La Buona Tavola

  This hearty salad starts with tiny brown lentils from Umbria, legumes prized for their earthy, nutty flavor and wholesome satisfying character.  Some of the finest lentils are grown on Italy’s Colfiorito plateau near the border of Umbria and Le …

Having just returned from a tour of Puglia, my thoughts linger on that region’s table in this week’s “Buona Tavola.” I will soon be on the road again traveling from Abruzzo to Lazio, Tuscany, Umbria, and back to Puglia. Beginning …

These little pasta squares, known as tacconi, hail from Italy’s Mezzogiorno, and are particularly well known in Molise and Abruzzo.  Toothsome and with plenty of corn flavor, they are made with a blend of finely ground wheat and corn flours, …

Italian food in general has thousands of amazing cheeses, made with as many different techniques matured during decades or centuries of local tradition. I can’t hide I’m a huge fan of all the Italian cheeses, but since you’ll maybe visit …

Pastries, sweets ,fruits, veggies, cheeses, olives and more … we’ll give you a taste of some of Sicily’s delights and take you to a small and large market! PLUS Alfred will try something he has need tried before ! All …

Tuscan cuisine is known for its simplicity typically using only four to eight ingredients. “La cucina povera”, or peasant cooking is the origin of all Tuscan recipes. In Tuscany, the elaborate preparation of dishes is not popular. Instead, Tuscans take …

I’ve been on an eggplant kick lately. It’s summertime and eggplant are everywhere in the farmer’s markets and grocery stores. People seem to be terrified of eggplant, probably because they don’t know how to cook it. The beautiful thing about …

As I wrote in my last column, we are on the road traveling Italy’s nooks and crannies this summer en route to my cooking school in Umbria. Rome was our first stop but despite her spell, the sweltering heat drove …

This is one your Sicilian nonna used to make.  Also known as maccaruna di casa, busiate are made of durum wheat and water, and are perhaps Sicily’s most famous pasta lunga.  The deft hands of the Sicilian women can turn …

Baby, it’s hot outside! Summer is in full swing and when the heat rises, you need some refreshing treats to cool you down.   What better way to do so but with a few Italian-inspired creations.   The first treat, Roasted …