There are few forays into food that I remember so vividly as the time I tried Calamari for the first time. While dining out with my parents, my dad ordered this interesting sounding dish and insisted I try. Being a 5 year old, “I will only eat PB & J”, I was extremely skeptical but my dad replied with, “They’re Italian French Fries.” Every kid on the planet loves French Fries and being that my mom was Italian, I was sold pretty quick. Served with a side of Marinara Sauce, I basically completely housed the entire plate of said “french fries”. It was only a few years later, when out at an Italian Restaurant, after now learning how to read (I was a slow learner….), that I read the fine Italic print under the Calamari Appetizer on the menu…..”Fried Squid”. Ummm say wah? Dad, did you deceive me?! Was my ...

One of my newest culinary obsessions has become making various Purees. For a while I was making a lot of Celery Root Purees, which were incredible and perfect for the fall….but last night I tried out a Fennel Puree which was to die for…..especially when paired with an Eataly Tenderloin! Now let me set the record straight on Fennel….I DESPISE raw fennel….I truly hate no other flavor in this world more than the flavor of anise/licorice. However, when cooked, fennel transforms from that vile flavor into such a delicate, beautiful flavor that could pair well with almost any meat. The two tricks to making any successful puree is: 1. Making sure you’ve either roasted/poached/sautéed your main ingredient so it’s completely tender, and easy to puree 2. The magical VITAMIX - before owning such an incredible implement, I used my food processor, which obviously works but it’s very grainy….the Vitamix makes ...

There is something so satisfying about the art of making bread…especially when it’s as successful & delicious as this one. You’re basically taking the ingredients for French Onion Soup and creating a bread out of it….pretty ingenious if you ask me. You can make this bread in a typical bread loaf pan….however mine has mysteriously gone missing, so therefore, I decided to make them into individual breads in my mini dutch ovens (how cute are they?!) Tonight I am pairing this savory bread with a Roast Eye Round and some Creamed Spinach....

One of the best parts of going to a steakhouse is the side dish of Creamed Spinach. My favorite steakhouse of all time, Peter Lugar’s has by far the best creamed spinach…..and I dare anyone to top it. So being that I have already relented the title for #1 Creamed Spinach to PL’s, I decided I could try for a close 2nd place. I was surprised at how easy it was to make this dish, it really only took about 15 minutes all in! Not to mention it was a great change up from the usual boring vegetable side dish.

Every Christmas, my mom and I would bake these cookies that my mom as a kid also used to make. The recipe was given to my great grandma from a neighbor named Mrs. Bernardo so since then, they have been known as Mrs. Bernardo’s Christmas Cookies. The great thing about these cookies is they’re not super sweet, and they are a perfect blank canvas for decorating with sprinkles or icing! Great cookies to make with kids as well!