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Roasted Rapini

Rapini, also known as Broccoli Rabe, is a superhero of vegetables! It boosts your immune system, improves digestion, protects your eyesight, supports heart health, strengthens bones and detoxes. This cruciferous…
Cauliflower with Crispy Crumbs

Cauliflower with Crispy Crumbs

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  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…
Delicata Squash

Delicata Squash

  I can’t believe this is the first time I’ve ever made this squash. Last month my husband and I made a trip to our cabin in the California Sierras.…

Holiday Brussels Sprouts

  I really like Brussels sprouts. I enjoy them for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I realize not everyone is a fan of this healthy cruciferous vegetable and most folks either…

Lemon Roasted Broccolini

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  Broccolini, sometimes referred to as baby broccoli, is a hybrid that has thinner stalks and a slightly sweeter taste than broccoli. If I am only cooking a small amount,…

Oven-Fried Zucchini

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  We eat a ton of vegetables in this house. Most of the time these vegetables are roasted, grilled, sauteed, marinated and eaten raw but, every now and then, they…

Roasted Butternut Squash

  Hard winter squashes, such as butternut, Hubbard and spaghetti squash, make their seasonal appearance as early as October, just in time to grace our tables for the holidays, and…

Farro Vegetable Salad

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  Emmer wheat, called farro in Italian, is a nutritious grain with a distinctive nutty flavor and chewy texture. Farro is low in fat, high in protein and rich in…

Blood Orange Citrus Caprese

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  Winter in Sicily is all about the citrus; Oranges, lemons, grapefruit, kumquats, tangerines and citron. The entire island is covered with citrus trees filling the air with their intoxicating…

Balsamic Beets with Gorgonzola

  Beets, native to the Mediterranean, are an excellent source of nutrients and minerals. Both the fleshy root and the greens are edible. Although they are not the prettiest vegetable…

Heirloom Roasted Carrots

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  Heirloom plant species, be they flowers, fruits or vegetables are grown from seeds that are passed down from generation to generation. Grown from seeds that are at least fifty…

Le Verdure

  Food does not have to be complicated. These colorful vegetables, simply roasted with olive oil and salt, then grilled are as pleasing to the eye as they are to…

Marinated Melanzane

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  The Italian eggplant (melanzane) is smaller than the American variety, although, both have a shiny, deep purple color. In Sicily, there are small, round eggplants that are mauve-colored with…

Grilled Romaine

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  Salads and Summer go hand-in-hand. There are countless choices from light fresh fruit salads (Watermelon & Gorgonzola with Balsamic Drizzle, Melone e Mozzarella, Gorgonzola e Pera) to substantial main dish types…

Ricotta Salata Dressing

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  Ricotta salata is not the ricotta used in dishes, such as lasagna. This ricotta is pressed, dried and salted, (salata) with a firm but crumbly texture and mild, milky…

Summer Squash A Scapace

  “A Scapece” is a two-step method of preparing vegetables. First, le verdure (vegetables) are fried, then marinated in vinegar overnight. Typically, they are served as Merende or as a…

Broccolini

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  Referred to as baby broccoli and used in Italian cooking, this vegetable was first developed in Japan. Broccolini is a hybrid of broccoli and Chinese kale (kai pan). Unlike…

Potate in Insalata

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  A potato salad in Italy is quite different from a salad by the same name here in the states. Consisting of boiled, cooked and peeled potatoes, this salad is…

Southern Greens

  For generations, the American South has cooked up some mighty fine eating, but it’s more than fried foods and decadent desserts. Greens became a staple food when slaves utilized…