Sicilian Girl

Tweet Burrata is a cream filled mozzarella sack. Invented in Puglia, Italy, as a way to use the scraps of curds left over after twisting balls of  mozzarella. The scraps are pulled into shreds then mixed with cream and then wrapped with a thin skin of mozzarella. This simple salad of luscious burrata and tomatoes […]

Tweet This is a fresh and flavorful raw zucchini dish featuring tangy capers and ricotta salata. The words ‘Ricotta’ means re-cooked and ‘Salata’ means salted. Ricotta Salata is a Sicilian cheese made from the whey part of sheep milk, which is pressed, salted and aged for at least 90 days. It is mild and milky […]

Tweet There is only one authentic Insalata Caprese and it originated in Capri, Italy. Traditionally, tomatoes are used in the infamous dish. Since it is peach season and I have an abundance of the fruit, I thought this would be a delicious twist on a classic. I swapped out the tomatoes for peaches and in […]

Tweet Potato salad with olives, tomatoes and capers is a popular salad on the island of Pantelleria (Strait of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea). Capers are a small but distinctive ingredient in Sicilian cooking. I have seen these plants all over Sicily, growing right out of stone walls (see photos below). In addition to abundant […]

Tweet Fennel, a favorite Italian vegetable, customarily eaten raw with a bit of salt, sees the year’s second crop in Autumn. We enjoy it in soups, salads, a creamy bowl of beans and even as a beverage. If you’ve never tried this versatile vegetable, this is a perfect recipe for you. Roasting fennel softens the […]

Tweet Roasted, stuffed, grilled and fried, are just some of the methods Italians (particularly southern Italians and Sicilians) use to turn this versatile vegetable into a vast variety of dishes. The smaller, baby eggplants of summer are the perfect side-dish for picnics and potlucks or simply to enjoy al fresco at home. Our recent trip […]

Tweet The Isle of Capri, Italy, situated in the Bay of Napoli, is probably most noted for the Grotta Azzurra, (Blue Grotto) a sea cave that is filled with a brilliant blue light. I was lucky enough to visit this magical place before it became the tourist attraction it is today. If you climb the long […]

Tweet The Italian giardiniera, pronounced jar-dih-NAIR-ah, means from the garden and is a classic combination of vegetables. Cauliflower, red bell peppers, carrots, celery and serrano chili peppers are mixed and marinated in a mixture of vinegar, olive oil and seasonings. Giardiniera, a common term for pickled foods, has graced many antipasti platters, but, if you’d […]

Tweet I enjoy all sorts of vegetables, but cauliflower is one of my favorites. As a child, my siblings and I were introduced to this cruciferous vegetable with my mother’s Macaroni and Cauliflower soup. I use this healthy, versatile, vegetable in a myriad of ways. I make a tangy lemon and caper cauliflower that can […]

Tweet Whenever my son, Joe, and I try a new Italian restaurant, the “one dish” that is a make-or-break decision to return, is eggplant Parmesan. The ingredients should compliment one another. The sauce must not overpower the dish nor the flavor of the eggplant be lost under a mound of cheese. An arugula salad with […]