Well, this sauce can be used in hundreds, if not thousands of dishes.
 
To give you an idea, at its most basic form, this sauce is used for preparation of basic “pasta al pomodoro,” or just pasta with tomato sauce. Add some parmigiano and peperoncino from my native Calabria, and you have a delicious first course. But it obviously does not stop there.  I use this as pizza sauce over the dough, as opposed to uncooked (thus unflavored) sauce. This is the base for pasta fagiola (pasta and beans), and this is the sauce used to cook my meatballs. This sauce is used for the base of stuffed shells, parmigiana (both the chicken and eggplant type), and I don’t prep any soup without adding a ¼ of a cup of this sauce. This sauce is used for eggs in purgatory, as a dipping sauce to fried foods such as cutlets or fried meatballs and also goes great over steamed green beans and other veggies, especially the bland cauliflower. Pasta and ceci, or pasta with chickpeas is also made using this sauce. Add a few tablespoons of this to your chicken soup, and you have a delicious soup, with a broth that takes on a much more appealing color. And braciole? Those beloved beef bundles are also cooked in this sauce.
 
You get the picture right? Master this and open the door to hundreds of dishes!
 
A batch of this sauce is always in my fridge. Because it’s meatless and simple, it refrigerates well for up to 4 – 5 days. The non-negotiable ingredients are garlic, onion, parsley, basil, olive oil, salt and good quality canned crushed tomatoes. A few add ons that you can include are finely diced carrot, celery or sweet bell pepper. Personally, I rarely add those, as I tend to find that the fewer the ingredients, the more versatile it is.
 
As for the brand of crushed tomatoes? You’re going to want to taste a few on your own and find a favorite. San Marzano are obviously delicious, but costly if you make this as often as I do. Other tested brands that I enjoy include Muir Glen Organic, Whole Foods brand, Cento and my everyday go-to: Pastene. 

Homemade Tomato Sauce

Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil
½ small onion, diced (3 – 4 chopped scallions can be used as an alternative)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley, stems removed
2 - 3 garlic cloves, minced 
1 28 oz can of crushed peeled tomatoes
Salt to taste – about 1 teaspoon 
1 ¼ cup of water
 3 - 4 basil leaves

Directions
1) In a medium saucepan, take the first four ingredients and bring them to a simmer over medium heat, mixing them around with a wooden spoon so they don’t burn. 
2) Add the can of tomatoes. This will splatter about a bit as it hits the hot oil, mix everything with a wooden spoon. Add the salt, the water and basil leaves. (Basil burns quickly so I add it with the sauce and not before, in the oil. You can also add the basil in the middle of the cooking process.) 
4) Reduce the heat to low, cover with lid and let that simmer for 20 – 22 minutes, mixing a few times during the cooking time. The longer it simmers, the thicker and darker the sauce will become.
5) Remove from the heat and use to dress your pasta or to complete any other dish you had in mind.
* Refrigerate leftovers up to 4 – 5 days. This actually freezes really well. Freeze any unused portion (or make one pot on purpose to just freeze) in a glass container with a lid and defrost overnight in the fridge.

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Ready to make your 2019 Italian Travel Dreams come true? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned!
​
TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
PUGLIA: SEPTEMBER 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up! 
SICILY: SEPTEMBER 10 - 18, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up! ​​

There are times when only a decadent treat will do. During the holiday season, those times are many! There are office parties, open houses, the cookie swaps and many other festive gatherings throughout the entire month. It's no wonder by the time the new year rolls around, we all resolve to eat healthier!

I love to bake and this is definitely the time of year where my mixer goes into over drive! It seems that a pound of butter is always sitting on my counter, because, well, you never know when you're going to need some "room temperature" butter, so, best be prepared!

In addition to butter, which makes me feel somewhat guilty when I use 2 sticks per recipe (hello butterballs!), I also love baking with olive oil. As a native of Calabria, we always used what we had most available in the kitchen and growing up, olive oil was definitely more prominent in our kitchen as oppose to butter. There's Mom's famous S cookies, orange and olive oil cake, and our limoncello cake that all call for olive oil. 

But there are times in which the decadent treats are best left for guests or special occasions, and there are times in which you just need a simple, light, unassuming treat to go with your tea or espresso. A casual treat, light and tasty but one that will not leave you feeling full or guilty, and these anisette toasts are just perfect for those occasions where you need a little 'something something' without downing 500 calories.

​I love anisette flavor as it reminds me of my upbringing in Italy. During the holiday season, my dad would always have his morning espresso "corretto," meaning with a tiny bit of anisette liquor in it. This was usually reserved for the holiday season, or the cold winter months, when starting the day with a drop or two of liquor was needed to warm up the body! I can close my eyes and smell the aroma now. Sometimes he'd leave behind a little bit in his cup for me to taste, just enough to wet my lips with it. Best not to go to school smelling of espresso and anisette at age 10! 

A word about the fat used in this recipe. I have found that I prefer baking with extra light tasting olive oil best, and that is my preference and what I use for baking when it calls for any oil. Light tasting olive oil is very subtle, and as such, your finished product will not have the taste of olive oil at all. If you prefer the flavor of oil in your sweets, by all means, substitute the healthier extra virgin olive oil. Just be conscious of the fact that it will change your final product's flavor. True, extra light olive oil does not have the healthy qualities of EVOO, but keep in mind that we're baking here, the sugar and white flour used also don't have any healthy qualities! 

​After all, we can always start being good in the new year! 

The ingredients used in these anisette toasts are very 'every day' and you likely already have everything you need on hand. I use about 2 teaspoons of pure anise extract, this is a bit much and the flavor is strong but that's what I like, but feel free to use just one teaspoon if you prefer a lighter taste.

A word about the pans used. These are not like traditional biscotti. You will not be rolling these into logs, the dough is far too soft for that. So in order to get them all the same shape and size, these are baked in loaf pans. Regular loaf pans that you use for say, banana bread or meatloaf will do, just spray them well with non-stick cooking spray. 

They are however, double-baked like traditional biscotti. This gives the light sponge cookies the toasty crunch that we're looking for. The longer you leave them in the oven, the toastier they will become. Just place them on a cookie sheet and toast anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes per side, depending on how crunchy you would like them. 

Anisette Toast
Makes 2 loafs

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour 
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup extra light tasting olive oil (see note above) 
1-2 teaspoons anise extract or Anisette liqueur

Additional granulated sugar for the top. (Optional) 

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray 2 loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.
2. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. 
3. Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer or hand-held mixer, beat the eggs for several minutes on medium speed until light and frothy.  
4. Slowly add the sugar and mix well for 1 -  2 minutes longer. 
5. Add the oil and extracts and blend well. 
6. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture and mix just until combined, do not over mix. The batter will be soft. 
7. Divide the mixture in the prepared loaf pans and sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar on top.  Bake for 25 minutes. 
8. Remove loafs from the pans and allowing cooling for 10 minutes. 
9. Using a bread knife, gently slice cookies to desired thickness. At this stage, the cookies will be soft and spongy, so be delicate with how you slice.  
10. Place the anisette cookies sliced part down on baking sheets, and bake for about another 5-10 minutes per side, depending on how crunchy you like your anisette toasts. 

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One of the most frequent questions I am asked the most in my baking classes is "Can I make this in advance?" And the next most frequent question? "Can I freeze these?" The holiday season is a very busy time and everyone is looking to get as much done ahead of time as they can, so understandably, these are great questions.

Some recipes work well for making ahead, others, no so much. For example, pizzelle don't do well if frozen, they just loose their crispness. If properly stored, in airtight containers, they will last about a week. Aluminum tins work great for storing pizzelle. Wrapping them in foil will not work well. 

My hazelnut butterballs also last a good week in an airtight container, but they too don't freeze well. They are best rolled in sugar while still warm, as such, it makes freezing them less than ideal.

Then there's biscotti and cantucci. If you're thinking of getting a head start on your baking, than by all means, opt for biscotti and cantucci. By the way, there's no real difference between the two. The term "biscotti" means any twice baked cookie, since the word bis means two or twice. That said, the word biscotto, or biscotti for plural, is also the word for any and all cookies in Italian. Go to any Italian sweet shop and ask for biscotti, and you might get any cookie or sweet treat.

This recipe here is a very traditional recipe that uses no butter or oil, so no added fat. Almonds are very traditional for cantucci, where biscotti can come in many flavors from chocolate to cappuccino to walnut and pecan. This holiday season, be sure to try our fruitcake biscotti or the pumpkin ones. They are a favorite of our students. And everyone loves the cherry, chocolate and orange soft biscotti! I admit, they are my favorites! (But I say that about all of them!) 

For this recipe, you will need very basic ingredients. Many of which you are likely to have on hand. You will want to work straight on a clean counter, no mixer or mixing bowl required. If that makes you anxious, because, as one student once said, her eggs were running "everywhere," than by all means, mix everything in a large bowl and just add the ingredients to a clean board for hand mixing the nuts. 

See below for tips on how to store them properly to extend their shelf life! 

Almonds are very classic, but another one of my favorite is hazelnuts. 

I gave the almonds a rough chop with a knife. You can save yourself a good 5 - 6 minutes by using the food processor instead, but then you're washing another appliance, so you select the method that best works for you. That's the zest of one large orange next to the chopped almonds. These are very orangy, and delicious!

Make a mountain on your island or work surface with the flour, sugar and one teaspoon of baking powder. That little hump on my flour is the baking powder. Using a fork or your fingers, mix these ingredients. 

Make a well in the center of the mixture and add the beaten eggs and orange zest. This is the one step that makes the novice bakers a bit nervous and they fear that the egg could run and "escape." Prevent this by making the borders of the well pretty high with the flour mixture, or just use a large mixing bowl if this makes you anxious. 

Using a fork, and eventually, your hands, blend all the ingredients to form a dough. Eventually, it will look like the picture below. 

I noticed my dough was a bit drier than I would have liked, this likely happened because my eggs were too small, or the fire I had going in the background dried out my dough! As such, I decide to add a few tablespoons of orange juice, from the orange I used in the zest. Depending on how large your eggs are, you may or may not need to add the juice. 

Add the chopped almonds to the dough and using your hands, mix well and incorporate the almonds into the dough. 

Once the nuts have been incorporated, divide the dough in half and shape into two even logs, about 12 inches long. Place logs on a prepared baking sheet. 

Once the logs are prepared, I brushed them with a beaten egg yolk and added some raw sugar on top. This step in completely optional, and actually, not typical for cantucci, but I find it adds a nice color (without the egg wash, the cantucci are a bit on the pale side) and a nice crunch on top. 

After baked, remove them from the baking sheet and cool completely before slicing them. If you attempt to slice them while warm, they will crumble and likely fall apart. Use a serrated knife to slice them. 

Sliced them to desired thickness, about 1-inch thick is right for me. You can go smaller, if you wish. 

Plate and serve! 

Orange and Almond Cantucci
Makes 24 - 28 Cantucci

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
Grated zest of 1 large orange
1 cup hazelnuts or almonds, roughly chopped

Optional:
2 - 3 tablespoons orange juice (see above note)
Egg wash made from 1 egg yolk
2 Tablespoons raw / granulated sugar

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. On a clean surface, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt by stirring with a fork.
3. Make a well in the middle, and add the eggs and zest. Using a fork or your fingers, start incorporating some of the flour into the egg, little by little, until a dough is formed. (If the dough appears dry and is not coming together, add the orange juice noted above.) 
4. Add the almonds or hazelnuts and mix into the dough until well incorporated. Divide the dough in half and form 2 logs. Place them on the baking sheet several inches apart. (Optional: brush each log with egg wash and sprinkle some sugar on top.) 
5. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes. Remove the logs from the oven and cool for 10 minutes.
6. Using a serrated knife, cut diagonally into slices, place them back on the baking sheet, cut side down, lower the oven temperature to 325°F, and bake for 10 to 15 more minutes, turning halfway through so they toast evenly. For crunchier cantucci, you can leave them in the oven longer, for up to 20 - 25 minutes. 

Storing and Make-Ahead Tip:
Place the cantucci in a zip-loc bag and place the bagged cantucci in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Freeze:
If you wish to bake them in further advance than 2 weeks, you can bake the logs in advance, wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to two months. Defrost overnight in the fridge, follow with step 6 above. Easy Peasy! 

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​
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There's a new loaf pan in the house that's begging to be used. This is what happens when there's one too many trips to Home Goods, "just to look," of course. Truth is, I can't remember the last time I walked into Home Goods and didn't walk out with several bags. There's no such thing as "just looking" when I go in there. I am puddy in their hands. And with the holiday season just around the corner, I foresee many more trips there. 

All in the name of "research," of course. My blog needs new recipes, I tell myself. In addition to their wonderful housewares, linens, trinkets and gadgets, there's the international food isle. They carry a large assortment of Italian chocolates, olive oils, spices and sweet treats that beg to be eaten. Rest assured, this isn't a sponsored post, I am not being paid to say positive things about Home Goods.

Although.... If someone from my favorite shop is reading this, please email me for sponsored posts! Haha! (I work off of gift cards, discounts and free products!) ;) 

Here's the loaf pan in question. It's from Le Creuset, it was $30.00 and I didn't need it at all. But I liked it and liked the shape and liked the color, and well, a loaf cake would look so nice in it! So she came home with me! 

Now, what shall we make in here as she makes her Maiden Voyage in the oven? 

I had a tub of ricotta on hand from a recent shopping trip. I also had lemons on hand and since other baking basics such as sugar, flour and butter are always in my household, I opted for my Ricotta Lemon Loaf. It seemed fitting to use two of my favorite ingredients (ricotta and lemons) to make a delicious loaf as the first treat in this new pan. 

A few basic ingredients are all you need for this quick loaf. And how cute is my spoon rest, which I used as a holder for my lemon zest? Can you guess where it comes from?

​This is a lot of lemon zest, it's 2 lemons but I like things very lemony, you could probably just use one. There's also lemon juice in it, so it's very lemony.

Mix together the dry ingredients with the lemon zest. Mixing the zest to the dry as oppose to the wet ingredients will assure you that the zest stays evenly distributed in the cake, and doesn't sink to the bottom. 

Here, we're mixing the butter with the sugar. I made this cake at the spur of the moment, so my butter was not at room temperature, which it should  be for most baking recipes. As such, I microwaved it for about 10 - 15 seconds. This just softened it up a bit, but careful here, you don't want to melt it!

Always break your eggs in a separate bowl, and not directly into the mixer. This is done in case you have a bad egg or drop any shells. It's easier to trash a bad egg from a separate bowl than if you've already added them in the mixer. 

I love this gadget! At first, I was like, do I really need a lemon juicer, I can just squeeze them by hand! But I was so wrong! You get so much more juice out of lemons by using this thing. It's amazing! And only a few dollars at, well, you know where!

As is typical with many cakes, just mix dry ingredients with the wet ones until combined. Avoid overheating the batter. It's just until combined. 

At the end, just mix the batter with the spatula, this will prevent overheating. 

This cake is dense. It is not a light, airy, loaf. It's a cross between a regular loaf and a dense ricotta cake. It remains moist in the inside, almost giving the impression that it's undercooked. That's the ricotta that gives it that impression. For lemon and ricotta lovers such as myself, it sure is a treat. All it needs is a nice cup of coffee to go with it! 

Ingredients
Cake
1½ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
zest of two large lemons 
1 stick butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup ricotta cheese (whole milk ricotta is always better, but you can substitute part skim)
¼ cup lemon juice (freshly squeezed from the lemons used in the zest)
1 teaspoon lemon extract (optional - you can leave it out if it's too 'lemony' for your taste buds)

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Sanding Sugar (optional) 

Directions
1) Preheat oven to 350. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray. 
2) In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. 
3) In the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held mixer, blend together the butter and sugar for about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until well combined, about 1 minute.
4) Add the ricotta, lemon juice, lemon extract and beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
5) Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture and beat until combined, do not over mix.
6) Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 60 minutes, test cake with a toothpick for doneness. Toothpick inserted should come out clean and dry. 
7) Remove cake from the oven and allow cooling in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove from the pan and place on a serving platter before glazing.

Glaze:
In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the glaze ingredients. Spoon glaze over the top and sprinkle with sugar crystals, if desired. Allow glaze to set for 10 minutes before cutting and serving. 

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Ready to make your 2019 Italian Travel Dreams come true? Consider joining us in one of our Culinary Adventures! We have three planned!
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TUSCANY: MAY 1 - 8, 2019. Click here for all trip info and to sign up!
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