You can make fish fritters out of most any fish (including the leftover kind), but our favorite is Salt Cod Fritters or Frittelle di Baccala  We like salt cod because it shreds or flakes easily and has a wonderful salty flavor profile that lends itself well to the frying method. Dried and salted “salt cod” is sold in whole pieces […]

Family Style Eating: Hanger Steak Nicoise and Tomatoes and Mozzarella  I was giving some thought to formal dining at home the other day and specifically whether American families still sit down for formal, multi-course, meals?  During my childhood, our family often started  meals with a pasta or soup course followed by a family style meal including 3-4 dishes consisting of a […]

Friarelli are a type of green (and sometimes red) sweet pepper which are commonly found in Italian specialty shops or any good gourmet market.  Our fried Italian peppers recipe is usually made with friarielli (and/or friggitelli) and not dissimilar to Cubanelles.  Friarelli are distinguished by their narrow conical shape and relatively transparent flesh. A similar recipe which utilizes Friarelli or standard bell peppers is called Peperonata. Fried Italian Peppers […]

Grilled Swordfish Recipe Head to Bagnara Calabra, located on a tiny sliver of the Tyrrhenian coast, during the month of July and you’ll encounter the swordfish sagra (or festival of the swordfish) to honor local fisherman.  The sagra, like all food festivals in Italy, honor not only the food product but the people and traditions surrounding the region (in the case of festival […]

Our fig sauce recipe (salsa di fichi) is an easy and versatile pantry staple than can be consumed with a simple yellow/sponge cake or combined with chocolate sauce and a bit of whipped cream for an Italian sundae.  Alternatively, our fig sauce can be used as a savory sauce for pork and chicken (minus a few of the ingredients below) […]

Tomato season is just about to kick off here in our part of the country and we thought we’d share our favorite ways to use the ripe and luscious vegetable (specifically, Eight Things to Do with Tomatoes ).   I’m sure everyone would agree that the tomato season doesn’t last long enough and when it does arrive you one can […]

We recently prepared a side dish consisting of grilled eggplant with shredded basil and the result was very good, however we wanted to intensify the dish a bit and, in turn, altered the eggplant variety and topping.  The end result was a grilled Sicilian, variety, eggplant and pesto feta recipe that elevated ordinary eggplant into a super contorno (or side […]

We should all get down on our knees and thank the food Gods for allowing our species to co-exist in a world where the chicken thigh is present.  Yes, the often misunderstood and poorly utilized chicken thigh is a home cooks secret weapon given flavor, cost, and easy preparation.  You can purchase a whole chicken and butcher your own thighs […]

Fried Potatoes or Patate Fritte  My father is known to tell a good story and like any gifted orator he tends to exaggerate the goings-on / facts behind his other wise excellent memory.  However, there is one topic where my father is fairly blunt about his experiences and observations; viz., food.  Ask my father, for example, what his favorite dish is […]

The following Grilled Eggplant with Basil recipe is a great summer contorno or side dish and can be easily prepared via an outdoor grill.  The key to grilling eggplant outdoors is to cut the eggplant fairly thick (1/2 inch) and preseason with olive oil, kosher salt, and ground black pepper.  You’ll also want to be very sensitive to cooking time and […]