briciole

raccolto / harvest

baby white icicle radishes as diamonds in the rough Last year, a friend of mine gave me a packet of seeds (semi) written in Russian. From the picture and my very limited knowledge of the Cyrillic alphabet, I gathered that the seeds were for white icicle radish (ravanello candela di ghiaccio). I sowed a few and they all sprouted quickly. I thinned the seedlings, adding the harvested leaves to salads. But I didn't choose the right time to pull out the mature radishes, so the harvest was so-so. The expert gardener who helps me keep my little jungle under control sowed... Read more →

frollini salati / savory frollini

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] savory frollini As I originally explained in this post, frollino is a biscotto di pasta frolla, a cookie made with sweet shortcrust pastry (or sweet tart dough). By taking out the sugar and adding a couple of other ingredients, I have made a savory frollino that works nicely as accompaniment to cheese and spreads or by itself. (On this page, you can find the sweet version of the recipe below.) Pasta frolla is traditionally flavored with lemon zest, but for this savory version, I decided to use grated orange peel (buccia d'arancia... Read more →

rondini e cardellini / swallows and goldfinches

Tree Swallows by Holly Hashimoto A short while ago, I wrote a post titled fatto a mano con amore (handmade with love), where I described an initiative by TypePad to connect bloggers involved in making things with their hands. In the post, I mentioned Molly, an artist and teacher in Seattle, whose blog (subtitled Artist's Journal) includes pages showing her beautiful illustrations, bird and landscape paintings, and prints. After "meeting" online, Molly and I corresponded and organized a little exchange: I sent her one of my handmade journals and she sent me one of her prints and a card. Neither knew... Read more →

trota al vino rosso / trout in red wine

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] trout in red wine With this post, I am starting an exploration of traditional dishes from the various regions of Italy in the company of other bloggers. We start from the north-west corner of the country, a small region called Valle d'Aosta (Aosta Valley), whose capital is Aosta. I visited Aosta Valley twice, once with my high school class and more recently, with my husband. We stayed a few days in Courmayer, at the foot of Monte Bianco (Mont Blanc), and one day we took the funivia (cable car) to the Aiguille... Read more →

un'altra foto per Susan / another photo for Susan

strawberry risotto In past years, I have tried two or three different recipes to make risotto alle fragole, but was never satisfied with the result, so I changed course and developed a recipe for risotto ai lamponi. But the basket of strawberries that I brought back from a recent visit to the Temescal farmers' market, inspired me to give risotto alle fragole another try, and this time the result was good. I am not yet ready to post the recipe, so for now you'll have to be satisfied with only a photo. Update: the recipe is in this post (with a... Read more →

Edizione speciale: Novel Food #15

Special Edition: Announcing Novel Food #15 What are you reading now? I am reading Emma by Jane Austen. I had read it some years ago, but after watching the BBC adaptation of it, I decided to read it again. I did the same with Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice. What can I say? I love Jane Austen. As you can imagine based on the logo on the left, today I am announcing a new edition of Novel Food, the culinary/literary event that Lisa of Champaign Taste and I started in the fall of 2007. Lisa is taking a break... Read more →

cuori di barbabietola rossa ricoperti di cioccolato / chocolate-covered red beet hearts

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] chocolate-covered red beet hearts In recent months, I have talked about chocolate-covered pecans and pistachios, so you may think that I am in a chocolate-covering spree, but what I am describing here actually predates my experiments with nuts. A couple of years ago, one morning, I woke up with the idea of dipping pieces of roasted red beets into melted chocolate. I dismissed such flight of fancy, but it would not go away, so I followed it and charmed many people with the result. This year, on Valentine's Day (giorno di San... Read more →

una foto per Susan / a photo for Susan

Side view of the Beachcomber Cafe, Trinidad (CA) The Beachcomber Cafe is a special place and you can tell just by looking at the outside. Side view of the Beachcomber Cafe, Trinidad (CA) The wonderful young women who own the Cafe (and its younger sister, Beachcomber 2, in Bayside) decided in early 2008 to forgo paper cups. Customers who cannot, or prefer not to, sit down to enjoy their drink on the premises bring their own mug or purchase a mason jar (which is, of course, totally reusable). The system works beautifully. Black and White Wednesday is on hold while Susan... Read more →

un cuore di formaggio / a heart of cheese

homemade kefir cheese (with dukkah and cacao nibs) The original plan was to post the details of how to make the heart-shaped cheese (formaggio a forma di cuore) above today, but I had and have other tasks to attend to and so, in the meantime, I am sharing a photo to whet your appetite (far venire l'acquolina in bocca). And since today is heart day, here is another heart-shaped cheese from last year homemade French neufchâtel cheese You can see other heart-shaped dishes on the Valentine hearts page of Very Good Recipe. Happy Valentine's Day! Click on the button to hear... Read more →

yogurt a colazione / yogurt for breakfast

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] yogurt, pear and pistachios Breakfast option #1: homemade plain, non-fat yogurt, diced baked pear (pera), chopped toasted pistachios (pistacchi). My husband does not use any sweetener. Sometimes I add toasted pecans instead of pistachios. To prepare the pear, preheat the oven to 350 F. Wash a ripe but firm pear (e.g., Bosc) and cut into 1/4 inch thick slices lengthwise. Take the slices that include some of the core, cut each in half lengthwise and carve out the core. Distribute on a baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat and bake... Read more →