Risotto with potatoes

You need to try it to belive it. I know it sounds weird, but we make a lot of dishes in Italy with rice and vegetables... and we call them risotto.


Preparation time: 20-30 minutes.

1) Peel and cut in small cubes one potato per person.

2) Saute` one whole finely cut onion with olive oil in a pot.

3) When the onions start browning, add an inch of butter and 3 tablespoons of rice per person (2 people=6 tablespoons of rice).

4) Stir the rice until browning and then add hal cup of white wine. Stir the rice and let the wine evaporate.

5) Add the potatoes to the pot. Also add some rosemery.

6) Add a cup of water every 3 minutes and keep stirring the rice. The rice will need a total of 20 minutes of cooking. Add few fresh baby tomatoes and some basil for color.

7) After about 18 minutes, turn off the heat and let the rice rest in the pot. At this moment add some parmesan cheese and/or asiago cheese and stir it into the rice.

Add black pepper if you like

Buon appetito!

Ziti with tomatoes sauce

It is a classic sunday pasta in Naples, Italy. You can make a ragu` sauce or you can make an easier and fresh sauce for the summer time.
All you need is a can of tomatoes, some fresh basil, garlic, onions and olive oil. And of course pasta. In this case a special kind of pasta that it is typical of a suthern italian region, Campania. The region where I come from. The same region where pizza and mozzarella come from, just so you understand...

Preparation time: 30 min

1) Put the water to boil for the pasta. Add 2 teaspoons of salt.

2) Start making teh red sauce. Saute` the onions in a pot with some olive oil. Before the brown, add the red sauce, some basil and a clove of garlic. Cover the pot and let it cook at low heat for about 30 min.

3) We use ziti pasta. You need to break them with you hands. It is really a special pasta and it will taste fantastically with the sauce that goes inside them.

4)Drain the pasta and add some sauce to it stirring. Save some sauce for the top

5) Dress with parmesan cheese and fresh basil.

Well...Buon Appetito...!

Spaghetti with fresh tomatoes sauce

It is almost summer time. That means that fresh tomatoes are in the right season and tasty.
Also, you can find fresh basil at the groceries. All the ingridients of a nice fresh spaghetti dish.

Preparation time: 20 minutes

1) Put water to boil in a pot and add 2 teaspoons of salt.

2) In a separate pan, sauté some onions and garlic in olive oil until browning. Add a bit of red hot pepper too.

3) Wash and cut fresh tomatoes

4) When you start cooking the spaghetti (5 minutes of cooking, see the time on the package), add the fresh cut tomatoes to the pan. Cook the tomatoes just for few minutes.

5) Drain the spaghetti and add them to the pan, stirring and smashing the fresh sauce onto them.

6) Dress with fresh basil and olive oil

Add parmesan cheese and black pepper if you like...

Buon appetito

Pasta with potatoes

This is a must. Pasta with potatoes. Good for the winter as well as for the summer time.

Ingredients: potatoes, onions ,olive oil, parmesan cheese and

of course pasta.

Preparation time: 30 minutes

1) Peel 2 potatoes per person. Cut them in 1 inch cubes.

2)Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to a pot and saute some onions

3) Add 4 coups of water and the potatoes. Add also 1 fresh tomato, a carrot and some celery.I like to add also some basil. Cover the pot and let it cook for 10-15 min.

4) When the potatoes are soft enough, it is time to add the pasta (short pasta) to the pot. Often we use mixed pasta, which is made from the left over pasta (penne + broken spghetti + ditaloni + whatever short pasta you have left in your cabinet). Add enough water just to cover the pasta. Also at this point I like to add hot red pepper.

5) Stir until the pasta is cooked.

6) Add parmesan cheese. and black pepper.

Buon Appetito

Pasta with cauliflowers in red

This is a variation of a typical dish: pasta with cauliflowers in white. The difference is the addition of fresh tomatoes and garlic to the dish.

Preparation time : 30 min

1) Put some water to boil for the pasta and add a teaspoon of salt to it.

2) Wash and cut one cauliflower.

3) Make the sauce: put some olive oil and garlic in a skimmer, then add the cauliflower and let it cook for 15-20 min.

4) Cook the pasta, drain it and the add the sauce to it

5) Add some parmesan cheese and fresh parsley


Buon Appetito

Pasta with butter

You cannot believe it but butter tastes diffently in Italy. I think it is lighter here
in the US. However you can make a successful pasta with butter anywhere. What you need is butter, olive oil and parmesan cheese.
In Italy we use to eat it when we are stomach sick or we just want to eat lighter. My mom used to call it "pastina in bianco", that means "pasta in white sauce or pratically with no sauce".

Preparation time: 15 min


1) Put some water to boil in a pot and add 1 teaspoon of salt

2) Add short pasta (tubettini)
to the boiling water

3) Let it cook for 5 minutes

4) Drain the pasta
saving some of its cooking water

5) Add a quater of butter per person and stir in the pasta

6) Add a bunch of parmesan cheese and a teaspoon of olive oil.

Variations: very easy to make also as a side dish or adjusting the amount of water in the pasta you can make a sort of soupy pasta.

Buon Appetito!

Vegetable soup with pasta

Here we are. It is a cold day outside. You caught a cold, you are sick home, you want some comfortable food, a warm meal... why don't you make yourself a vegetable soup? Generally, open the fridge and try to add as many vegetables as you can in your soup. Carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, onions, garlic, hot peppers, cauliflowers, potatoes, zucchini, celery... these are the classics. I even made one with only onions, or only potatoes. Then if you like, you can add some short pasta into it and finish the dish with parmesan, which will melt into the soup. It will be yummy and healthy.

Preparation time: 20-30 min

1) Wash and cut the vegetables.

2) Put some water to boil in a pot (about 4 cups per person).

3) Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and 1 teaspoon of salt per person

4) Add the vegetables and let it cook for 20 min

5) Drain the vegetables and collect the broth

6) Add the pasta to teh broth and let it cook for 5 min (mind to don`t overcook the pasta)

7) Add parmesan cheese.

Variations: I cannot recall to have eaten the identical same dish twice. You can change the vegetables list or just the pasta shape. You can use all sort of short pasta, it will taste a little bit different every time. Yes. And, finally, don`t forget that you can eat your boiled vegetables!

Buon appetito!

"I feel quite a different man before and after a meal" Montaigne

Rice with asparagi (Asparagus risotto)

This is another risotto. So... you need Arborio rice, lot of Parmesan cheese and some white wine. Asparagi are really good for you and in season right now.

Preparation time: 15-20min

1) Cut fresh asparagi about 1 inch long. Add them to a food processor with some oilve oil and some water. Make a "green asparagi sauce" out of it.

2) Add olive oil, sliced onions, and the "asparagi sauce" to a pot.

3) Add 1-2 cups of white wine and the rice (3 tablespoons per person).

4) Add 3 cups of warm water and let it cook until the rice is done.

5) Add the half lemon juice and fresh parsley, a bunch of Parmesan cheese, black pepper.

Stir and serve it.

One of the secret of a good risotto is that you stir the rice very often while cooking, so it releases the starch and it taste better.

Buon appetito!

Pasta in Peppe's red sauce

A couple of days ago we had some of the pasta with the special Peppe's red sauce... I took a nice shot of it...

Check a couple of posts earlier for the recipe!

Pasta with garbanzo beans (chickpeas)

Garbanzo beans or chickpeas are very good for you. They are the main ingredient of hummus. You can make a sauce kinda like the hummus and add it to the pasta. Usually we use some short kind of pasta. You don't have it? No problem, what we do is to cut the spaghetti in 3 or 4 pieces... in this way we shorten them! :)

Preparation time: 15 min

1) Put 3 cups of water to boil in a pot

2) Add garlic, olive oil, red hot pepper, cut carrots and celery

3) Add the garbanzo beans to the pot (you can use a can of organic beans, otherwise make sure to rinse them very well before using)

4) Cut the long pasta (spaghetti or linguine or fettuccine)

5) Add the pasta in the pot and let cook for 5-10 min

When it is ready, the water will be almost completely evaporated.

You can then add some fresh parsley and black pepper...

Buon appetito!!

Pasta with salmon in pink cream

All of us need to eat more fish. So if you have fresh smoked salmon or some left-over salmon from the day before why not add some pasta to it?

Preparation time: 15 min

1) Boil water for the pasta. Penne or mostaccioli required.

2) Add to a pan some olive oil, cut garlic, red hot pepper, half of a red bell pepper (optional) few fresh tomatoes. Let it cook for few minutes.

3) Add the salmon to it.

4) Add a teaspoon of butter and 1/4 of cup of half&half.

Yes you can add some vodka if you have it...

Before serving add fresh parsley, black pepper.

PS you can add a side of steamed broccoli or cauliflowers to it...

Buon appetito!

Rice with red sauce

Exactly it is rice with red sauce. Unthinkable for asian people... but a reality for many Italians.

Try to believe it!

Preparation time: 20 min (super-easy)

1)Boil water in a pot for the rice (Arborio rice). Add salt to the water.

2)Prepare a red tomato sauce: cut onions, olive oils in a pot for 5 min and then add a can of red tomato sauce. Add basil and a tiny bit of butter (optional).

3) Drain the rice using a pasta drainer.

4) Add red sauce on the top of the white rice.

Add basil, parmesan and black pepper as much as you like.

PS you can stir the sauce in the rice...

Buon appetito.

How to cook pasta the italian way

You can buy several different brands of pasta. I grew up eating Barilla pasta, but DeCecco is good too (a little bit expensive, though). Different brands taste different after cooking, mainly because they have different consistency once cooked. The perfect cooked pasta doesn't have to become fluffy, but always a tiny bit uncooked ("al dente" right?) and stay firm for all the time you are eating. Once you buy the right brand of pasta, my dad's recipe for the perfect cooked pasta is simple: just follow the time that is written on the package of pasta. If it says 11 min, then watch your clock, because 11 min after you put the pasta in the boiling water, the pasta needs to be drained and it will be as close to the perfectness as you can get. That is really so simple.

A step back. Once the water is boiling in the pot ( and before putting in the pasta) add the salt. How much salt? About a tablespoon, for a large pot full of water. I use my hand to measure, see the picture... A little secret: add few drops of olive oil to the boiling water to avoid pasta attaching to one another.

How to dress an italian salad

This is super-easy and a must-know. I figured out that here in the US people don't dress salads in the same way I always do. I don't use pre-made sauces. But instead I only use extra-virgin olive oil, salt and lemon or wine vinegar (red or white). Then I toss the salad and ...

Buon appetito!

Bucatini with red hot sauce and romano cheese

Here the pasta needs to be bucatini. It is kinda of hard to find in the store, but I suggest you to try it. It will kinda of whistle when you eat it, because it is made like spaghetti but with an hole inside. Then you need romano cheese (pecorino).

Time for preparation: 15 min

1) Boil water in a pot for the pasta (bucatini).

2)Add some onion, olive oil, red hot pepper  to a separate pot and let brown the onions for a few minutes.

3)Add plain red sauce and let it cook until the pasta is done.

4) Drain the pasta, add it back to the pot, add a bunch of pecorino cheese, and then the red sauce. Stir it. Add fresh basil and pepper too.

Buon appetito!

Kale with beans soup

If you want something healthy, light and easy to make, kale with beans is the dish for you.

Time for preparation: 20 min

1) Wash the kale and add it to a pot with 6 cups of water.

2)Add olive oil, salt, garlic and let it cook for 10 min.

3) Add some white beans and let it cook for other 10 min.  

I wish I had a pics for you to show. Next time I will make it I will take one!

It is kinda of soupy at the end and you can add dried bread to it.

Add fresh olive oil before serving.

Buon appetito

Risotto with spinach

In Italy we don't eat just pasta. We can also make some very good rice dishes, which we call risotto. Now it turns out that spinach is very good for you. It contains high levels of minerals and folic acid, which are reported to decrease DNA damage and diminish your chance to get cancer. So, you can buy a bunch of fresh spinach (please organic) or just some organic frozen ones. I like the frozen ones because to make the same quantity you need to buy at least 2-3 bunches of fresh spinach!

Which variety of rice to use? Traditionally, in Italy we use Arborio rice (medium-short grain), which is perfect for risotto dishes because, once cooked, it is both firm and creamy.

Preparation time: 20 min

1) Boil 6 cups of water in a pot for the rice

2) Add 3 tbsp of rice per person.

3) Add olive oil, salt, chopped onions and a lot of spinach (see above). Stir every few minute. The spinach will melt with the rice into a green cream.

4) Let it cook until the rice is done (about 10-15 min).

5) Add a teaspoon of butter and a lot of parmesan cheese at the end. Pepper if you like. Stir.

Let it rest for 5 minutes before serving...

Buon appetito!

Mardi Gras Pasta with ricotta cheese

Yesterday was Marti Gras. Quite a holiday it used to be in Italy. It represented the last day before the start of the Catholic Lent. Therefore, we used to celebrate it with a big party in mask (our Carnival) and very rich food. One of the richest food in Italy is lasagna, which is a pasta dish full of everything from eggs to meat, mozzarella and ricotta cheese. It takes a little bit of time to prepare a fresh lasagna dish, so I have a quick version of that dish. All you need is curly pasta, fresh ricotta, a can of tomatoes sauce, onions and some basil.

Preparation time: 15-20 min

1) Boil water in a pot for the pasta

2) Cut the onions and put in a separate pot with olive oil.

3) Add a can of red sauce to the onions. Add some basil.

4) After about 10 min, add some of the just cooked red sauce to a bowl of fresh ricotta cheese. Stir it to make a white creamy sauce. Remember to leave some extra red sauce in the pot.

5) Drain the pasta, put it back in the pot and add the creamy sauce to it.

When you make the portions add red sauce on the top. Add parmesan cheese and pepper if you like.

PS you can find the curly bucatini pasta at Trader's Joe.

PSPS I like mine messy in a bowl!

Buon Appetito!

Pasta with Garlic and Oil

Let me tell you: this is a classic. This is the simplest Pasta dish ever. When I was in Italy hanging out with friends at night we used to propose to the gang: shall we have a Spaghettata Aglio and Olio? The term derives from Spaghetti, which is the shape of pasta required for this kind of dish, and it means a big feast of spaghetti with garlic and oil. Please remember to use only olive oil.

Time for preparation: 5-10 minutes (Super-easy)

1) Boil water in a pot for the pasta (spaghetti!)

2) Add 4-5 cloves (per person) of smashed garlic, olive oil (2 tbs per person) and hot red pepper to a pan at medium-low fire

3) Drain the pasta and add it to the pan stirring all together

4) Add chopped parsley (parsley will help to cancel the garlic bad smell form you mouth!)

Add parmesan cheese and pepper if you like.

PS because I needed to eat some fish, I opened a can of tuna and with some olive oil added as side to the pasta...

Buon appetito!

Pasta with Portobello mushrooms

I rarely cook mushrooms at home, because not everybody likes them. But few days ago I had some Portobello mushrooms in the fridge that needed to be cooked. I was undecided between a nice risotto with mushroooms or a pasta with mushrooms. I went for the second option. Yes the real story is that I had also some baby tomatoes in the fridge that I wanted to cook. Therefore I thought mmmhh...mushrooms+baby tomatoes...maybe some parsley and garlic and olive oil and voilla` ...a nice dish...

Preparation time: 10-15min

1) Boil water in a pot for pasta (fettuccine!)

2)Add olive oil, red hot pepper and 2 cloves of chopped garlic in a pan at medium fire

3) Wash and cut the mushrooms

4)Add to the pan for 3-4 minutes

5) Wash and cut in half the baby tomatoes

6) While you start cooking the pasta, add the tomatoes to the pan with mushroom

7)Before draining the pasta, add some chopped fresh parsley to the mushroom sauce

8) Add the pasta to the pan and stir it.

At the end add pepper and parmesan cheese.

Buon appetito

No More Pasta!

Somebody says that Pasta is good for you, somebody says that Pasta makes you fat, somebody even says that all kinds of wheat is bad for you. We believe that no food is 100% good for you. We believe that you need to eat both small portions and a larger variety of food. Therefore we believe that you can have also some Pasta with moderation in your diet. 

When I was a kid growing up in Italy, we rarely didn't have a plate of Pasta every single day of the week. There was a kind of Pasta for every day. For example, usually on Mondays we had left over Pasta from Sundays, on Tuesdays Pasta with legumes, on Wednesdays Pasta with vegetables, on Thursdays we had Pasta with red sauce, on Fridays Pasta with fish, on Saturdays we used to have Pasta in vegetable or meat broth, on Sundays big Pasta with ragu` sauce that cooked for hours. The funny thing is that every shape of pasta is meant for a particular kind of sauce.

As you can imagine Pasta is not a nutritionally complete dish, mainly carbohydrates. Therefore Pasta needs to be accompanied with a second dish such as legumes, meat, vegetables and fish. To avoid making several dishes, you can put the second dish together with Pasta, making all in one nutritionally balanced dish.

Buon appetito!

Peppe's red sauce

Tonight we are having my favorite sauce...the typical italian red sauce that I have named "Peppe's red sauce" although I believe it has an Italian name already dedicated to it.  Here are the ingredients:

1/2 red onion

1/2 carrot

1 can organic tomato sauce

1/2 pound ground beef

a pinch of salt and pepper

2 small hot red peppers

1/4 cup olive oil

First heat the olive oil and add the chopped onions and carrots.  Be sure they are chopped small enough for them to cook quickly.  Let simmer for approximately 5 minutes or until the onions become translucent.  Add the ground 

beef and let brown.  Drain any excess oil.  Add the tomato sauce, salt, pepper and red peppers and let cook for at least a half hour on medium to low heat.  Remember, the longer it cooks the better it tastes.  Add this to your favorite pasta and buon appetite!