Wow! This is so easy I don’t even think I should write a blog about it. But it is also so good that I think everyone on Keto should know about it. My husband said it is what made his Keto turkey dinner so enjoyable. Of course, I’m sure my Cauliflower “mashed potatoes” and Turkey helped too!
The Classic American Turkey Dinner…comfort food at its best. a Turkey dinner can be a huge hurdle for Keto eaters because of the carb heavy side dishes like stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, candied yams and cranberry sauce. Basically it’s a hard “No” all around leaving you with a few pathetic slices of turkey sadly looking up at you totally void of his faithful side kicks.
I live in Nettuno, Italy, a one hour train ride south of Rome. My town is beautiful in itself with a Borgo (old Medieval Town) with narrow cobblestone streets complete with a Fortress and Harbor. From my house I can take a 10 minute stroll down through two Piazza’s and through the Borgo and find myself with feet in the sand staring at an endless horizon of sea and beach.
The wifely support of a husband on the Keto diet continues this week as we surmount another family dinner full of tasty temptations. Having just arrived home from Italy I wanted to cook a true pasta dinner for my sister and her family. I chose to make Ragu and homemade pasta which is a pretty hard thing for a husband to pass up, especially my husband who has a particular soft spot for homemade pasta.
While still in Italy, we visited the Marche region and stayed with some friends from South Africa. My friend recently became diabetic and so she shared some of her favorite recipes with me. We loved her cooking style because it is essentially the same diet as “Ketogenic”. Being from South Africa they refer to this diet as “Banting” diet after the doctor who came up with this eating style.
A few days after arriving back home in California, I told my mom “If you are going to make pizza, please let me know so I can plan on it for dinner!” She said “I didn’t think you would want to eat pizza since you have been living in Italy eating the “best” pizza!” I replied “I DO want to eat pizza, I want to eat YOUR homemade Pizza!” So with a little smile on her face she agreed to make me pizza.
So I am back home in California after living in Italy for a year and a half. We will only be home for three months, working and visiting with friends and family before we return to Italy again. As a side point I am enjoying such novelties as a good heater in my house, a powerful shower head in a roomy bathroom and a dryer to dry my clothes!
We are finally back “home” in Italy after two days of traveling and three days of jet lag. It’s been a whirlwind of getting our cell phones running, updating our Permesso di Sorggiono (Permission to stay in Italy filed at the local commune) and checking on my Citizenship documents. We have eaten the pizza, sipped the cappuccino’s, devoured the Cornetto (breakfast pastries) and slurped the gelatos. We reunited with friends over apperetivo and pasta.
This pasta dish is rich in flavor and so easy to make with ingredients that are easily available and probably already in your house. It is a sure crowd pleaser that will make its way in to your regular menu rotation
Cacciatore means “Hunter” or Hunter-Style, it has an ancient history going back to the Renaissance, around the 1500’s in Central Northern Italy. It was usually made with rabbit or fowl that would be caught by the hunter when he was out for bigger game. Chicken Cacciatore is rustic dish made on an ancient hearth or out in the open with ingredients readily available in the forest or the Renaissance kitchen. These would be olives curing in the brine, the ever present wine and herbs such as rosemary and thyme.
