Don’t let the purple color of this chicken dish scare you away! The taste of the chicken after having marinated in red wine is divine. 🙂 This recipe was one of our Dad’s favorite meals and one our Mom made often. She made it at home. She made it for company. She made it for picnics. But neither Joey nor I continued making the dish after we moved away – until relatively recently that is.

Continue reading Chicken Marinated in Red Wine (and a ladybug story) at Our Italian Table.

We are finally back here in Le Marche Italy visiting my family and walking the same streets as my grandfather who immigrated to the United States in 1911.  It’s been a two-year hiatus since our last memorable trip here.

All the things I love about this place have come flooding back – family, afternoons at cafes, the beautiful countryside, the Adriatic Sea. However, the things that really activate my memories are the tastes and aromas of the Italian region of Marche.

Continue reading Pollo in potacchio con patate at Our Italian Table.

I’m constantly amazed at how a few ultra-fresh ingredients, simply prepared, can make such a flavorful Italian dish. Today, I picked lemons from our backyard lemon tree, and bought chicken from one of the poultry vendors at the famous Third-and-Fairfax Farmer’s Market in Los Angeles.

For this dish, oft-forgotten chicken giblets are the backbone for a luxurious sauce. And while the original version of this recipe literally places the whole chicken in the pot to cook, I first browned cut-up pieces to develop a little flavor.

Continue reading Pollo alla maceratese at Our Italian Table.

So you guys, you have to make this roast chicken! Why??

1. It is super simple.
2. It screams FALL.
3. The delicious aromas wafting from your oven are stomach-growl inducing.
4. You can impress your family and friends.
5. You can have a glass of vino while waiting for the chicken to roast. 🙂

This recipe is so easy to make your own.

Continue reading Harvest Dinner: Easy Roasted Chicken with Grapes and Shallots at Our Italian Table.

Happy Fall! I know many of us dread the cooler days ahead (me included!) So….why not make those cooler days just a tad warmer by putting up a pot of wonderfully-soul-satisfying homemade stock?  If you do not make homemade stock, well you simply should be (sorry that was my mother speaking.)

It is sooooooo worth the effort and its rich, deep flavor compared to its canned chemical laden equivalent will hopefully convince you that, seriously, MAKE YOURS HOMEMADE!

Continue reading How to Make Stock Like an Italian Nonna (and a Chicken Stock Recipe) at Our Italian Table.

When a chill fills the air, few meals up the comfort factor more than a succulent, warming braise…that fork-tender cut of meat bathing in some sort of aromatic bath of stock, or perhaps wine and plenty of aromatic, fresh herbs. These easy dishes may appear to be a lot of work but with just a few key things to remember, braises are as simple as they come. An added bonus is the beautiful aroma that wafts from your stove filling your home with lip smacking goodness.

Continue reading Braise, Baby, Braise! Vinegar Braised Chicken with Pancetta and Onions at Our Italian Table.

The glorious pomegranate has only recently gained in popularity on our winter tables.  Many are, at a minimum unsure how to peel the cute little fruit; others simply too lazy to make the effort. However, the delectable juicy ruby red seeds are well worth the effort and with the technique described below, a minimum of effort.

This glorious fruit has a long and storied past. Some believe it to be the first fruit ever cultivated – the ‘apple’ that Adam used to tempt Eve.

Continue reading The Glorious Festive Pomegranate: Recipes to Put You in the Holiday Spirit! at Our Italian Table.

As we continue our Calabrian adventures, I’ve been cooking with the aid of the excellent cookbook, My Calabria. This is a great source for all things Calabrian and has some wonderful stories beyond the recipes.

With it being summer, eggplants are everywhere. A lot of people are afraid to cook eggplant because of the amount of oil they can soak up. This is one of many many ways to make eggplant: fry it in hot olive oil to a crispy texture and then combine it with other ingredients to soften it up.

Continue reading Pollo con melanzane (Chicken with eggplant, tomatoes and pancetta) at Our Italian Table.

Balsamic vinegar is almost a religion in Italy, and more specifically in Emilia-Romagna. It dates back to monks making the stuff in the 12th century. The word balsamico has its roots in Latin – meaning “restorative” or “curative”. Good quality Balsamic Vinegar is not acidic at all but instead has a sweet taste.

There are actually three kinds of balsamic vinegar:

• Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale – certified by one of two consortia in Modena and neighboring Reggio Emilia, aged at least 12 years, and protected under the European Protected Designation of Origin.

Continue reading Balsamic Roast Chicken (Pollo al Forno con Aceto Balsamico) at Our Italian Table.

While reading the Benvenuto Brunello blog this past weekend, I noticed a post about an ‘ancient recipe that is typical of the city of Brunello’ and more importantly with a video of a woman named Maria Pieri,  one of the best known cooks in the village. The recipe was for ‘sedani rifatti’ or ‘celery redone’.  And the YouTube video of Maria has her making the dish with the addition of chicken. Dinner was born.

Continue reading An Oscar Dinner-Montalcino Style: Pollo con Sedani Rifatti (Chicken with Celery) at Our Italian Table.