La Buona Tavola

Symbol of Naples’ patisserie, the babbà has very peculiar and, indeed, ancient origins! It reached Naples from Paris, city were the chefs of bourgeois families were usually sent to improve their culinary skills. But Parisians didn’t invent it because, according …

Finally the summer heat has yielded a delicious crop of tomatoes – plump heirloom, sweet cherry, meaty San Marzano. I wait patiently all season for the tomatoes to arrive and once they do, I simply cannot get enough.  They are …

Burrata was born in Apulia, more precisely in Andria, almost by chance: and thanks for that!  We were in the mid-1950s when, because of a heavy snowfall, Lorenzo Bianchino couldn’t go and sell his milk so, in an attempt not …

Pizza is the ultimate comfort food: it’s filling, it’s versatile, it’s perfect for sharing but also great to have on your own. A night on front of the tv screen is not the same without pizza and every typical Italian …

I stopped by the local farmer’s market this weekend and found myself in front of a beautiful basket of freshly picked arugula.  Memories of a beautiful Tuscan steak, perfectly cooked, sliced and laid atop a bed of simple arugula and …

Summer gives us large quantities of marvelous fresh vegetables, but what about the winter? As the saying goes, necessity is mother of all inventions, so giardiniera was born.  Carrots, celery, cucumbers, cauliflowers, zucchini, bell peppers, all chopped, lightly boiled and …

When you travel around Italy you will quickly notice that, in every single region, there are culinary traditions locals are not only proud of, but also genuinely consider the best, if one was to compare them with those of the …

The word biscotti in Italy refers to what Americans know as “cookies.”  Many Italo-Americans use the word biscotti when they refer to a specific type of cookie, that is, those finger long cookies with almonds. These are known as Cantuccini …

“Sicilian novels and memoirs that speak of food are more important to me than cookbooks,” says Mary Taylor Simeti, a grande dame of the vibrant Sicilian kitchen and culture. “Sicily’s culture, including its food, is a magnificent melting pot, an accumulation …

A traditional Sicilian pasta recipe which I absolutely adore is pasta con le sarde – pasta with sardines. If you have a keen eye though, you’ll notice that in my photos I used fresh anchovies instead of sardines. This was simply …