Beet Carpaccio with Fresh Ricotta and Pistachios

One of my favorite Italian appetizers is beef carpaccio, which is  paper thin sliced rare beef tenderloin, usually served with shaved parmesan cheese and hollandaise sauce.  I will only order it from trusted places as it served rare and food safety is paramount at all times, but most importantly when serving rare items or raw…

Homemade Italian Style Ricotta Cheese

I love ricotta cheese, and making it fresh is so easy.  What if I told you in about an hour with just four ingredients you could have fresh creamy Homemade Italian Style Ricotta Cheese.  You can make this and use it for pasta dishes, cannolis, in salads, or atop crostini drizzled with honey, it is so stinking…

Crazy Sexy Chicken Crust Pizza

Since my weight loss surgery,  I’ve had to change my whole way of approaching food.  Before my surgery I had always known carbs just were not in love with me the way I am with them!  My body works so much better on veggies, and protein.  I adore a good pizza, and mine is no…

Slow Simmered Pork Ragu with Pappardelle

There is no better smell that is pure comfort to me than when I have a big huge pot of gravy simmering on the stove for Sunday Gravy.  (My gravy is your marinara sauce).  Growing up this was one of the happiest times as a girl, knowing I would be eating my Grandmother’s meatballs and…

Cheeseburger Stuffed Burritos

This is the ultimate burger experience in my opinion.  It’s a mashed up version of two glorious eatables, the cheeseburger and the burrito.  I love to keep this simple but truly anything goes.  I like making this as a ground beef cheeseburger because I think it is a better taste experience.  If you are going…

Hellacious Pico de Gallo

I love spicy food.  Spicy Mexican fare all the better.  There is something so sexy to me about pico de gallo, I can’t tell you what it is about the combination but I love it.  There is a small deli by my house that we have been frequenting for the last 18 years and we…

Spicy Tex Mex Corn Dip

This dip is so flippin‘ go tood it’s addictive. It begins with fresh corn lightly charred on the stove top grill pan with smokey cumin and chili powder it takes this dip over the top! I like to use jalapeños in this as I use the chipotle chili flakes for the spice factor. You can…

Blood Orange & Poppy Seed Muffins with Blood Orange Glaze

Blood oranges are one of those fruits that I naturally equate with my Italian roots. Growing up I spent some of my summers staying with my Grandmother in Jersey City, and back in the 70’s there was a Peddler who would peddle his fruits and vegetables by cart around the Italian neighborhood my Grandma lived…

Blistered Shishito Peppers with Goat Cheese & Meyer Lemon Aioli

This appetizer is a sophisticated and surprisingly delicious!  It is one of those things you might overlook if you weren’t open to new experiences.   Shishito peppers are a Korean pepper that is considered a mild pepper, however once in a while you come across a spicy one without warning, which makes this so intriguing to me!…