Hello Italian Food Forever Newsletter Friends!

It has been a very busy, sometimes chaotic, couple of weeks and though I tried, I never managed to get a newsletter sent out last week as we were in Calabria and our hotel had minimal internet. We had a lovely time visiting my Father-In-Law's hometime San Giovanni in Fiore and visiting with long lost family members. We then spent a few days relaxing on the gorgeous beaches around Tropea with our family.

The family leaves Friday and their three week stay this year went by far too quickly. The one request my 13 year old grandson had this trip was a visit to Panzano in Chianti to see Dario Cecchini and enjoy one of his amazing meals and we accomplished that on Sunday. If you have never been to Antica Macelleria Cecchini I highly recommend it. It is ALWAYS an experience and Dario is wonderful. See the photo of Dario and my happy grandson Gabe!

We plan to relax by the pool the next couple of days to unwind a bit before the family returns to the US, but we did squeeze in a quick trip to Florence yesterday for shopping and exploring. Love the city, but I could do without the crowds!

Olive Oil Orange Cake
I am very simple when it comes to sweets I make myself at home. Perhaps it is because I do not often have the patience to spend hours putting together elaborate desserts, but when I am in the mood to bake something it can usually be put together quickly and without too many fancy ingredients. I like desserts that can be enjoyed at breakfast as well as after dinner and probably most of all, I love a good fruit flavored olive oil cake. Heck, I think I just plain love olive oil and would put it in my morning coffee if I could get away with it, but that's another story altogether! Get The Recipe......

Rustic Chestnut Rolls With Walnuts
I love the nutty, sweet flavor of chestnut flour and have been adding it into some of my breads and baked goods the past few years. In this recipe for crusty bread rolls, I added just a little chestnut flour (a little goes a long way) to some white wheat flour to replace some of the bread flour I normally use, then added some toasted walnuts for added flavor and texture. These rolls are great used for sandwiches, and they work well stuffed with just about any cured meat and cheese combination. Get The Recipe......

Torta di Erbe – Country Egg & Greens Tart
Greens are a very popular vegetable found across Umbria and commonly include rapini (broccoli rabe), bietola (swiss chard), or chicoria (chicory). Greens are commonly blanched, then drained and sautéed with olive oil, chili pepper, and garlic. These sautéed greens are then enjoyed as a vegetable side dish, or are used as fillings in sandwiches, to top pizza, stirred into eggs, or to toss with pasta. This rustic torta or tart is made with blanched greens and eggs, simply flavored with onions, pancetta, and garlic. Get The Recipe......

Pollo Arrabbiata - Chicken In Spicy Tomato Sauce
Any Italian recipe with "arrabbiata" in it's title will be a little spicy, as the word translates as "angry", and means hot chili peppers have been added to the ingredient list. The best part about making this type of recipe at home is that you can control the amount of heat you'd like in your dish. Get The Recipe......

Buffalo Mozzarella With Oven Roasted Tomatoes & Peppers
We do a lot of entertaining here in Umbria, and along with the meals I prepare for guests upon request, I like to have a number of "go to" dishes that I know I can pull together easily without a lot of fuss and food that everyone loves. This dish is a recent invention that basically came together when I was looking for something different from the usually caprese salad of mozzarella and fresh tomatoes. Get The Recipe......

Pan Fried Whitefish with Artichokes, Olives, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes @ SeriousEats
When we decided to make our dreams come true and buy property in Italy almost 6 years ago, we knew we wanted to live in Umbria. We've been extremely happy with our adopted region, and Umbria has just about everything we were looking for…that is, everything apart from a coastline. It's one of just a few Italian regions that are landlocked, and since we love seafood so much, we either have to make do with the fresh water fish caught in the region's lakes, or choose travel destinations that border the sea. Get The Recipe......

Cookbook Review- The Glorious Pasta of Italy
I collect cookbooks, and I have a lot of them. Most of my cookbooks are related to Italian cuisine, although I do include other topics from time to time. I read my cookbooks like other folks read fiction novels, and I am usually browsing through one cookbook or another every day looking for inspiration. Because my bookshelves are now getting rather full, I am trying to be much more selective when I purchase a new cookbook but when I saw a new cookbook called The Glorious Pasta of Italy written by Domenica Marchetti was being released, I just had to order it. Read More......

Order it Today!