Diane, thanks for posting the class picture. The memories it conjures up are wonderful!! We continue to bore our friends and family with tales of Italy. They put up with it, though, because of the amazing Italian food that appears on the table.
Thanksgiving week was the perfect opportunity to try everything from soups to pasta to desserts since we were feeding 13 people for the better part of a week. The ribollita soup (my second try, this time made with Tim's excellent homemade Italian crusty bread) was a hit and fed a cast of thousands. Tim made the pasta with spicy red "carrattiera" sauce. It took only a few minutes to prepare, everyone from kids to adults loved it and, again, it fed a lot of people. Needless to say, the tiramisu was one of the highlights of the week! We found the authentic lady fingers in Greenville (essential, in my opinion) and dusted the top with a good quality dark cocoa powder -- perfecto, as Claudio would say!! The flavor and presentation were definitely better after setting up overnight in the fridge. Our challenge, however, continues to be what to make the tiramisu in that will be tall enough to hold 3 layers and broad enough for all ingredients. We ended up using two different glass dishes, neither being ideal. Has anyone discovered the perfect size container for this dessert?
Beyond Thanksgiving, Tim made the onion soup for a small dinner party on New Year's Eve. We found the cast iron diffuser at a restaurant supply store in Chicago while we were there for Christmas and it worked well -- the onions seemed to be fine without constant attention and carmelized perfectly (we have gas burners without any upgraded features). It was the perfect starter for a special winter meal -- light, but warm and sweet and savory all at the same time.
We've made many other dishes from Tuscan rabbit to mushroom tagliatelle to risotto. Some, like the tagliatelle, were exactly right on the first try even though I substitued fresh shitake for the porcini mushrooms (the choice guided by the Italian philosophy of using what's fresh locally). Others have taken a few times to replicate the taste or texture as we remember them to be from Tusany. There are still so many things we haven't tried -- gnocchi, polenta, stuffed pastas... But, I'm off to Chicago (brrrr..) to take care of our grandchildren while their parents vacation in sunny Mexico so cooking will consist of kid friendly, quick fix meals for the next few weeks. I'll be ready to spend some quality time in the kitchen when I return and maybe then we'll spend an afternoon rolling out pasta dough.
Hope you're all fine (especially you, Martha!). I always look forward to hearing what's cooking. Keep the tips coming so we can save ourselves from stumbling more than necessary.
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Hi Everyone!
Diane, thanks for posting the class picture. The memories it conjures up are wonderful!! We continue to bore our friends and family with tales of Italy. They put up with it, though, because of the amazing Italian food that appears on the table.
Thanksgiving week was the perfect opportunity to try everything from soups to pasta to desserts since we were feeding 13 people for the better part of a week. The ribollita soup (my second try, this time made with Tim's excellent homemade Italian crusty bread) was a hit and fed a cast of thousands. Tim made the pasta with spicy red "carrattiera" sauce. It took only a few minutes to prepare, everyone from kids to adults loved it and, again, it fed a lot of people. Needless to say, the tiramisu was one of the highlights of the week! We found the authentic lady fingers in Greenville (essential, in my opinion) and dusted the top with a good quality dark cocoa powder -- perfecto, as Claudio would say!! The flavor and presentation were definitely better after setting up overnight in the fridge. Our challenge, however, continues to be what to make the tiramisu in that will be tall enough to hold 3 layers and broad enough for all ingredients. We ended up using two different glass dishes, neither being ideal. Has anyone discovered the perfect size container for this dessert?
Beyond Thanksgiving, Tim made the onion soup for a small dinner party on New Year's Eve. We found the cast iron diffuser at a restaurant supply store in Chicago while we were there for Christmas and it worked well -- the onions seemed to be fine without constant attention and carmelized perfectly (we have gas burners without any upgraded features). It was the perfect starter for a special winter meal -- light, but warm and sweet and savory all at the same time.
We've made many other dishes from Tuscan rabbit to mushroom tagliatelle to risotto. Some, like the tagliatelle, were exactly right on the first try even though I substitued fresh shitake for the porcini mushrooms (the choice guided by the Italian philosophy of using what's fresh locally). Others have taken a few times to replicate the taste or texture as we remember them to be from Tusany. There are still so many things we haven't tried -- gnocchi, polenta, stuffed pastas...
But, I'm off to Chicago (brrrr..) to take care of our grandchildren while their parents vacation in sunny Mexico so cooking will consist of kid friendly, quick fix meals for the next few weeks. I'll be ready to spend some quality time in the kitchen when I return and maybe then we'll spend an afternoon rolling out pasta dough.
Hope you're all fine (especially you, Martha!). I always look forward to hearing what's cooking. Keep the tips coming so we can save ourselves from stumbling more than necessary.
Carolyn
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