French Onion Soup (Soupe à l'oignon)

This particular soup isn't the most filling of all meals - unless of course you eat it with some crusty bread and enjoy it in its full glory. Nonetheless, it is a soup full of great flavor that always looks much more impressive than it actually it is when you serve it to friends. SO, in its simplicity, you can find a great meal. Enjoy and Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:4 Large Yellow Sweet Onions, peeled and sliced into half moon slices
2 Tbsp of Olive Oil
1 Tbsp of Unsalted Butter
1 Tbsp of Sugar
1 Tbsp of Fresh Thyme, chopped
½ cup of Sherry
4 cups of Beef Stock
1 cup of Grated Sharp Cheddar or Grated Swiss
4 Slices of Crusty Bread, cut into bite size chunks and toasted
Salt and pepper to taste

Process:

1) Preheat a large pot over medium heat and add the olive oil and butter, let the butter melt and add in the onions, sugar and salt and pepper. Cook for about 25 to 30 minutes stirring frequently or until the onions develop a beautiful deep caramelized brown color.

2) Add the sherry and thyme and cook for about 1 minute, turn the heat to medium high, add the beef broth and season with salt and pepper. Le it come to a boil then reduce the heat to medium and let it cook for about 15 to 20 minutes.

3) Preheat your broiler to high.

4) Ladle the soup in some oven safe bowls and top them with the bread and cheese, pop them under the broiler for just a couple minutes or until the cheese melts and its all bubbly and golden brown. Enjoy!

This Dish is On Fire, Literally! Bananas Foster!

Tonight's dessert will be the quick and easy, Bananas Foster. I absolutely love when dishes are incredibly simple and easy, and I love them even more so when they are PACKED with flavor. Ladies and Gentlemen, if you have the ingredients and had a bad day, make yourself a little happier - make the dish. And if you had a good day, well, make the dish. Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:3 Bananas, peeled and quartered
¼ cup of Unsalted Butter
½ cup of Brown Sugar
½ tsp of Ground Cinnamon
½ tsp of Vanilla Extract
3 Tbsp of Rum (Or Frangelico, Or Bourbon, Or Whisky)
Vanilla Ice Cream to serve

Process:

1) In a large skillet, cook together the butter, sugar and cinnamon over medium high until the sugar has dissolved. Add the bananas, and vanilla extract and cook them for a few minutes or until the bananas start to soften. 

2) Add the rum and using a large lighter, flambé it and cook for a bout 30 seconds. Serve over vanilla ice cream. 

Minestra Maritata - Italian Wedding Soup!

Italian Wedding Soup (Minestra Maritata) is one of my mom's favorite soups and since their anniversary is on Friday, I decided to make it ahead of time and freeze it until then. My parents will be married 32 years, so major congratulations are in order - I choose to celebrate the occasion with great food that will demand that we all spend it together.  So enjoy this great delicious and healthy soup! Don't forget to bring it with you to lunch - you will surely be the envy of your co-workers and/or friends! Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:For the soup base:
1 Small Onion, chopped
2 Medium Carrots, diced
2 Stalks of Celery, diced
1 Clove of Garlic, minced
1 Tbsp of Olive Oil
6 cups of Chicken Stock
5 ounces of Fresh Baby Spinach, washed and dried
¼ tsp of Fresh Lemon Zest
Fresh Chopped Parsley
Salt and Pepper, to taste
3/4 Cup of Small Pasta

For the meatballs:
¾ lb Ground Chicken 
1 tsp of Grated Onion
1 Clove of Garlic, grated or finely minced
¼ tsp of Fresh grated Lemon Zest
Salt and Pepper, to taste
1 Tbsp of Fresh chopped Parsley
2 Tbsp of Bread Crumbs
1 Egg
1 Tbsp of Milk
3 Tbsp of fresh grated Parmiggiano Reggiano

Process:

1) In a large bowl, combine together all of the meatballs ingredients, mix well and form little tiny meatballs. Set aside.

2) In a large pot over medium high heat, cook together the chopped onion, carrots, celery and garlic in the olive oil, season with salt and pepper and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.

3) Add the meatballs and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the pasta and cook according to packaged direction. 2 minutes before the pasta is cooked, add the spinach and cook for a couple minutes.

4) Season with salt and pepper to taste and turn the heat off. Right before it’s served, add the ½ tsp of grated lemon zest and fresh chopped parsley.

Ladle up and enjoy!

The SP&O Sub

I should have a license to make this sandwich. It's way too good. There is no greater italian sandwich. This isn't a hero, a hoagie, or whatever name you want to call it. It's a sausage, peppers, and onion SUB. 'Nuff said. If you don't make it for yourself or if you have never tasted one, well, I will do a special prayer for you. BECAUSE YOU ARE MISSING OUT. BIG TIME. My family doesn't put sauce and cheese on it because that would make it a parm. SO, just stick with me when it comes to the SP&O sub. Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:2 Crusty Italian Rolls
1 Large Red Bell Pepper, sliced lengthwise 
1 Large Yellow Onion, sliced into half moon slices
2 Large Links of Italian Sausage, cut in half lengthwise
2 Cloves of Garlic, sliced
½ cup of Red Wine
2 Tbsp of Olive Oil
Fresh Basil Leaves
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Process:

1) Preheat a non stick skillet over medium high heat, add the olive oil and make sure it’s nice and hot before adding the sausage.

2) When the oil is hot, add the sausage cut side down and cook for a few minutes on each side, until golden brown and cooked through. Remove the sausage to a plate.

3) In the same pan, add the onions and peppers and cook for about 10 minutes or until lightly brown and still tender crisp.

4) Add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Add the wine and scrape the bottom of the pot to lift up all of those delicious brown bits.

5) Add the sausage back in and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes.

6) Remove from the heat and add a few fresh basil leaves. Make yourself a sandwich and dig in!

Pasta Arrabiata: Disclaimer: Water.

Arrabiato means 'angry' in Italian and this sauce, had I not changed the recipe from chili peppers to hot pepper flakes, would certainly have lived up to its name. Actually, if I had not, the word, arrabiata,would not have done the original recipe's heat intensity justice - because it's on another level. I like a little heat just as much as the next person, but I don't want to be culpable for drinking all of North America's remaining fresh water supply. SO, after some slight alterations, enjoy the recipe! It'll definitely add a kick to your dining experience! Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:

4 oz of Pancetta (or thick cut bacon), cut into small dice
1 lb of Penne Pasta
1 32oz can of Italian Peeled and Chopped Tomatoes
2 Cloves of Garlic, chopped
2 Tbsp of Fresh Parsley, chopped
1 tsp of Olive Oil
Freshly Grated Parmiggiano Reggiano
Pinch of Hot Pepper Flakes
Salt and Pepper to taste

Process:

1) Fill a large pot with water and sprinkle in some salt, bring to a boil.

2) In a large skillet with high sides, add the oil and let it get nice and hot over medium heat, add the pancetta and let it cook for a couple minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Add in the garlic and hot pepper flakes and let it cook for another minute. 

3) Add the canned tomatoes and give it a nice stir, reduce the heat to medium-low and allow it to cook for about 20 minutes or until the sauce is nice and thick. When the sauce has about 10 minutes left, cook the pasta into the boiling water according to package instructions making sure to drain it well. 

4) Add the drained cooked pasta to the sauce add the parsley and grate in about ½ cup of parmiggiano, give everything a big stir adjust the seasoning if necessary and enjoy! 

Roasted Asparagus with Parmigiano Reggiano

I occasionally like to make this as a side dish to a great meat course, HOWEVER, let me tell you how I really like this...After you complete the recipe (when the asparagus and cheese are all happy and have made friends with each other), put the finished product into a food processor and blend it - instant roasted asparagus with parmigiano tapenade. That, and a nice piece of bread, and you are living the good life. Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:1 Large Bunch of Asparagus, bottom 2 inches trimmed off
2 Tbsp of Olive Oil
¼ cup of Freshly Grated Parmiggiano Reggiano
Salt and Pepper to taste
Lemon, optional

Process:

1) Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

2) Lay the asparagus in a single layer on a large baking sheet and toss them around in the olive oil. 

3) Season with salt and pepper and pop them in the oven and let them roast for 10 to 12 minutes.

4) Remove from the oven and sprinkle the cheese evenly over the top. Place them back in the oven and let them roast for 2 more minutes.

Serve with a squeeze of lemon. 

Strawberry Jam

So over the past two years, I have lost around 45 pounds and I have done it eating all the things I want in moderation and exercising - NOVEL IDEA! In any case, every time I go to the supermarket, I see so many different types of fruit in season, at bottom prices, that I just can't help myself. I buy box upon box of strawberries. With so many strawberries, I have gotten creative with their use. I recently put them in port wine with some sugar - DELICIOUS. But I still had an enormous number of berries, so I decided to make Jam. Not only is it delicious, but you can jar it and it keeps quite a while. Mangia Bene!

Ingredients:

3 ½ Pounds of Fresh Strawberries, hauled 
5 cups of Granulated Sugar
¼ cup of Fresh Lemon Juice
¾ of a Packet of Fruit Pectin

Process:

1) Fill about 2/3 of your canning pot with water and bring it to a simmer, using canning tongs add the canning jars and the lids but not the rim, leave them to simmer while you continue on the recipe. 

2) In a very large bowl, with either a potato masher or your hands, mash up the strawberries so you have some pulp and some chunks.

3) Place the mashed strawberries in a large pot with the lemon juice. Over high heat, bring to a rolling boil and add the pectin, stir well and add in the sugar, stir that in really good as well. 

4) Let it bubble fiercely until the mixture reaches 220 degrees when tested with a candy thermometer. 

5) Turn the heat off and skim off all the foam that has collected at the top of the jam.

6) Remove the jars from the hot water with canning tongs and using a canning funnel, fill the jars with the jam until they are ¼ inch from the top. 

7) Run a clean knife (or a canning knife) along the inside edges of the jam filled jars. (this removes all air pockets) 

8) Using your canning tongs, remove the lids from the simmering water and place it on the jars (make sure it's centered) screw on the rim but make sure you don’t screw it on too tightly. 

9) Fill the pot with a bit more water and turn the heat up to high and bring to a boil. 

10) Insert a canning rack in the pot and place all your jars in pot on top of the rack (make sure they are all submerged in the boiling water. 

11) Cover the pot and let them boil away for 20 minutes. Turn the heat off and let them sit for 5 minutes in the hot water. 

12) Remove the jars from the hot water and let them sit somewhere at room temperature for a day so that they seal completely. Don’t bother them as they sit for the day otherwise you can cause them to not seal properly.

13) After the day has gone by, check on the jars to make sure the lids are tightly sealed.