How comforting it is to have a steaming bowl of soup on a cold November day. One of our favorite soups in my house is Mexican Chicken Tortilla Soup. It’s like a party in a bowl and is a real crowd pleaser. I can’t even count how many countries I have made this soup in: America, Italy, Mexico, Nicaragua, Japan…I have been making this Tortilla Soup for years now and it never disappoints.
The Autumn air is crisp, the leaves are falling and the apples are ready for harvest. Its time to pack the family up and take a drive to the apple orchards and partake of the yearly tradition of picking apples.
Now that you have made a big beautiful batch of Creamy Polenta with Ragu, you may be fortunate enough to have some leftovers! You may have been surprised when you placed that smooth polenta into a bowl to have seen in completely congealed into a solid mass when you opened the container the next day!
I have made this Polenta and Ragu on several occasions now. My first attempt was actually not mine at all but a generous Italian friend volunteered to come over and cook this hearty dish for some visiting friends. I loved the experience from top to bottom. My friends gathered in the kitchen and began preparing the polenta.
Mmmmm, Pumpkin Risotto! It was one of my first acquired recipes while living in Italy and one of my favorites! The Autumn, with its sunny days and cold nights is the perfect time to enjoy this Autumn vegetable while it warms your home and your family. Pumpkin Risotto is like eating macaroni and cheese, the color is orange and the texture creamy. The addition of butter and parmesan at the end adds that cheesy goodness that we all crave.
My region of Italy is Lazio and it is famous for its Artichokes, in Rome you can enjoy them Roman Style or Jewish Style. Both styles trim the artichoke all the way down to only the edible parts. The Roman Style is then simmered in water and olive oil along with spices until soft. It is then eaten in its entirety, no peeling back leaf by leaf until you reach the heart. Nope, you just dig right in. The Chef did all of the work for you.
There are some things I will really miss about living in Italy, such as the produce I will just not be able to taste again until I return. One is the Porcini. This mushroom is available in the spring and fall and is native to the forests in this part of Europe. It does not have “gills” like the large Portobella we are familiar with in America. But it is similar in size. It is medium golden brown and thicker than a Portobello. The flavor is intense and woodsy but not as intense as a truffle.
I recently bought a new springform pan to make the Lemon Torta and have been dying to use it again. A springform pan is great for layered cakes with Savoiardi (ladyfingers) or mousse. It has a base that can be detached from the sides.
The Autumn days of October when the air is crisp, the trees are changing colors and the weather is unpredictable. Today we had some rain in Italy and what better way to welcome Autumn and cozy up in the house than to cook up some hearty soup. Farro is quite popular in Italy and is grown in the Northern regions such Umbria and Tuscany and mine, the Lazio Region.
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.
