We eat meatballs in the Tuscan manner, without pasta. We’ll put out a platter of them, and before long, they disappear. In this recipe, we use both lamb and beef,…

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In Italy, we don’t eat burgers. When we think of burgers, we think of the constant fight that local politicians have to keep McDonalds out of our historical centers of…

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My grandmother, like yours, has an arsenal of recipes that are designed to entertain throughout the year, according to the calendar of festivities and family events. This roast has been, since…

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Since I was growing up I enjoyed eating “crudo”; both land and sea can offer flavors that sometimes are best if consumed uncooked. My father and I used to slice thin…

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Pesto alla genovese, made with basil and pine nuts, is the original pesto, and it is justly famous. I am nothing if not a traditionalist when it comes to Italian…

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If you assume that an Italian elementary school lunchroom would serve pretty good food, you would be right. I haven’t had a lot of American cafeteria fare, so I can’t…

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With the Holiday season approaching it is time to consider possibilities. In our house we rarely serve the traditional meals unless we have a full table of family expecting the…

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This recipe is one of the most solid tricks I carry in my pocket; it’s rustic, it’s quick, it’s absolutely sick delicious. Simplicity is very often the best way to…

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Pork loin in our house is “The Other White Meat”! It’s a cut we use often for our family meals, usually served with very simple sides like roasted potatoes and…

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Boar has a very special place in Tuscan menus; it represents heritage, family traditions and it stands as a true link between hunters and the land they live on. Almost every farmer…

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It’s the tail end of summer, we’re all hitting the BBQ trying to make the most of our outdoor cooking opportunities before the warm season fades away. I personally get…

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It is true indeed, Tuscans for the most part are obnoxiously fixated with their own regional cuisine! We come from a small region, with small villages and many grandmothers: each…

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Ossobuco is a classic of Milanese cuisine that made its way to Florence simply because of its deliciousness. Nobody really knows how and when that happened (people travel, duh!), and…

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The Tuscan country in this season offers quite an effervescent landscape. Farmers and land owners are harvesting olives together and delivering them to the local presses; the brand new Extra…

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I Love to Play With Fire! There is something very special that happens to me when I decide to diss the kitchen stove in favor of my Pizza Oven or…

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This is the very first recipe that was birthed out of my recipe hunter project. Because I haven’t developed the show yet, I thought I would design an episode for…

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Debi and I are creatures of habit: we are young parents always on a schedule, always on the run and basically always tired! When it comes to our meals we…

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This is the perfect comfort food. This dish makes Debi very happy, she says that this sauce is probably the closest thing that I prepare that actually deserves to be…

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Pheasant is one of those animals you always see crossing little dirt streets in Tuscany. You can hear their noise in the morning, but they’re super, super cute. The male…

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“Pollo alla Cacciatora” (Chicken Cacciatora) is a very common, almost ubiquitous dish throughout Italy. Like other recipes that are present in almost all regions of our country, you can come…

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Debi and I use this menu when we want to entertain without being strapped to the stove while cooking. The Pork Loin just needs to get started, then it will…

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This is the second and last episode we shot in Italy, let us introduce you to Aunt Laura. Laura is Gabriele’s aunt, and she’s the one usually in charge of cooking…

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Today’s recipe is a real Trattoria standard dish: Sausages with “Fagioli all’Uccelletta” (beans in a spicy fresh tomato sauce). In Italy, when we talk about sausages we usually refer to…

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