• Eat Your Books

  2003 James Beard Award Nominee

• Substances on January 18, 2010

  This book taught me that great pasta can come from home too. The black pepper with parsnips and pancetta is amazing!

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Dry-rubbed rib-eye steak for 2

  • Breadcrumbs on October 10, 2011

    p. 227 - Though the recipe calls for the meat to be refrigerated for 12hrs plus this was an impromptu meal at our home so all told, the rub only had about an hour to infuse it's flavours into our steak. That said, we were very pleased with the outcome and the flavours in the rub, particularly the porcini powder, were wonderful and paired perfectly with the beef. We look forward to trying this again and allowing for the suggested time to marinade in the rub. Delicious, happy to recommend this one. We served this w buttermilk cheddar mashed potatoes and, roasted, balsamic-glazed Brussels sprouts.

• Braised short ribs with horseradish gremolata (brasato al Barolo)

  • Breadcrumbs on December 07, 2015

    p. 230 – This is a perfect recipe for such a busy time of year because it produces a rich, hearty and flavourful dish with little up front effort. The veggie broth was especially delicious. I served this with garlic mashed potatoes and roasted squash vs the pumpkin orzo. I loved the idea of the gremolata however for whatever reason, our grated horseradish had lost its punch by the time I served the meal and was indiscernible. Nevertheless this is a dish worth repeating. Photo here: http://www.chowhound.com/post/cooking-fall-2015-show-meals-1025190?commentId=9774836

  • fprincess on November 06, 2010

    Excellllllent.

• Kumquat vinaigrette

  • okcook on May 09, 2015

    Too strong for our taste.

• Blood orange vinaigrette

  • okcook on January 30, 2014

    Easy to make and great taste. Didn't have olive paste so just smushed up a couple of kalamata olives. We felt there was not enough acid so we added some red wine vinegar.

• Two-minute calamari Sicilian lifeguard style

  • okcook on August 16, 2015

    I made this with squid ink pasta and it was very nice. I liked the currants and crunchy pine nuts. It was very easy to make once I had cleaned and cut the squid. An excellent quick dish if you have pre-cleaned squid.

• Brussels sprouts with pancetta

  • fprincess on December 01, 2010

    My brussel sprouts took longer to cook than the time specified in the recipe. After 10 minutes they were still not completely tender (recipe says 6-7 min). They were tasty anyway. The recipe is straightforward enough for a week night, but does include a blanching step so you will end up using 1 large pot, 1 bowl with ice, and 1 frying pan.

• Grilled baby chicken al mattone with panzanella

  • fprincess on May 28, 2013

    Great recipe to cook on the grill. It's a spatchcocked chicken seasoned with salt, pepper, olive oil, cooked under a brick. I make it regularly. It's fantastic with quail as well. Photo here: http://flic.kr/p/eaPKZn

• Basic tomato sauce

  • fprincess on October 18, 2010

    Simple tomato sauce. Easy to prepare. I like the inclusion of shredded carrots.

  • adrienneyoung on May 24, 2011

    Great sauce. Princess is right: carrot is fab!

• Penne with zucca, onions, anchovies, and bread crumbs

  • fprincess on September 29, 2011

    This is a hearty pasta dish thanks to the squash. I really like the flavors. It can become a little dry so it's good to reserve some of the pasta water so it can be added if the pasta becomes too dry. I used warmed pasta bowls and it seems to dry it out quite a bit (this was fresh pasta).

  • fprincess on November 07, 2011

    Notes and picture here http://egullet.org/p1847472

• Bucatini all'Amatriciana

  • fprincess on October 15, 2010

    Delicious and easy to make. Guanciale can be hard to find - bought from Knight Salumi (San Diego company).

  • fprincess on March 23, 2012

    Made again this time with home-cured guanciale. Delicious comfort food. The texture of the guanciale was slightly crunchy which was great, and its taste porky and rich. It's worth curing the guanciale just for this dish, for sure. Picture here: http://egullet.org/p1869485

• Ziti with Tuscan-style cauliflower

  • fprincess on November 04, 2010

    Made this dish with penne; ziti would have been better. The cauliflower took about 20 minutes to cook (recipe says 7 minutes). I suspect that I did not cut it into small enough pieces. This makes a nice side dish. I plan on making a gratin with the leftovers (the quantities are off - I scaled down the recipe from 4 to 2 people and I still have enough for 4!).

  • Shelmar on February 16, 2020

    We have cooked this multiple times, it makes a lot. We love it.

• Planked king salmon with cucumbers and balsamic vinegar

  • fprincess on September 14, 2012

    I got a gorgeous piece of California King salmon yesterday and happened to have most of the ingredients for this recipe. The salmon is cooked on a plank in the original recipe after being brushed with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. I cooked it on a cast-iron skillet, skin first (in the oven). The cucumber salad accompaniment has sliced shallots, scallions (I substituted chives), mustard seeds, pink peppercorns (which I omitted), red wine vinegar and olive oil. The salmon is served on the cucumber salad with a drizzle of aged balsamic. It's a great week-night recipe with minimal cleanup needed. With fish as good as this King salmon, you don't need to do much to it other than making sure that it is cooked properly. Photo here: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/131552-cooking-with-the-babbo-cookbook/page__p__1890960#entry1890960

  • wcassity on November 15, 2015

    Loved this. We eat a lot of salmon, and this was one of our favorite preparations ever. Got to use pink peppercorns for the first time. The quick pickled salad cut through the richness of the salmon. And the house smelled like toasty cedar for a couple of days after.

• Halibut in cartocchio with puntarella and grapefruit

  • fprincess on November 07, 2012

    This is a good weeknight recipe. The principle is simple. You place your fish fillet together with thyme, grapefruit segments and puntarella (a variety of chicory, which I omitted) in a papillote and add some white wine before sealing it. This was a local halibut. It stays very moist with this preparation and the grapefruit and thyme just highlight the flavor of the fish. I used foil but parchment paper works too. I served it with acorn squash and kale that I prepared separately, but if you include the chicory or some other type of greens in the papillote, then you have a complete dish with no pot/pan cleaning necessary. I decided to plate the dish but you can also just bring the sealed papillotes to the table and have each person open their own. Photos here: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/131552-cooking-with-the-babbo-cookbook/page__p__1896999#entry1896999

• Sautèed skate and rock shrimp in a saffron sweet clam citronette

  • fprincess on May 28, 2013

    This was an interesting change from the classic skate grenobloise (brown butter & capers). I made this dish per the recipe but without the rock shrimp and cockles. The saffron citronette recipe produced more than necessary for the dish so I would adjust it accordingly. The sauce is good but the Dijon mustard tends to overwhelm the saffron. Someone posted the recipe here: http://www.twohotpotatoes.com/flounder-with-rock-shrimp-in-saffron-citronette/

• Babbo Negroni

  • fprincess on October 15, 2010

    Classic cocktail. Junipero gin is a good match.

• Cin Cyn

  • fprincess on November 08, 2010

    Delicious. This cocktail is in the same vein as a negroni, but more bitter with the cynar remplacing Campari (and different proportions).

• Thistle

  • fprincess on November 08, 2010

    Another excellent cocktail with Cynar. I used the blood orange vodka from Charbay for this drink.

• Roasted beet and Parmigiano bruschetta

  • fprincess on April 23, 2012

    I love beets and bought a bunch of huge golden beets so I decided to try this recipe.The beets were roasted for about an hour and a half in a 400F oven. They were peeled, cooed to room temperature, then diced and seasoned with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, chives, and fennel seeds (the original recipe calls for caraway). The beets are arranged on a toasted slice of rustic bread (I used country levain bread from a local bakery), then topped with shaved parmigiano (I started grating the cheese with a microplane, didn't like the look, and finished with a knife to cut thin slices of cheese - much better). This is delicious. Make sure to use plenty of vinegar. Picture on eGullet: http://egullet.org/p1867718

• Acorn squash sformato

  • fprincess on June 12, 2012

    I made this recipe a while back. It was quite a bit of work but some of the steps can be done in advance, such as roasting the squash. I would do it again but with kabocha or butternut squash which are more flavorful in my opinion. It is an elegant side dish that does not feel too heavy.

• Goat cheese truffles three ways with peperonata

  • fprincess on August 29, 2011

    A nice dish for cocktail parties that does not take much time to prepare.

  • fprincess on April 04, 2012

    I made these again for a cocktail party. They are really addictive and take little time to make. Picture here on eGullet: http://egullet.org/p1871721

• Autumn vegetables with goat ricotta and pumpkinseed oil

  • fprincess on January 15, 2013

    I made my version of this salad with vegetables from my CSA. I used carnival squash, parsnip, torpedo onions, and arugula. The squash was cut in little cubes and roasted in the oven with olive oil and sage. The parsnip was sliced and roasted with cumin. Sherry vinegar and arbequina olive oil dressing. Photo here: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/137686-salad/page__st__120__p__1905543#entry1905543

• Asparagus Milanese with Parmigiano and a duck egg

  • fprincess on July 27, 2012

    I bought duck eggs from my favorite vendor at the farmers' market, Schaner Farms, and got a bunch of pencil asparagus in my CSA bag yesterday, so I made the Asparagus Milanese with parmigiano and a duck egg from Babbo. The duck egg yolk makes a wonderful "sauce" that coats the asparagus - it's richer than a regular egg. I love it. Picture here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php/topic/131552-cooking-with-the-babbo-cookbook/page__p__1886381#entry1886381

• Duck eggs sunny-side up with guanciale and truffle vinaigrette

  • fprincess on May 16, 2011

    Very simple dish (I skipped the truffles!). Duck eggs are delicious and rich.

• Guanciale

  • fprincess on March 16, 2012

    Wonderful flavor, really easy to make (as long as you can find pork jowls!). Pictures of the process here on eGullet: http://egullet.org/p1868971

  • twoyolks on December 27, 2016

    I both cured and dried this longer (by about a factor of two) than the recipe calls for (which I typically do for cured meats). The flavor of the guanciale really emphasizes the savoriness of the pork itself without overwhelming any of the flavor with herbs or spices. This will be my go to guanciale recipe in the future.

• Blood orange cosmopolitan

  • fprincess on November 06, 2010

    Delicious cocktail when blood oranges are in season! When you use fresh oranges, the cocktail does not look as opaque as in the picture from the book. Photo here: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/131552-cooking-with-the-babbo-cookbook/page__p__1870065#entry1870065

  • twoyolks on December 19, 2021

    A nice cocktail. Not too sweet and not too bitter. I used regular vodka instead of orange-flavored vodka and I think it worked fine. This really highlights the blood oranges.

• Basic pasta dough

  • fprincess on September 29, 2011

    This is my go-to recipe for pasta dough. It works every time and uses regular all-purpose flour which is nice.

• Mint love letters with spicy lamb sausage

  • fprincess on October 18, 2010

    Great combination of spicy lamb with mint and peas. I made the ravioli in advance and froze them.

  • fprincess on July 27, 2012

    I added pictures here: http://forums.egullet.org/index.php/topic/131552-cooking-with-the-babbo-cookbook/page__p__1886428#entry1886428

• Fennel pickles

  • fprincess on September 29, 2011

    These pickles are fast to make and are absolutely addictive! They taste great on their own, I used them as a side with cured meats, they are also very tasty in sandwiches or salad. This is a great recipe!

• Asparagus and ricotta ravioli

  • fprincess on April 24, 2011

    Very delicate and delicious. Raviolis are a lot of work but they are wonderful. I prepared them ahead of time and froze them between sheets of parchment paper sprinkled with cornmeal.

• Saffron citronette

  • fprincess on August 03, 2011

    The sauce is a little intense for my taste so maybe I would reduce slightly the amount of mustard. I really could not taste the saffron because of the strong acidic taste (vinegar, mustard, lemon). It was tasty and bright, an original sauce for seafood.

• Grilled lamb chops scottaditi with broccoli rabe pesto

  • fprincess on November 02, 2010

    The broccoli rabe pesto is rather bitter so you really need to eat it together with the yoghurt sauce. It's an interesting favor combination but I am not in love with it. The recipe makes a very large amount of pesto, at least 1.5 times of what is necessary.

• Espresso torrone with drunken cherries

  • fprincess on October 18, 2012

    The torrone is a frozen nougat made with honey and caramelized sugar, egg whites and whipped cream. The texture is very light, similar to a mousse (semifreddo). I used a local dark avocado honey for an extra boost of flavor. I could not find coffee extract but used extra-strong espresso to flavor the torrone. There is also a little bit of amaretto in there. The torrone is frozen for a few hours in the freezer but it retains a soft texture. For the plated dessert, it is topped with dried cherries rehydrated in sweet vermouth with a vanilla bean. Next time I won't reduce the vermouth as much because I ended up with very little sauce (or I will just increase the amount of vermouth!). This was an unexpected flavor combination that was very good - honey + almond + coffee for the torrone, cherries + vermouth. The dessert is very light and I enjoyed the texture of the torrone. Photos here: http://tinyurl.com/8epoyzr

• Cinzano vinaigrette

  • fprincess on February 01, 2013

    I used this dressing in a simple salad made with hydroponic lettuce from my CSA. Sweet vermouth (Dolin) and red wine vinegar are infused with rosemary and reduced down, and mixed with olive oil. The vermouth imparted sweetness and some spice. It was delicate and went well with the lettuce. Picture here: http://forums.egullet.org/topic/152037-salad-2015/?p=1907245

• Broccoli rabe with roasted garlic

  • lorloff on March 27, 2020

    This was a very delicious way to prepare broccoli rabe. I took a short cut and used roasted garlic in olive oil I had on hand from Whole Foods the section where the olive bar is. I added anchovies marinated as well in oil and mashed them in a medium sized mortar and pestle. The recipe came together very quickly and was great, Will make again.

  • wcassity on December 20, 2016

    My favorite broccoli raab preparation so far. The blanching, the sautéing until starting to turn crispy, the anchovy - super tasty.

• Pumpkin lune with butter and sage

  • moreace01 on November 13, 2010

    This was just alright for me - I thought the balsamic was bit overpowering. And I would have sauteed the sage in the butter a bit before adding the pasta water - I thought the sage taste could have been stronger.

• Chocolate and Valpolicella crema

  • moreace01 on October 12, 2010

    I was introduced to Valpolicella in this recipe. I think this recipe said it was a very "adult" pudding - very true!

• Roasted beet farrotto

  • twoyolks on November 29, 2016

    The beets were too earthy and didn't really compliment the farro. Additionally, this was just too sweet with the pomegranate molasses.

• Blood orange bellini

  • twoyolks on February 23, 2017

    The blood orange was a bit too strong and overpowered the flavor of the prosecco.

  • Barb_N on April 11, 2017

    This was a hit at a brunch with old friends. We loved the color. I imagine the flavor depends on ratio of juice to Prosecco which is not specified in the 'recipe' and should be personalized.