It’s hard to believe but just one month after planting the garden, it is already spewing zucchini! How do they grow so fast?!? It must be all of those hours of daylight, the sun rises here at 5:30 and sets at 8:30 pm. Perfect for aiding and abetting zucchini! So what do I do with all of these zucchini? Of course I have made the sautéd zucchini and zucchini bread but I’m already looking for other ways to prepare it. I remembered these delicious little fritters from a cookbook a friend gave to me years ago so I gave them a whirl and they came out delicious. A nice change from the norm. You can also zest them up with a little curry powder and minced jalopino if you like it exotic!
Lemon Meringue Pie
Lemon Meringue pie is an American Classic, we have made it in my family for years and everyone loves it. Recently, here in Italy we were having problems with our cell phone carrier, they kept charging us for extra fees and we had no idea why because the fees were explained in Italian and it didn’t translate well to English when we used Google translate, But our good friend Davide came to our rescue. With a brief phone call to our carrier he resolved our problem and even got some cash back! So for a reward he simply asked for a pie, a lemon meringue pie. Well, that’s easy enough!
Spritz
The Favorite Aperitivo of Italy
Summertime in Italy is Spritz time! In the summer it is especially refreshing to enjoy the icy cool refreshing Spritz, but of course Italians enjoy them year round. In the winter they are relaxing after skiing “Apri Ski” in the “After Ski” Party with a tall orange-tinted Spritz. In every outdoor cafe around 5:00 you will see Italians enjoying a Spritz with little bowls of chips, peanuts and olives.
Homemade Pizza in an outdoor wood fire pizza oven
Our new house in Italy came equipped with an outdoor pizza oven and a grill, but I have to admit I was a little intimidated by it! The idea is novel and romantic but how, pray tell, does someone actually use an outdoor pizza oven? I grew up with my mom making homemade pizza every week, I shouldn’t be so nervous, but Italians have this affect on me, they always make things seem complicated and make me second guess my cooking abilities. Could an outdoor pizza oven really be that complicated? Is Italian pizza dough really that different then my moms pizza in the electric oven? I was afraid to find out.
Pumpkin Chickpea Lentil Curry
I love this Curry, its full of Indian spices like Gram Marsala, Tumeric, Ginger, garlic and chili. If you can’t find fresh pumpkin where you live you can omit it and it will still be delicious. The coconut milk adds a nice creamy consistency to the lentils and chickpeas. This is a vegetarian recipe that is hearty and filling and gluten and dairy free too! You can stock up your pantry with these dry ingredients and be ready to make this dish even if you are in desperate need of going to the grocery store. Best of all it’s ready in under 30 minutes, so get your rice started and you will be sitting at the table in front of a steaming bowl of curry in no time.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
So we have passed our first week in our new house in the Itri hills in Italy. It was a week of hauling our things to the new house an hour and a half away. A hectic week of getting situated and figuring out how things work in the new place. But what better way to cozy up in a new house then to bake a fresh batch of chocolate chip cookies?
Swiss Fondue
I was inspired by our trip to Zermatt Switzerland to try my hand at Swiss Fondue. Every where I looked I saw buses advertising Gruyere cheese and fondue pots in every kitchen store. Every menu I opened and every restaurant seemed to beacon me to try the cheesy swiss inspired dip.
Mexican Enchiladas with Red Sauce
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.
Pork Tenderloin Medallions in Balsamic Caper Reduction (Keto Friendly)
The last night before flying back to Italy after our three month stay in California we enjoyed a family dinner with Jeff’s parents. Family dinners are a favorite pastime on both sides of the family, both mine and Jeff’s. We love gathering around the table over a delicious meal and talking the evening away. My father in law came up with a new recipe to try and us girls got busy in the kitchen to bring it to life.
Huevos Rancheros
(Mexican Fried Eggs with Red Sauce, Corn tortillas and cheese) Keto Adaptable!
I mentioned Huevos Rancheros in a previous post when I made Posole and I was describing all the wonderful things you could make with Enchilada sauce. I decided that I should write a post on how to make Huevos Rancheros since it is one of my favorite breakfast or brunch recipes.