I am not Martha Stewart, and if you are reading this I’m guessing neither are you (Martha, if it is you, I love what you do but I don’t have the time, energy or budget to be you). For those of us lesser humans, the thought of throwing a dinner party can be stressful. I want a casual evening surrounded by great friends, good food … Continue reading Stress Free Italian Inspired Dinner Party
The name is certainly impressive, and the flavor is amazing, but there is no actual cooking required for this recipe. An excellent dessert for any meal, or a nice snack for a summer party. If you are not familiar with mascarpone cheese, you are missing out. It is a soft, mildly sweet Italian cheese frequently used in pastries and desserts. **Note – you really need … Continue reading Mascarpone Budino with Marsala & Berries
If you can boil water, you can make this cold pasta salad. It is incredibly flexible so you can adjust to include/omit ingredients based on your personal preferences or just what you have on hand. It holds well for several days in the fridge (I think it gets better) so you can make it well in advance. Ingredients 1 box (12-16oz) pasta. I like to … Continue reading Cold Pasta Salad
Capture the flavor of authentic Italian pizza with minimal effort. Great as a lunch, snack or appetizer. Yes, using a flatbread as a crust is cheating and not what they would do in Italy, but it cuts the time significantly and this captures the aroma, taste and feel of Pizza Margherita without spending all day in the kitchen. Ingredients- Sauce 1 15 oz can of … Continue reading Pizza Margherita Flatbread
If you are looking for a “set it and forget it” meal that will deliver serious flavor with minimal effort, look no further. I created this recipe as part of the Italian dinner party collection of recipes, but it certainly can stand on its own. If you want to try some pasta that is a little more complex than spaghetti this is your recipe. The … Continue reading Slow Cooker Manicotti
While many may interpret this as “before the pasta”, a more accurate translation would be “before the meal”. Antipasto is a formal course in Italian dining, but we are going to take some liberties and think broadly about antipasto as anything from an appetizer course to a snack. You can put together an impressive looking antipasto course with minimal effort, and since there are no … Continue reading Antipasto
This is one recipe you really need to try. Partly because it is so easy, and partly because it is sooooo good. Honestly, any recipe that can be fully demonstrated with three pictures is not going to challenge your cooking skills. The hardest part about this recipe is washing the veggies. Try it. You can thank me later. In the video below this recipe is … Continue reading Italian Roasted Veggies
Antonio over at Seasonality Spices sent me a free sample of his Maharajah Indian Curry Blend, so I have been trying out some new curry recipes. This week it is a delicious sweet potato curry. You won’t miss the meat, I promise. As an added bonus, it gave me an excuse to use my tiny little grater for the ginger. The coconut milk and sweet … Continue reading Maharajah Sweet Potato and Chickpea Curry
OK, this is not a traditional cheesecake. If you are a purist, just keep on scrolling and move past this one. If however, you want to try something unique that will be the hit of any special occasion, keep reading. This is light, sweet, fluffy, and well – delicious. I endeavor to post recipes that don’t require any special equipment or impossible to find ingredients. … Continue reading Grandma Harp’s No Bake “Cheesecake”
I have known of the existence of cranberries most of my life. I tried cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving when I was a kid and hated it. Too sour. Later in my life I tried dried cranberries, and found that I liked them as they were much sweeter. I have seen fresh cranberries for sale in bags around the holidays and assumed they were only good … Continue reading Cranberry Salad
