Notes about Recipes in this book

• Fried zucchini fritters (Frittelle di zucchine)

  • KarinaFrancis on March 12, 2023

    So easy and so good, the pecorino and zucchini were perfect together. My only issue is that it only made 7 fritters, but easily fixed I’ll just double the recipe next time!

  • ellencooks on August 15, 2025

    Served with a garlic yogurt sauce. So good!

  • ellencooks on September 16, 2025

    Served with a garlic yogurt sauce.

  • mae_llekqa on February 03, 2026

    Ingredients also include egg and flour

• Watercress, seafood, and mushroom casserole (Stufatino di crescione con pesce e funghi)

  • thekitchenchronicles on November 04, 2014

    http://www.thekitchenchronicles.com/2014/06/01/watercress-seafood-and-mushroom-casserole/

• Roasted mushroom salad with lettuce, balsamic vinaigrette, and Parmesan shavings (Insalata di funghi arrostiti)

  • GloriaG on March 11, 2026

    Used combination of shiitake, portobello, cremini, & oyster mushrooms. Did exactly as described & it was perfect. Enough for 4 generous servings. Needed an extra 45 seconds in the oven for shallots to soften. Delicious! Would make again!

• Arugula with prosciutto, pears, and Parmesan (Insalata di rucola, prosciutto, pera, e Parmigiano)

  • GloriaG on March 11, 2026

    Delicious! Nice balance of sweet & salty flavors. Made with sherry shallot vinaigrette which was perfect.

• Sherry shallot vinaigrette (Vinaigrette allo scalogno)

  • GloriaG on March 11, 2026

    Perfect with the Arugula with prosciutto, pears & Parmesan salad from this same cookbook.

• Pizza

  • hlange on January 02, 2026

    One of the best pizzas we’ve made.

• Pasta salad Niçoise (Insalata di pasta alla Nizzarda)

  • ShayLRoss on June 03, 2026

    Very simple and easy to pull together once everything is gathered. Makes for a good lunch or light snack, great for the warmer weather!

• Gianni's basic tomato sauce (Salsa pomodoro di Gianni)

  • senzler on September 25, 2022

    I have made this a couple of times now. One with fresh plum tomatoes and once with canned. Tis outstanding and I am pretty picky as I come from an Italian family. Freezes well.

• Tomato sauce with mushrooms (Marinara con funghi)

  • ShayLRoss on April 01, 2026

    Good sauce, although I adjusted mine with more seasoning for my liking.

• Angry penne (Penne arrabbiata)

  • senzler on September 25, 2022

    Excellent. I didn’t have jalapeño so used red pepper flakes. I used Gianni’s basic sauce. A keeper

• Ditale with beans (Ditale con fagioli)

  • ShayLRoss on June 03, 2026

    I made a quick variation of this recipe to assess pasta with beans and celery tasted like, and I did enjoy the combination. Next time, I'll get the correct pasta and give it another try

• Fusilli with ricotta, prosciutto, and spinach (Fusilli con ricotta, prosciutto, e spinaci)

  • elana.lepkowski on November 05, 2023

    Added in a teaspoon of salt while cooking onions.

• Linguine with veal rolls (Linguine con topolini)

  • GloriaG on March 11, 2026

    4.5 stars! The linguine & sauce was beyond amazing. It looked like nothing & the flavors exploded! The veal rolls as a second course were ok but the headliner was the pasta! When rolling the veal, go from narrow end to wide end. It holds together better. 5 stars for the pasta. 4 for the veal.

• Spaghetti with tomato and tuna (Spaghetti con pomodoro e tonno)

  • a_ztrckg on January 08, 2026

    So yummy! Used Tonino tuna in jar. Instead of olive oil I used the olive oil from the jar of tuna instead of pouring off half. Also added a little garlic with the onion because every meal needs garlic.

• Fettuccine with asparagus and shrimp (Fettuccine con asparagi e gamberetti)

  • GloriaG on March 11, 2026

    Did exactly as recipe called for - medium shrimp sliced lengthwise, peeled the asparagus, fresh plum tomatoes. It was amazing, well balanced, delicate. I’ve made a couple of times. One time increased the red pepper flakes and shouldn’t have. Perfect as written. Company-worthy recipe!

• Fettuccine with shrimp and tomato (Fettuccine con gamberetti e pomodoro)

  • shane.metzke on December 28, 2022

    I made it with Joan’s basic tomato sauce and it was fantastic… used chilli flakes to spice it up a fraction and you probably don’t need as much oil as suggested… there’s a reasonable amount of oil in the sauce. Thanks Stanley.

• Polenta

  • ShayLRoss on April 01, 2026

    Went for the variation in adding white beans and cheese, quite tasty. We ate some as a side and I placed the rest in a pan to cut and fry later.

  • GloriaG on May 23, 2026

    Basic polenta recipe. Not as creamy as other recipes. Tasty but a firm texture. Added 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan which was good but overall dish was salty. I would make again but use less salt for the base recipe.

• Stewed beans Tuscan style (Fagioli stufati all'uccelletto)

  • amgenove on January 01, 2025

    I used canned beans and this still came out AMAZING! Just skipped over the first step.

• Escarole (Scarola)

  • sylvieszafranski on January 10, 2026

    Page 218

• Eggplant and zucchini casserole with potatoes (Casseruola di melanzane con papate)

  • JennyR on February 04, 2023

    Delicious, proper comfort food, tweaked it a little by frying all elements instead of grilling as suggested, figured if it was his nonnas recipe she wouldn't be grilling either :-) Had it as a stand alone dish, didn't feel like it needed meat on the side.

• Carrot salad (Insalata di carote)

  • ShayLRoss on April 01, 2026

    Straightforward carrot salad, serves well with a heavier main dish.

• Stuffed beef rolls (Braciole)

  • Tinala523 on January 24, 2022

    I doubled the recipe and added breadcrumbs to the filling. I let them simmer for a few hours and they were delicious, flavorful and tender.

  • fprincess on January 08, 2024

    The recipe is pretty bare bones and very garlic-forward (one clove per roll!). It would be better with some modifications - mix the filling before using it (instead of adding each component individually). Add prosciutto, breadcrumbs, maybe use a different type of cheese (Pecorino tends to be dry), add basil etc (I used the optional pine nuts but it still needed something else). Cook longer - the sauce tasted better after another hour and the meat was more tender. Cook in the oven to maintain temperature and free up the stove. Serve with a garnish of grated pecorino and chopped parsley. For the beef cut, need to experiment as it was a bit dry. I wouldn't blend the tomatoes next time, as I prefer the sauce more on the chunky side. I used Bianco canned tomatoes which gave a great flavor.

• Roman-style meat loaf (Polpettone alla Romana)

  • Breadcrumbs on March 09, 2015

    p. 263 – If there were ever a meatloaf suitable for company, this would be it. The silky white wine butter sauce served atop really elevates this from good to great. Ricotta ensures the meat stays moist and tender. I prepared exactly as directed except for the addition of some fresh chopped garlic. The fact that the recipe produces 2 loaves makes this even more appealing as a company dish…and of course it could be made ahead. A real keeper. Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/1007088?commentId=9469522#9469522

  • pastaplease on January 27, 2025

    We both thought this was very bland (I should have known, no garlic? no onion??) and that the texture was, well, weird. If I were to make again (and I probably won't bother), I would use just a teeny bit of the bread, if any, and add some garlic, at least. My sauce came out too watery and rather without flavor, so was disappointed there. I made this exactly per the recipe, so not sure what went wrong. Did make a decent sandwich the next day (warmed up, added cheese, tomato, onion, mustard and avocado -- so basically I made it into a hamburger. Still had an icky texture tough.

• Pork tenderloin with fennel and rosemary (Arista di maiale alla fiorentina)

  • andy_zcd23f on March 11, 2026

    This was excellent, the sweetness of the fennel really goes well with pork.

• Chicken rolled and stuffed with smoked mozzarella, spinach, and prosciutto (Rollatina di pollo con mozzarella affumicata, spinaci, e prosciutto)

  • hkasdan on May 19, 2026

    Incredible

• Chicken with sausage and peppers (Spezzato di pollo "scappinello")

  • ellencooks on September 16, 2025

    Add more vegetables next time.

• Chicken cacciatore (Polla alla cacciatora)

  • adrienneyoung on January 07, 2014

    As braises go, this wasn't a show-stopper. It was healthy, it was decent, and this is a carefully written, thoughtful recipe. But... Without the warm childhood memories an Italian might have of it, I don't adore it.

• Plum and polenta cake (Dolce di prugne e polenta)

  • thekitchenchronicles on November 04, 2014

    http://www.thekitchenchronicles.com/2014/07/24/plum-and-polenta-cake/

• Tropiano biscotti with anisette flavoring (Biscotti Tropiano)

  • senzler on September 25, 2022

    In my year of biscotti baking this was a bit of a disappointment. Not the best of the bunch. Not the worst.

• Yum.Fi

  The Italian food sub genre is incredibly congested...yet here the author has managed to carve out a credible, interesting corner for themselves that is clearly worthy of serious further consideration.

  Full review

• Epicurious

  What is so appealing about this very personal book...is that you are getting real home cooking. ...offers dishes that will surely become part of your daily repertoire...

  Full review