tuscan soup (zuppa toscana)

Tuscan soup

It seems I’m on a soup kick.  Nothing like a bowl of hot soup to warm you all over when there’s a storm outside.  Over the years I have amassed numerous soup posts on my blog; there’s something for everyone!  Soups are so versatile one can make according to what’s on hand.  My Tuscan soup…

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parmesan tuiles

parmesan tuiles

The other day I was all gung-ho to make parmesan tuiles.  The recipe was from a trusted name in the cooking industry but as I was dishing out the ingredients, something inside me was saying the quantities, oven temperature and method seemed off.  But, because it was from a trusted source, I shrugged off my…

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summer berries & yogurt – make it tonight!

summer berries & yogurt

Summer berries with yogurt has to be one of the easiest desserts to make!  Forget about the whipping cream and use yogurt made with grass fed milk (no added sugars).  Grass fed milk, yogurt or butter tend to have a sweeter flavor than from cows fed a diet of grains.  I’ve been buying grass fed…

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eight 30-minute weekday meals

30-min meal collage

Ah, meal planning…it’s a daily necessity and while some don’t have an issue with it, a good portion of us do.  The days when a single income family was the norm is all but an anomaly.  My generation might have been able to squeak by on one salary but these days that’s not the case.…

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spaghetti and meatballs (my cheater’s version)

After a long day, the last thing you want to think about is what to make for dinner.  If you live alone or have a family, cooking a meal most probably isn’t at the top of the to-do list.  Compound this with work, perhaps picking up the kids from daycare and arriving home after six…

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roasted cabbage with parmesan

roasted cabbage with parmesan cheese

Cabbage gets a bad rap if you ask me.  It’s been around for three thousand years and yet it’s not front of mind in the vegetable world.  Most will have eaten it raw in a coleslaw and not many will have tried it cooked on the stovetop or in the oven.  Perhaps we don’t do…

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stracciatella soup (italian egg drop soup)

stracciatella - Italian egg drop soup

No muss, no fuss. This soup is one of the easiest you’ll ever make and with minimal ingredients.  What’s more, you can have it ready to serve in less than 15 minutes!  Egg drop soup is a favorite in Rome and in central Italy.  Stracciatella refers to the shredding of the eggs into little rags…

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poached shrimp in olive oil

poached shrimp in olive oil & butter

If there’s one staple I always have in my freezer, it’s a bag of frozen shrimp.  They’re so versatile and many shrimp recipes out there are easy to prepare, economical and perfect for a mid-week meal.  I recently poached shrimp in olive oil with a bit of butter as a last minute snack; I wasn’t…

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easy-to-make homemade ricotta

easy to make, homemade ricotta cheese

It all began with a bag of shelled green peas.  I was thinking sautéed spring vegetables with pasta; the Italians call it primavera.  But, I did not want to use traditional pasta such as linguine, penne, or tagliatelle.  And, I had a yearning for some sort of fresh sauce, too, in lieu of a creamy…

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greek yogurt labneh balls

DIY yogurt labneh balls

How to turn Greek yogurt into a delightful soft cheese?  It’s quite easy and so simple!  Labneh is strained yogurt and found in Middle Eastern cuisines.   Serve it with a drizzle of olive oil and top with za’atar or do what I did by rolling into balls and place in a jar with olive…

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