Roasted Pumpkin Gnocchi

It's no secret that autumn is my favourite season. From the chestnuts, to the mushrooms; from pears and clementines to pomegranates and persimmons; Autumn brings us some of the most savoury and sweet produce. Pumpkin is a fantastic vegetable full of beta-carotene and fibre. By oven roasting the pumpkin (or butternut squash) first, it creates a drier base for using as a thick sauce or as a puree for desserts.

The base of this recipe is incredibly versatile, working well as a filling for homemade ravioli, mixing in for a sweet and savoury risotto, or just as a delicious side dish to a classic fall menu. But the quickest and simplest dish is to stir it with fresh gnocchi. But be careful, like risotto, gnocchi can be very filling and heavy, so I recommend a smaller portion than you may be accustomed to.

Ricotta & Red Onion Pasta

 
Today was our first day of storms and rain and it made me think of this warm, autumn pasta. It is a recipe from my mother-in-law and it quickly became one of my favorite pastas. After several continuous days of heavy red sauce, this light creamy pasta is a welcome change. It has a very delicate flavor and I like to add fresh thyme to round it out. If you like the sweet flavor of red onions, you will be sure to like this pasta.

Spaghetti agli Scampi

Italian food is very seasonal and in the summertime, pasta with scampi is not to be missed. While my first memories of this dish were made in Vernazza's piazza Marconi so many years ago, I have discovered that this dish is surprisingly easy and much cheaper to make at home! There are a few versions of this pasta, the most common being made with a thick tomato sauce, but I find that a simple, simmered garlic and pomodorini, or grape tomatoes, is the best.

The Best in Vernazza

It's a known thing that to get good food, you go where the locals go. Trattoria da Sandro is no exception. Just down from the train station, the very first restaurant you come upon is Trattoria da Sandro and after being one of the hardest hit businesses in the raging landslide of October 25th, they are back in business and better than ever! (Look at that beautiful deck, my husband built that deck!)

Pepperoni Pastina

Having a nearly empty fridge can cause some very creative dishes. Seeing as how I try to have fresh vegetables in everything I make, I took the last fresh veggies from my fridge (a trio of pepperoni or bell peppers) and whipped up a deliciously creamy and vegan pasta dish. Super simple, light and nutritious! Here's how to make it:

Patriotic Dinner

On the first official day of summer, I went to the fruit and vegetable market downtown. Oh, there were so many great things! As I meandered around, I was inspired to make some delicious and classic Italian dishes for dinner. 

I started with a Caprese Salad, which is now being called insalata di tre colore (three color salad), as the official salad of Italy for it's 150th anniversary (it's a green, white and red salad=patriotic). If you are not familiar with the insalata Caprese, it is a very simple arrangement of sliced tomato, mozarella di buffala, fresh basil and olive oil.

Haute Cucina

The French are obsessed with les parfums (perfumes). 

The Italians are obsessed with la pasta. 

So while the French have Chanel N. 5, the Italians have Spaghetti N. 5! 

It’s the little things that give you a glimpse into a culture…wink, wink.

San Valentino

For Valentine’s day, my husband took me to dinner at Il Settimo Cielo (Seventh Heaven), a beautiful restaurant which sits atop a hill overlooking the entire bay of La Spezia. Now, eating out for dinner in Italy is a very different process than in an American restaurant. Your evening starts by ordering your vino and an antipasto, or appetizer. After these are brought to you, the waiter will leave you alone for a long while, as this is your conversation time. When you are good and ready to move on to the next course, il primo, you call the waiter to order your pasta, and the story repeats. When you are ready for the next course, il secondo, you call the waiter over to order your meat dish. And so it goes for i dolci, or dessert course, your caffé, your amaro, or after dinner drink and il conto, or check. It would be considered rushed and unnecessary to order all your dishes at once and your waiter will never come around several times to check on you or interrupt your meal without you calling for him. 

Let’s-a-Make-a-Meat-a-Balls!

Spaghetti and meatballs-- it’s a classic. It’s the first thought most Americans have when they hear Italian food. That, and the red and white checkered tablecloths, the candle in the Chianti bottle and “That’s Amore” by Dean Martin playing in the background. But even though this all-too-familiar scene for Americans has very little to do with actual Italian culture, I thought I would take you through the steps of making some authentic polpette (meatballs).

When the fridge is bare...

Recent remodeling in our apartment had caused us to stay elsewhere for the past week. However, we are now back in our apartment and loving our fresh new bedroom and bathroom. But our fridge is bare and grocery shopping doesn't happen until this evening. So what do I eat for lunch? As my mother has recently discovered (due to living in Norway without a car), the most creative dishes are made when your fridge is empty! So I bypassed my empty fridge and went straight for the cupboard. Garlic, chilli pepper flakes, olive oil, and black pepper. That should work! In goes the last 125 grams of orecchiete (ear-shaped pasta) to the boiling water and I start browning my garlic and chili pepper. Toss it all together, top it with a drizzle of Balsamico and freshly grated Grana Padano. How was it? Amazing!!