This is such a simple recipe, I learned it before the quarantine started when friends could still stop by and whip up an informal lunch together. My friends Davide and Giulia came by and wanted to prepare lunch for us. We stopped by the little local market before heading home, Giulia perused the pasta isle carefully, looking for the perfect pasta.
I adore Italy and it’s beautiful cuisine but after several days of eating Italian, I’m ready for a change of cuisine. That’s the American in me, spoiled by the abundance of foreign foods available. But we Americans aren’t alone, our Australian cousins and British parents also love ethnic foods. We all tend to agree that Mexican, Thai, Chinese and Indian are among our favorites.
The first time we tried these Cheese-Stuffed-Bacon-Wrapped-Spicy-Wonders-of-the-Appetizer-World was about 13 years ago in Hawaii. We were visiting friends on the island and they whipped up a BBQ extravaganza including Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers! I’m not sure if it was the friends, the beach scene of the Jalapeño Poppers but we never forgot them and promptly made them part of our cooking repertoire.
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!
During a recent dinner party I felt bad serving Tiramasu to our guests and leaving out my Keto crazy husband. So in an act of solidarity I got busy looking for a dessert he could have on the Keto diet. He had already bought a sugar substitute in the form of Erythritol so I was ready to create something delicious for him.
Autumn is gently rolling in and the late summer harvest of Pumpkins has arrived. I love when I start to see the pumpkins with their large spheres and pale pink skins start to show up at the farmers market. The pumpkins here are different than our American version that are orange skinned. The pumpkins in Italy have pale skin and dark orange interiors. They call them ‘zucca” and this is my favorite variety.
This is a great warm Autumn salad, especially when you want all of your veggies but don’t want to eat something cold on those chilly days. The warm roasted cauliflower, spiced chick peas and creamy tahini dressing really will warm up your Fall menu!
This is the MOST delicious ice cream you will ever eat! Ahhhhh, homemade ice cream and summertime…could there be a better combination? I have early memories of homemade ice cream growing up. My mom would mix up a batch of her vanilla custard, stirring the steamy concoction on the stove while sweet vanilla wafted through the air.
