Bucatini alla'amatriciana

This was one of my favorite dishes while I was living in Rome.  First, because bucatini is so much fun.  It looks like fat spaghetti, and is used in much the same way as spaghetti, but it's hollow in the center.  You'll get some impromptu music during the course of your meal... Second, because it just tastes amazing.  Don't let my picture fool you... it's so much more than pasta and chunks of tomato!  It's pretty simple to make, though some of the ingredients might be difficult to find.

Penne with Cauliflower

This recipe I actually got from a cooking magazine in Italy.  Translating it from Italian challenged my Italian cooking vocab, but it was a good exercise.  And converting from metric to imperial was just as fun (not).  But thank goodness I figured it all out because it's pretty delicious!  I don't think I've ever heard anyone say the like cauliflower, but you would never know when you have it in this simple pasta dish.

Panzanella

At the same time I was living in Rome, a friend of mine was living in Tuscany.  We didn't know each other at the time, even though we went to the same university, but we now work together.  She shared this recipe with me, which she learned while living in Tuscany.  Tuscany has some of the best farming country in all of Italy.  And because of the all the farms and natural woodlands, a lot of the food is much more earthy and gamey than in other parts of Italy.  These seems like one of those recipes that you whip together when you have leftover bread that's about to go stale and a few too many tomatoes.  But it is a delicious snack or side dish!

A Twist on Paella

If you've never had the opportunity to try paella, you really should find a Spanish restaurant and order it. Famous in the coastal regions of Spain (particularly Barcelona) the seafood and rice dish can easily fill you with a single helping. But, one of the main ingredients in paella is saffron... Between the $20 jar of saffron, paella rice, and the mix of seafood, you can easily spend $60 making paella for a family dinner. This variation uses sage instead of saffron, wild and brown rice instead of paella rice, and meat from land animals instead of seafood. 

Fresh Guacamole!

As a kid is "hated!" avocados and guacamole. It wasn't until I was in college that I dared to try it. Now I know why my mom always said I was crazy...

Meatless Pizza

I'm not usually a fan of veggie pizza. But when you're selective about about your veggies, it can actually be quite delicious. Using zucchini, other summer squash, and sweet basil (all from my garden), plus Monterey Jack cheese, I made a delicious pizza. Add some fresh or sun dried tomatoes, olives and artichoke hearts and it's simply heaven!