Ciao amici! It's been a little while since posting, so I thought today I'd bring you all up to date with some life events, as well as a quick, easy recipe I invented this afternoon. This past Monday marked the two year anniversary of my wife and I meeting for the first time, back in Italy. It was such a dramatic beginning to what turned out to be a dramatic relationship. Guess it set the tone. She was there on a two-week class, and had met me two days before leaving. I knew she was the one for me since the first time she walked in the bar where I used to work at the time. I asked her out for a coffee the following afternoon, we chatted for a couple of hours.  The last night, the night before she flew home, she came back to the bar and waited for me to finish my shift (3am!). We walked to a park and there I kissed her for the first time. It would have been more romantic if it hadn't been 25 degrees out, but even still, it was something out of a movie. Neither of us knew what would happen, or if we'd even stay in touch. But we did, spent eight months talking on FaceTime ... and now we're married. So glad she took a chance on this random Italian guy. 

​foreign, but I'm learning to take my Italian approach and mix it with the things around me. I've also learned that I invent best when I walk into the kitchen completely unprepared, and use whatever I've got at the moment. Trying to plan ahead of time just doesn't work for me. So, here's one of my first non-Italian recipes, which turned out really delicious, and also really healthy. 

SAVORY & SWEET SEARED CHICKEN

WHAT YOU'LL NEED (serves 2):

• 2 chicken breasts (I use Nature's Promise Organic brand)
• 2/3 cup olive oil
• 1/4 stick of butter (Kerry Gold is the best!) 
• 1/2 cup red wine
• Two spoons of barbecue sauce (Preferably organic, but I like Sweet Baby Rays...I can't help it!) 
• Fresh parsley
• Salt
• Half lemon
• Half onion
• 1 cup of Cream (I use Horizon Organic) 

WHAT YOU'LL DO:

1. Prep: Slice the chicken breasts in half, lengthwise. Most chicken breasts in the US are very thick, and to cook properly need to be a bit thinner. Finely chop the onion and parsley. Set everything aside for later. 
2. Drizzle olive oil one the chicken and gently rub it in. Make sure you do that process on both sides and do the same with the salt.
3. Place a frying pan on the stove at high temperature and wait for it to be warm. Place the butter on the pan and squeeze the lemon juice once the butter is melted.
4. Lower the temperature, and add the onion to the pan. 
5. Wait for the onion to get golden brown, and slightly increase the temperature of the stove and place the chicken breasts in the pan.
6. Once the chicken starts getting slightly crispy and golden brown, add half of the cup of cream. 
7. Lower the temperature and drizzle the red wine into the pan, along with the parsley.
8. Increase the temperature and when the wine and cream starts evaporating, add the other half cup of milk and lower the temperature again (during the whole process, be careful to not let the sauce dry out completely.  If something happens and it becomes too dry, add a spoon of boiled water).
9. Add two spoonfulls of barbecue sauce and start mixing it into the cream sauce.
10. Serve the chicken with some chopped fresh parsley on top, or with a side salad with chopped tomatoes, olive oil, black pepper & salt,  and enjoy!

Let me know how yours turns out - tag me in your Facebook or Instagram posts so I can share! Be sure to follow me for more cooking ideas (and romantic updates ;)  

Ravioli are surely one of the most tasty handmade pasta all'uovo "egg pasta" you can ever make. In Italy we make a distinction between pasta all'uovo (ravioli, tagliatelle, fettuccine) and traditional pasta (spaghetti, linguine). The distinction  basically concerns the use of eggs that make those kinds of pasta more tasty and heavier and we don't consider them as much an "every day meal" as the traditional ones. The flour I've been using is the usual caputo 00 flour that is not as heavy as the American "all purpose" and definitely makes the pasta taste completely different. It's non-GMO and organic, which definitely adds to the health benefits.

​Making ravioli takes a decent amount of time and effort,  and a lot of patience but the result is so good that you won't regret it, especially if you're a true foodie. The traditional ravioli recipe is filled with spinach and ricotta, with a square shape, but you can also make a round shape and fill them with almost anything.  In this recipe I've used with sausages and ricotta, which was amazing and definitely worth trying!

Try pairing a full bodied red wine with this dish, like Chianti Classico. 

If you're up for an afternoon or evening covered in flour, and have some good music, get both ready because we're about to get started! 

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Ravioli: (Serves 2)

• 2 Cups of 00 flour
• Semolina flour to sprinkle
• 3 Eggs ( 2 whole eggs and a yolk)
• 2 cups of peeled and minced sausages
• Pecorino cheese
• Ricotta cheese
• 1 Big bowl
• Ravioli stamps
• Ravioli cutters
• Cling film or a kitchen cloth
• A rolling pin 
• A big scary knife
• A pasta maker or the kitchenAid attachment for pasta 
• A brush for pastry

Sauce:

• 1 8oz can pure tomato sauce (I use Contadina which has a non-GMO option)
• 1 tomato sliced in small cubes
• Fresh thyme sliced very thin
• 3 spoons of olive oil
• Black pepper
• 1 spoon of sugar
• 3 cups of boiled water
• Pecorino cheese
• Fresh basil
• Salt

WHAT TO DO:

RAVIOLI DOUGH

1. Make the pasta dough. For pasta dough recipe, visit my handmade pasta blog post here! If you're using store bought sheets of pasta dough, you can just skip to the sauce!
2. Pet semolina flour on the dough and keep feeding in the machine till the number 5 of the setting (there are usually numbers 1 to 6 on the side of the pasta maker.
3. Create 4 thin sheets of pasta dough and set them aside. (They will look like kind of like lasagna noodles at first.)

SAUCE

1. In a frying pan, place your can of tomatoes sauce and 2 cups of boiled water.
2. Let the tomatoes sauce cooking intermediate/ high temperature for 10 mins and after 5 mins add a spoon of sugar (very important because of the acidity of the tomatoes sauce).
3. When the sauce gets dry, add a nice amount of black pepper, salt and a handful of fresh thyme.
4. Put the sauce a low temperature and let it cook for other 5 mins.
5. Add half cup of boiled water to the sauce, the cubes of tomatoes and a handful of pecorino cheese.
6. Put it at very low temperature and let it cook for other 10 mins with a sprinkle of salt and black pepper.
7. Your sauce will be cooking while you're making the other elements, so be sure to keep an eye on it. 

FILLING

1. In the meantime cook the minced sausages for 5 mins in a pot without oil (they don't need it because they have their own fat), just a good amount of black pepper, salt, a big spoon of ricotta, and a handful of pecorino cheese (very finely grated). 
2. Add half cup of boiled water to the sausage so that the cheese gets creamy and mix well together.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

• Take your extra egg yolk and 2 tbsp water and beat it in a bowl till mixed. 
• Measure the space with your ravioli stamps to see how many you can make from one layer. See photos below! Spoon the sausage filling into the center of each space, leaving room around it for the stamp.​ Using the egg mixture, brush the area around the filling lightly. Place a second pasta layer on top of the first layer, like a cute pasta blanket, covering the fillings.

Let me know how your ravioli turn out, and if you have any ideas or suggestions, send them my way! Also be sure to follow me on Instagram and Facebook for more cooking ideas and tips!

 Let's kick this thing off by starting with one of my staple pastas that I use in many of my recipes. I make all my pasta by hand, using imported flour from Naples (which I buy on Amazon). It's a bit pricey, but it's worth it. Recently I had someone asking for the sub ingredients in the flour I use, and told me, "there should be around 8 ingredients in flour". Say WHAT. Flour should just be flour. I use Mulino Caputo, a wonderful brand that only has ONE listed ingredient on their flour: "Soft Wheat Flour 00". 

Traditionally, pasta is made with '00' flour, which is a different grind than the 'all purpose' flour here in America. It leads to a lighter, softer, and more pleasant pasta than if you use the all purpose. (Trust me, we've experimented). Also, it is non-GMO. 

The most simple pasta you can make is with water and flour, like spaghetti. For vegans, this will be the way to go if following my recipes. I will make a post on how to make spaghetti sometime soon. However, the pasta we're making today is with eggs and flour, and is called Tagliatelle. It is similar to fettuccine in it's makeup, and is a wonderful base for almost any pasta dish you could create. Andiamo! Let's make pasta!

(Note: If you want to use other pasta alternatives from local markets, feel free, and let me know which ones you find and if they work with the recipes!)


HANDMADE TAGLIATELLE:

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1. A pasta maker (link to a cheap option here)
(or a rolling pin). 

2. Two eggs - (due uova), preferably organic or free range...we use Nellies Free Range)

3. Four cups Caputo 00 Flour

• Two cups are for the pasta, and two are for sprinkling on top as you knead, or used throughout the pasta making process. 

4. A large bowl (optional)

5. Kitchen cloths (or cling film)

6. A sharp knife

7. A pasta rack (optional) - this is for hanging and drying the pasta. You can always lay it on a baking sheet, or drape it over other things, like your friends.

8. A fork (not optional, I will explain later why)  

​WHAT TO DO:

1. If using bowl, place two of the four cups of flour inside. Otherwise, make a large pile directly on the countertop and create a small crater in the center. (Basically make a volcano, and inside the volcano is where the eggs will go.)

2. Crack the eggs into the bowl, or center of the volcano, which will will name Vesuvius, since the flour we are using is from Napoli. 

3. Grab the fork (told you you'd need it) and slowly mix the eggs, grabbing small bits of flour as you go. Once the eggs are slightly deconstructed and have a bit of flour mixed into them, get rid of that pesky fork and get in there with your hands. Knead the eggs thoroughly throughout the flour, until it is gooey, and evenly mixed. 

4. Now it will be very sticky and gooey. Yum. Spread some extra flour onto the counter, and take your beautiful sticky flour ball (you should consider naming him at this point) and place him onto the counter. Sprinkle some flour and pat it into the pasta.  Take your kitchen cloth and place it over top of your baby, and leave it for 30 minutes. If using cling film, pat extra flour around the entire ball of pasta, and wrap the whole thing in cling film. Leave for 30 minutes.

5. After 30 minutes take your baby out of the cling film or kitchen cloth. At this point sprinkle more flour all over the pasta ball, working it into the dough until it is no longer sticky.  Take your knife and cut a slice off, about 1 inch thick. 

​6. Inside the slice is sticky, so sprinkle more flour on both sides, and using your hands or rolling pin, press the slice until it is about 1/4 thick or so. It should not be circular, it should be oblong - narrow and long. 

• If using a pasta maker, skip ahead to next step. If using a rolling pin, follow along. Continue to roll out your pasta in a long, thin strip, about 6 inches wide or so. The thickness should be about 1/8ths of an inch, or as thick as a cotton bedsheet. 
• Take your knife, and using a ruler or even just by hand, cut into long, think strips about 1/3 of an inch wide. Transfer to baking sheet, sprinkled with flour, or hang on a pasta rack. 

7. If using pasta maker: Take the thin piece of dough, and using the first setting on your pasta maker ( setting 0) feed it through. Fold in half and feed it through again. Repeat the process 2 more times. Sprinkle flour on your dough, and increase the setting to 1. Feed dough through. Increase setting to 2 sprinkle flour, and feed it through. Repeat this process until you reach setting  5.*

8. The piece of dough may be long, so cut in half. Feed the pasta through the 'tagliatelle' setting on the other side of your pasta maker. Most have 2 settings, one for spaghetti, and one for tagliatelle, catching the pieces as the come through. Lay on a flour covered baking tray or hang on a pasta rack. Repeat until all your pasta has been made!

STORING YOUR PASTA

You can eat your pasta right away, boiling it for 4 - 5 minutes (not NEARLY as long as pasta from the market) or you can store it to eat another day. Leave it out until it is dry, (an hour or so) and then you can stack it, and freeze it. 

​

Follow me on Instagram, and Facebook, and be sure to share tag me in photos of your master pasta creations. I LOVE seeing what you're making!