Tag Archives: Italian

Homemade Italian Spaghetti Sauce with Meatballs

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Homemade Italian Spaghetti Sauce with Meatballs

Homemade Italian Spaghetti Sauce with Meatballs

It’s important to stop and enjoy the simple pleasures of life: a glass of good wine, a homemade meal with family, an evening cooking with friends, a romantic candlelit dinner, fresh herbs from the garden, a girl’s night out. Sometimes our busy lives distract us from what matters most. A home-cooked meal is a great way to bring people together, and this homemade Italian spaghetti sauce with meatballs will do just that.

Spaghetti and meatballs is a classic comfort dish–even more so when everything is made from scratch! This recipe takes a few hours, but yields a truly remarkable meal, with robust meatballs and a delicious tomato sauce replete with garlic and herbs. You won’t be going back to the pre-prepared stuff any time soon. read more

Carbonara

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carbonara, Italian, panncetta, pasta

Everyone loves carbonara! It’s fast, requires fewer than ten ingredients, and is truly delicious. Pancetta adds richness, making each bite savory. If you haven’t tried pancetta yet, you really should! I used to substitute bacon for it, as I didn’t have a good local source.

I recently discovered that I can get cured meats—pancetta, prosciutto, and sopressata, for example—at my local deli for a fraction of the cost of prepackaged varieties. I immediately bought some pancetta, wondering whether it would taste noticeably different than bacon. It actually has quite a distinctive taste, less smoky than bacon, more peppery and porky. read more

Kale Pasta with Breadcrumbs

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Kale Pasta with Breadcrumbs, kale pasta, kale and pasta, kale, pasta, Italian, olive oil, sage-infused olive oil

I decided on a pasta dish for the final course of my Italian dinner—after all, what kind of an Italian meal would it be without pasta? I steered away from cream, since my cream of asparagus soup already highlighted this ingredient. Instead, I made a sauce from the sage-infused olive oil left over from the fried sage appetizer. Maintaining the theme of previous courses, I featured something green in the entrée as well. Another symbolic reference to spring—bring on the green!

I chose kale as the focal point, as kale and pasta pair well. Kale, unlike other greens, doesn’t lose its robust texture when cooked; it wilts, but it holds its shape and doesn’t get slimy. Kale is also very nutritious, making it a great addition to any meal. Breadcrumbs take this kale and pasta dish to the next level, providing a garlicky crunch with each and every bite. read more

Cream of Asparagus Soup (Crema di Asparagi)

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Cream of Asparagus Soup, Asparagus, Cream, Soup, Cream Soup, First Course,

I followed the fried sage appetizer with an elegant cream of asparagus soup. If you’ve ever had a homemade cream soup before, you know the decadently rich quality they possess. The cream boosts the savory notes of vegetables, as does the smooth velvety texture. Canned varieties are a lackluster imitation of actual cream soups—their texture is subpar and they lack freshness. Don’t let a previous experience with canned cream soups dissuade you from making this satisfyingly smooth soup.

I settled on cream of asparagus soup because I wanted to use a vegetable that signified spring. Even though Chicago’s spring seems far off—it snowed a foot last week—I wanted a semblance of it. I associate asparagus with spring not only because it’s a spring crop, but also because I always have it on Easter. This excellent soup makes for a great lunch or first course for dinner. read more