Some raw ingredients from a recent trip to a local market: tomatoes, chard, eggplant, lemons, escarole, red onions, apples, bread, grapes, sardines, turkey breast, etc.

Two news items caught our attention this week and we can’t help but offer our “two cents” on the following food related media events: Mario Batali’s food stamp challenge and HBO’s ‘Weight of the Nation’

Molto Forgets La Cucina Povera

First, Mario Batali issued himself (and his family of four) a pragmatic food challenge; namely, “getting by” or feeding his family for a week on the equivalent of a food stamp budget (about $31 per person or about $1.48 per meal each).   Batali’s move is motivated by potential cuts pending in Congress to the benefit program used by close to 50 million Americans.  Mario’s first reaction to the challenge was, as the Huffington Posts writes, a big “gulp!” and to forget about luxuries such as organic vegetables and fruits and hormone free meat.   Our reaction to Batali’s challenge is a bit more cynical and makes us rethink his knowledge and familiarity of la cucina povera and while $124 per week for food may not yield a shopping cart full of wild fish, locally raised, and grass feed, beef, organic fruits and vegetables, and a nice bottle of Barolo, common sense dictates most Americans could eat fairly well on $12o.  Here’s what we would purchase for our family of three:

• Conventional broccoli, red onions, yams or potatoes, escarole, swiss chard, parsley, zucchini,
• 1-2 organic romaine lettuce hearts
• Conventional whole pineapple and cantaloupe.
• Organic or local grapes, pears, strawberries, and kiwi
• 2 packages of pasta
• 1 package of brown rice or farro
• 2-3 bags of dry beans (kidney, garbanzo, lentil)
• 1 pound each of: wild flounder and whole sardines
• 1 3-4 pound whole chicken
• 2 cans of tuna cured in olive oil
• Carton of eggs
• 1/4 pound of Grana Padano or similar cheese used for grating
• Cured olives
• 1 package of whole wheat sliced bread and one large local bread
• 2-3 large containers of Greek yogurt
• 1 jar of organic peanut butter
• 1 carton of bran flakes

Mario Batali Food Stamp Challenge and HBO’s ‘Weight of the Nation’ is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Grilled squid or calamari that has been tossed with lemon juice, olive oil, parsley, and lemon zest.

Grilled calamari or squid is a great alternative to fried calamari and is ideal for the summer months.  My favorite way to prepare fresh squid is to marinate a few pounds of the well cleaned fish in lemon juice, parsley, et. al. and then quickly cook on an outdoor grill (the smokey flavor derived from a wood burning fire compliments the neutral taste of squid).

Whole squid prior to cleaning

Ingredients:

• Fresh lemon juice
• 1 clove of garlic, finely minced
• 1 1/2 pounds cleaned squid (about 3 pounds whole) tentacles separated from the bodies, rinsed and patted dry
• 1/4 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• Freshly ground black pepper and Kosher salt to taste
• Zest of 1/2 lemon
• Bunch of parsley, finely chopped

Marinade and sauce for grilled calamari - including parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper

Process:

Clean the whole squid well, rinse, and pat try. If you’ve never cleaned whole squid before I recommend you watch this excellent how to clean squid video.  You can also purchase cleaned squid “tubes” from a reputable fish shop or market (but you won’t get the tasty tentacles, et. al.).    In a bowl, combine 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and zest, chopped parsley, garlic, Kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper (save about a 1/4 of the mixture for dressing later on). Add the squid tubes (and tentacles) and mix well.  Cover the bowl containing the fish and marinade and refrigerate for 2-3 hours.

Next, on a hot outdoor grill, place the squid on your oiled BBQ surface and cook for about 1.5 minutes on each side (for a total of 3-4 minutes depending on the strength of the fire; it’s imperative the squid is not overcooked given that it will quickly turn tough and chewy).  Move the cooked squid to a cutting board and cut into rings.   Toss the rings with the remaining marinade and serve with a tomato salad, olives, sauteed dandelion greens, and good bread.

If you’re interested in a pasta recipe featuring squid or calamari click here.

Grilled Calamari is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

A perfectly cooked rib steak (cut extra thin) with a tomato side salad

Steak, Italian Cooking, and Bistecca alla Fiorentina

It used to be the case that when you asked any southern Italian (especially from Calabria) the last time he or she consumed steak you’d get an awkward stare in return, as beef consumption was rare in il Mezzogiorno (the southern half of Italy) and cattle were used to produce cheese and milk.  However, times have changed and beef is now consumed in much of Italian cooking, especially in regions like Toscana (Tuscany), Perugia, and Umbria where the Val di Chiana or Chiana Valley produces some of the best beef on the planet by way of one of the oldest and largest breeds of cattle known to man, viz., the Chianina.  In Tuscany, for example, bistecca alla Fiorentina , or Steak Florentine, is a delicious, and nearly 3 inch thick, Porterhouse steak grilled (always rare) outdoors on a wood fed fire.

As you can imagine, our Southern Italian family did not consume bistecca alla Fiorentina but we did occasionally grill some wonderful, thinly cut, T-bone steaks.  The steaks were usually cooked well done (more on this later) and then dressed with extra virgin olive oil, finely chopped parsley, a dash of red wine vinegar, and finely minced garlic (again, more on this later).  After the family moved to the States in the early 1970′s, we replicated the dish (usually with club steak) in the New Jersey suburbs.

Cuts and Making Steak at Home

Making high quality steak at home doesn’t require much work nor the most expensive beef one can find.  We buy our beef from a few local markets/butchers and look for local suppliers who raise their cattle on grass.  When purchasing beef look for prime or choice beef with good marbleization (and/or how the fat is distributed on the cut) .  Proper Dry-Aged beef (versus inferior “wet’ aged, which quickens the aging process via liquid) is expensive, but there is a noticeable upgrade in flavor.   We like buying T-bone, bone in rib eye (sometimes called “cowboy steak”), Shell or Strip Steak, Porterhouse, Skirt, Flank, and Sirloin cuts.

A rib steak from grass fed cattle in New Jersey, cut about 1.5 inches in thickness.

Cooked rib steak.

Seasoning 

In terms of our cooking process, we let our steaks sit out of the fridge for 1.5-2 hours so that the meat doesn’t hit the heating source cold.  We also dry the meat very well and season with plenty of Kosher salt and Freshly ground, coarse, black pepper.  We’ve heard plenty of opinions on when to salt, including after or during the cooking process and hours prior to cooking; however, we’ve found no discernible taste difference and, in turn, season just before cooking. For lesser cuts of beef and/or supermarket variety beef like “select”, we recommend using a sauce, marinade, or dry rub to enhance the flavor and texture of the beef.

Cooking Process

We cook all of our steaks via two methods: an outdoor, wood fired, grill (gas is perfectly acceptable as well) or a heavy, well seasoned, cast iron pan.  Whatever our cooking apparatus, we always make sure the grill or pan is as hot as possible and cook our steaks rare to medium rare (rare, if we’ve having extraordinary beef).  Searing the meat via a scolding grill or pan ensures you’ll get a wonderful charred crust with deep flavor, but note you’ll need a few tablespoons of vegetable oil if you’re using a cast iron pan.

If you’re looking for a specific guide on how to cook steaks of varying sizes and thickness here’s a good article.   Letting the meat sit in order for the interior juices to re-distribute prior to cutting / eating is also another necessary step.  If you’re going to cook up a proper steak Florentine then follow the process by one of the most famous butchers on the planet Dario Cecchini.

Steak, Italian Cooking, and Bistecca alla Fiorentina is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Recently shaved sheep on our Aunt/Uncle's farm in Calabria.

Eating Well Doesn’t Make You Fat, Greens, Sheep and Blossoms, Frittata Making, Parmesan

New York Times Food & Wine – In the category of “duh, did you really need to write a book about this concept” category we nominate Peter Kaminsky for his book Culinary Intelligence where he argues folks in the US would be better off eating foods that maximize flavor (in order to tame our gluttonous appetites and slim down a bit).  Oh, food expert how we laugh at you and your simple advice (telling people to eat like the Italians, Greeks, and French is a different concept than bringing about cultural change in how a given society consumes food; the former is easy, the latter needs a revolution).

Ciao Ciao Linda – If you follow Scordo regularly then you know about our long standing obsession with greens (not the color) but rather greens such as dandelloin, swiss chard, escarole, etc.  Linda’s article covers the lovely green winter cress or wild mustard greens, including a recipe entitled, beans and greens.

Cannelle er Vanille – We’re envious of food blogs and sites that seem to come out of some perfect world with beautiful food photos and earthy settings with animals and kids frolicking in the New England countryside.  Case in point, a nice article on sheep, blossoms, and the food of Spring.  Not to self: sell the house in New Jersey, buy a fancy camera, and settle in Vermont.

The Kitchn – A how-to on frittata making that is fairly good.   We love making frittata and always grate Parmigiano Reggiano into the egg mixture.  The Kitchn also suggests baking the frittata for 8-10 minutes, thought we simply set our oven to broil and place our pan in the oven for 1-3 minutes (to simply brown and cook the top portion of the frittata).

Parmesan.com – The folks behind promoting Parmigiano Reggiano in the United States recently launched a new web site and the resource has some great content on the undisputed king of cheeses, including a a great eggplant lasagna dish. One note on the word “Parmesan”:  it’s the informal use in the English language and how the French refer to what Italians refer to as “Parmigiano Reggiano” – our preference is for the later!

What We’re Reading – Eating Well Doesn’t Make You Fat, Greens, Sheep and Blossoms, Frittata Making, Parmesan is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Rigatoni with Spinach, Garlic, and Parsley

At times, one can feel glutinous about consuming too much pasta especially if the portion size is large (even for a dyed-in-wool Italophile) .  So, when we crave pasta (in a slightly larger portion size) we turn to any number of leafy greens as a condiment.  The following rigatoni with spinach, garlic, and parsley recipe is hearty and packed full of good for you spinach.  The trick with any pasta not utilizing a traditional sauce (such as tomato) is to save some of the starchy pasta water and add as needed to create a slightly “loose” condiment.  We also add plenty of good extra virgin olive oil and grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

Ingredients:

• Fresh spinach washed 3x and chopped into 1-1.5 inch strips
• 5-6 cloves of garlic, sliced thin
• 1 bunch of parsley chopped fine
• 1/4 cup of pasta water
• 1/2 pound of large rigatoni
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
• Red pepper flakes (optional)

Process:

In a large pan, add a bit of extra virgin olive oil, garlic, Kosher salt, and freshly ground black pepper  and cook over a medium flame for 5-10 minutes (stirring well).  Add the chopped spinach and a bit of Kosher salt and cook down until wilted.  Add the parsley and stir well.  Bring the cooked large rigatoni to the pan with the condiment (spinach/garlic/parsley) and toss well over low heat.  Add some fresh extra virgin olive oil and grated cheese and toss well.

Rigatoni with Spinach, Garlic, and Parsley is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Sliced orange, red, and yellow bell peppers. The peppers are sauteed prior to placing on the pizza.

Lately we’ve been making pizzas at home every weekend and we’ve been using our trusty homemade pizza dough recipe along with our standard pizza sauce (though we’ve been known to cheat and purchase prepared pizza dough from Trader Joe’s on occasion; hey, at about a dollar a pop you can’t go wrong).  Next to good dough and the appropriate pizza sauce (yes, there’s a difference between tomato sauce and pizza sauce), good toppings can make or break a pizza.

The type of cheese used on pizza can also affect quality; that is to say, your best bet is to find fresh whole milk mozzarella and while buffalo mozzarella imported from Italy will make a devine pizza it’s unnecessary.  If you can avoid buying “supermarket” mozzarella it will be in your best interest. Finally, you can always add grated Parmiggiano Reggiano to any pizza either before or after it’s finished cooking.

OK, let’s get to our favorite pizza toppings which aren’t meant to encompass all possible combinations of pizza toppings rather what we’ve found to go well together and are often found in many good pizzerias throughout southern and northern Italy:

1. Sauteed mushrooms with parsley and garlic, fresh whole milk mozzarella, and sauce
2. Sauteed onions, red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, whole milk mozzarella, and sauce
3. Crumbled sausage with sauteed mushrooms, fresh whole milk mozzarella, and sauce
4. Oil cured anchovies, fresh whole milk mozzarella, and (extra) sauce
5. Chopped green or black olives, grated Parmigiano Reggiano, shredded San Marzano tomatoes, anchovies, dried oregano, and (extra) extra virgin olive oil
6. Thinly sliced potatoes, oil cured anchovies, artichoke hearts, grated Pecorino, (extra) extra virgin olive oil
7. Thinly sliced figs, artichoke hearts, fennel, Proscuitto di Parma, Gorgonzola and (extra) extra virgin olive oil
8. Sauteed eggplant, fresh whole milk mozzarella, sauce, and basil
9. Thinly sliced artichoke hearts, sauteed mushroom, roasted red peppers, roasted or sauteed eggplant, fresh whole milk mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano, and basil
10. Quattro formaggi (four cheeses including fresh whole milk mozzarella, Gorgonzola, and two other favorite cheeses <we use shredded provola, and lots of grated Parmigiano Reggiano) and sauce
11. Margherita (including sauce, fresh whole milk or buffalo mozzarella, basil and/or dried oregano, and plenty of extra virgin olive oil)
12. Quattro stagioni  (usually artichoke hearts, fresh whole milk mozzarella, sauce, ham and black olives which are divided, not combined, on the pizza)

Red onion and mushrooms waiting their turn to be sauteed. In the background, bell peppers being sauteed.

A completed pizza with prosciutto di Parm, sauteed mushrooms, and fresh whole milk mozzarella

Whole mushrooms in the background and sliced orange, red, and yellow bell peppers

Pizza toppings in the United States vary from what you would typically find in Italy.  If you’re grabbing a quick pizza for lunch in Italy you’d most likely order a simple Margherita, though if you’re planning to head for a late dinner with friends you’d most likely order a pizza with various toppings such as a quattro formaggi or quattro stagioni  (usually artichoke hearts, fresh whole milk mozzarella, sauce, ham and black olives which are divided, not combined, on the pizza).

What’s your favorite pizza topping and why?

Favorite Pizza Toppings is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Left to right: Cusumano Nero d Avola, Librandi Critone Val di Neto IGT, Bisceglia Aglianico del Vulture ,Tormaresca Chardonnay

We’ve been aiming to begin reviewing southern Italian wines for some time now and have finally started the process!  Today we’ll look at four wine regions from southern Italy, including Puglia, Calabria, Basilicata, and Sicilia; specifically, Tormaresca Chardonnay, Bisceglia Aglianico del Vulture,  Librandi Critone Val di Neto IGT, and Cusumano Nero d Avola.  We promise not to be biased towards Calabria!

Puglia

The Tormaresca Chardonnay 2010 is, as you may have guessed, comprised of 100% Chardonnay and comes from the Minervino Murge (Ba) and San Pietro Vernotico (Br) estates (I.G.T. grapes).  The color is a beautiful light, olive green / yellow and the wine has minimal oak and vanilla flavors (a welcome change from American chardonnays and in our view how a chardonnay should taste) and good green apple flavor.  The wine is very food friendly, including grilled or roasted chicken, fried fish, pan seared tuna, swordfish and onions, etc.  Tormaresca Chardonnay is a great value at $10.89

Basilicata

The Bisceglia Aglianico del Vulture 2007, priced at $20.89 via Wine Chateau, comes from an extraordinary region of southern Italy (on the heel of Italy’s boot); specifically, from a volcanic site.  Like any classic Aglianico the nose has great sandy and smoky scents (after the bottle has a chance to develop; this is a good wine to decant) and the texture/mouth feel is lush and soft.  The wine has a ton of cherry fruit and good minerality and beautiful tannins.  The only negative is a mediocre finish (though it has great forwardness).  We like this wine with rich pasta sauces, roasted baby goat or rabbit, and eggplant.

Left to right: Cusumano Nero d Avola, Librandi Critone Val di Neto IGT, Bisceglia Aglianico del Vulture ,Tormaresca Chardonnay

Calabria

The Librandi Critone Val di Neto IGT 2010 hails from my parent’s province of Calabria and is made mostly from chardonnay (with about 10% Sauvignon Blanc) so it shares some similiarities in flavor with the Tormaresca Chardonnay.  The Librandi Critone is crisp and dry tasting and it has classic elements of green apple, grass, peach (and,again, no oak or vanilla).  I like the Librandi Critone, priced at $13.69, with tomato salads, lunch salads made with arugula and grilled vegetables, raw oyster and clams, and any grilled fish.

Sicilia

Nero d’Avola is the most planted red grape in Sicilia and is become increasingly popular in the United States.  Cusumano Nero d Avola Sicilia IGT 2010 is a readily available Nero d’Avola and is a more fruit forward example of Nero.  The Cusumano has overt strawberry and cherry flavors with some oak flavors.  The wine is very chewy in terms of mouth feel and slightly full bodied.     At $10.49 the Cusumano Nero d Avola Sicilia IGT 2010 is a decent, readily available, Sicilian wine though with a little digging one could find better examples of Nero d Avola for just a few dollars more.

Wines of Puglia, Calabria, Basilicata, and Sicilia is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Monkfish and Scallop Seafood Risotto with Saffron - note our recipe is for a classic risotto made with with arborio rice. The photo shows risotto made with long grain rice (which is inappropriate but was the only rice type we had in the house). Hence, the slightly "soupie" nature of the end product (like risi e bisi).

Monkfish and Scallop Seafood Risotto

Don’t you hate it when you head to the market and pick up some great ingredients only to arrive home and realize you forgot an essential item?  In our case, we discovered some wonderful monkfish (or headfish) and large diver scallops at our local market and were all set to cook up a wonderful pot of seafood risotto when we realized we were out of aborio or carnaroli rice!

So, you may be wondering what we decided to do given our lack of a key ingredient?  Our response: continue to make risotto with what we had in our pantry (which included some organic long grain rice).  The end result was surprisingly good though we ended up with a texture and consistency more akin to risi e bisi.  The following Monkfish and Scallop Seafood risotto recipe, however, utilizes proper aborio or carnaroli rice.  Click here for all of our risotto recipes.

Some tips on choosing fish for a seafood risotto: buy whatever fish is fresh and is firm fleshed.  Don’t head to your fish shop or market with a particular fish variety in mind but rather buy what looks, smells, and feels best.  Good fish for seafood risotto include: shrimp, scallop, salmon, cod, tuna, etc. (viz., any firm fleshed fish that can keep it’s structure intact).   For a slightly more elaborate description on how to make risotto see Whitney Chen’s article in Gilt Taste (we suggest you skip adding whipped cream at the end of the process, however)

Fresh fish for the seafood risotto: monkfish and large diver scallops

Monkfish (left) and large diver scallops (right) cut into roughly the same size.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 pound of large diver, sea, scallops cut in half (depending on size; you’re looking to roughly match the size of the monkfish)
• 1 pound of monkfish cut into roughly 1 inch pieces
• 2 teaspoons of saffron
• 1 cup of arborio or carnaroli rice
• 2 cups of good red or white wine (optional)
• 2 cups of fresh, filtered, water (optional)
• 4 cups of low salt chicken or vegetable stock (if you make your own even better)
• 1 bunch of parsley, finely chopped
• 1 large onion (red or Spanish varities provide nicer flavor), finely diced/cubed
• 1/2 yellow and red bell pepper, finely diced and cubed (optional)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2-3 tabs of butter

Monkfish and Scallop Seafood Risotto with Saffron - note our recipe is for a classic risotto made with with arborio rice. The photo shows risotto made with long grain rice (which is inappropriate but was the only rice type we had in the house). Hence, the slightly "soupie" nature of the end product.

Process:

Place the the olive oil, diced onions and bell peppers,  and a half teaspoon of salt in a large heavy pan and set the flame to medium (we use a copper pot).  Cook down the onions and peppers until soft and then add the rice.  Toast the rice until it becomes translucent (the center can have a bit of white color).  For the liquid, either 1., use homemade stock (vegetable or chicken) and add the saffron and bring to a simmer 2., combine wine, water, pepper, salt, and saffron in a pot and bring to a simmer or 3., purchase low sodium stock and add the saffron and bring to a simmer.

Next, begin ladling in the hot stock (enough to cover the rice completely) and stir well.  Add a bit more salt (depending on the salt content of your stock) and some freshly ground black pepper.   Continue to ladle in more stock to cover the rice and stir frequently, you’ll need to do this whenever you notice the liquid has started to diminish and your rice is not covered in stock.   Repeat the aforementioned process for 25-30 minutes tasting the rice frequently.  Risotto should be served slightly al dente.  As soon as you sense the rice has released a good amount of starch and is cooked to your liking (you should notice a creamy texture), add the cubed fish and stir well (if you need to add a bit more liquid then do so at this point).  The fish will cook in a few minutes and thereafter you can add the finely minced parsley and butter.  Stir well  and serve as an all in one meal or as a starter to a multi-course meal.

Monkfish and Scallop Seafood Risotto is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

Light and Airy Almond Cookies prepared via Palmer's Cucina di Calabria cookbook. The cookies are labeled as Sospiri di Monaca (or Nun's Sighs), though the name may be wrong. Made by our mother-in-law.

Recipe For Light and Airy Italian Almond Cookies Referred to as  Sospiri di Monaca (or Nun’s Sighs)

When our mother-in-law prepared a fabulous cookie for Easter (I’m not just saying that because she’s our mother-in-law, I know what you guys are thinking) we knew we had to document the recipe or, at the least, share a photo.  However, when we began our research for the cookie recipe we ran into a bit of confusion.  That is to say, our mother-in-law’s recipe was adopted from Mary Palmer’s excellent book, Cucina di Calabria which is entitled Sospiri di Monaca (or Nun’s Sighs), though we’ve always associated Sospiri di Monaca with the cream filled delicacies found in many southern Italian pastry shops (and per the picture below).

When we think of Sospiri di Monaca (or Nun's Sighs) we think of the top right pastry.

So, has Palmer gotten the recipe name wrong and did she mean to label the cookies as Sospiri (translated roughly as light and airy almond cookies sighs)?  Regardless of taxonomy, here’s Mary Palmer’s excellent recipe for a very good cake-like cookie made with almonds and honey (usually served at Easter and dipped, half way, with chocolate); if you’re looking for more of a biscotto or cantucci like recipe, click here:

Ingredients:

• 3 ounces of semisweet chocolate
• 1 tablespoon of lemon zest
• 1/2 cup of honey
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/3 cup of sugar
• 1/2 cup of butter (soft)
• 1/2 cup of almonds
• 1/4 tablespoon of baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 tablespoons of baking powder
• 2 1/2 cups of flour (all purpose)

Sospiri di Monaca (or Nun’s Sighs) – Light and Airy Almond Cookies is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone

We lead the Italian life in Calabria last summer - here a typical snack of Prosciutto with local bread and an Averna cocktail (with orange juice and ice)

Our Weekly Round Up of the Best Food Articles with an Italian Focus

13 Year Old Cooking Prodigy, Foodie Neurology, Varying Tomato Sauce Recipes, Bittman’s Potato Pizza and Food Processor Dough, and David Rocco on the Italian Lifestyle:

The New Yorker - Ian McGarry is a 13 year old cooking prodigy who charges $100 for a multi-course meal served out of his parent’s home.  Many big wig food people have dined at Ian’s “restaurant” and they all say he’s the real deal, we wonder what he’ll create after he reaches puberty!

USA Today – All foodies can now cease being annoying and take pride in their neurological differences.  Yes, it appears foodies (and boy do we dislike this word) are wired differently than the average human being, enjoying sour, bitter, etc. flavors more so than standard sweet and salty flavor flavor profiles.

The Kitchn – An interesting article on what a writer learned when travelling with wine experts.  The author offers 6 tips for tasting wine and we think they’re all spot on.

Memorie di Angelina – Lawyer by day and fabulous cook and Italian food expert by night Frank has a wonderful blog and his latest article focuses on the various versions of “tomato sauce”

New York Time Dining and Wine – Bittman makes potato pizza!  Potato pizza is an Italian food stand by and it should be eaten more in the United States.  Bittman’s recipe is nice, though I’m torn with his advice on using a food processor to make dough (sure it’s fast as he suggests, but making pizza dough on a board by mixing flour, water, olive oil, and yeast isn’t time consuming, plus it allows for the important “hand feel” when making good dough.

David Rocco – The host of the Cooking Channel’s David Rocco Dolce Vita and Avventura, David Rocco just makes you feel good when you watch his show.  The Italian life he leads in front of the camera is romantic and inspiring; after a long day I often load up a DVR’d show and watch, with a negroni, and automatically feel the stress leave my body.

What We’re Reading: 13 Year Old Cooking Prodigy, Foodie Neurology, Tomato Sauce, Potato Pizza, and David Rocco is an article from Italian Food and Recipes - The Italian Life for Everyone