Baking

Valentine ravioli with lemon, thyme, and oregano

Happy Valentine’s Day! Chocolate, roses, and heart-shaped ravioli! If you make these for your Valentine, these are definitely a labor of love. The red pasta is made from beets, and you get a lovely pink dough if you mix regular and beet-colored pasta. (Mom pro-tip: I used three beets in this recipe. My kids ate…

Blood Orange Tart with Cardamom Cream

Citrus season is one of my favorite times of the year. Who can resist a box of Cuties? Meyer lemons, key limes, fresh grapefruit? For show, though, you can’t beat a blood orange. With red flesh and their reddish-orange peels, they almost belong more with Halloween than January. These beauties, which are slightly more tart…

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio (pasta with garlic and oil)

While Italian-Americans tend to use lots of garlic in their cooking, it is much less common in Italy, where the use of garlic is subject to some debate. Garlic, a native of Central Asia, can overwhelm the true flavors of a dish. It is easy to grow, inexpensive, and plentiful, and one theory is that…

Red Lentil Soup with Spinach and Chicken Sausage

Italians believe that lentils eaten on New Year’s Eve bring good luck and prosperity in the new year. It’s thought that this belief stems from the fact that brown lentils resemble coins from ancient Rome. The Romans invented many modern things – including roads, sewers, arches, aqueducts, and newspapers. Coins, however, predate the Roman Empire….

Yule Log~A Decadent Way to Usher in a New Year!

Another tradition that pre-dates Christmas is that of the Yule log. Families would celebrate the winter solstice with feasts and treats, and burn decorated logs (often anointed with wine or salt) to cleanse the air and usher in a new year. I’m thinking that this might be the first year that I burn a giant…

Blood Orange Tart with Cardamom Cream

Yule Log~A Decadent Way to Usher in a New Year!

Christmas Cookies: Chocolate Snowflakes (Crinkles)

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