Notes about Recipes in this book

• Primavera sauce (Battuto di verdure)

  • nicolepellegrini on May 25, 2019

    This was a wonderful and ultra-simple primavera sauce. The only thing I did differently was to saute some onion first in the butter. The vegetables retained their freshness and crispness and weren't overdone. Served on farfalle as recommended.

• Fusilli with olives and cauliflower (Fusilli alla Siciliana)

  • nicolepellegrini on August 19, 2020

    I personally love sour flavors but this was actually a touch too sour, even for me. Some cheese added at the end did help, but it needed something beyond sour flavors piled on top of sour.

• Rigatoni with braised black cabbage (Rigatoni al cavolo nero)

  • nicolepellegrini on January 25, 2020

    This was just ok, but a little bland. I had to add some red pepper to jazz it up a bit, but felt like it needed something else.

• Trenette with pesto sauce (Trenette al pesto)

  • nicolepellegrini on November 26, 2020

    A true one-pot meal...especially if you use ready made pesto! I had some I'd been saving, bought in Genoa earlier this year, that seemed perfect for this recipe. I made with rigatoni as I did not have trenette. The only tricky thing is really timing when to add the beans, pasta and potantoes to the boiling water as your cooking times might vary.

• Penne with swordfish (Penne al pescespada)

  • nicolepellegrini on September 03, 2018

    Really tasty and easy to make. I like how the fish is kept in whole cutlets/thin steaks and just cooked on a bed of the sauce on the stove top, keeping it light and fresh-tasting. Would definitely make again.

• Spaghetti with salt cod and sweet peppers (Spaghetti al baccalá e peperoni)

  • nicolepellegrini on December 28, 2018

    Had a lot of leftover salt cod from Christmas Eve and wanted to do something a little different with it. Sauce had a great flavor, not too salty or fishy--I really find frying salt cod pieces like this one of the nicest ways to make it. One thing I'd do if making again is use less vegetable oil for the sauce--it was a bit greasy at the end for my tastes.

• Conchiglie with broccoli and pancetta (Conchiglie ai broccoli e pancetta)

  • nicolepellegrini on October 08, 2020

    Made with a mix of cooked ham and bacon since I didn't have pancetta on hand. Was decent enough for a weeknight dinner but not something particularly memorable.

• Linguine with pork and aubergines (Linguine al maiale e melanzane)

  • nicolepellegrini on July 31, 2018

    I liked this. A lot. I also grilled the eggplant instead of frying it to keep the dish fresher in taste, and enjoyed the way it was reminiscent of a slow-cooked meat ragu but much lighter and less work.

  • FJT on December 31, 2016

    The most difficult part of this recipe is frying the aubergine and I take the easy way out and grill it instead. Very tasty dish and a firm favourite in this house.

• Spaghetti with sausages and olives (Spaghetti alla salsiccia e olive)

  • nicolepellegrini on September 24, 2013

    OK but just seemed to be missing something, even using the best sausages from our own family-raised pork. Topping it with some fresh grated cheese and pepper helped bring up the flavor, but there's really no sauce to speak of and it felt a bit lacking.

• Rigatoni and aubergine timbal (Timballo di rigatoni e melanzane)

  • nicolepellegrini on October 24, 2020

    Wow, this was SO GOOD. I wasn't sure, it seemed almost too simple but the final result was just amazing -satisfying but not too greasy or heavy. I did add some oregano to the tomato sauce as I was making it, and used ground venison instead of ground beef. Husband loved it and this is going on my winter entertaining menu for sure for the future.

• Tagliatelle with fennel and smoked salmon (Tagliatelle al finocchio e salmone)

  • FJT on January 06, 2021

    I made this because I had fennel and smoked salmon to use up and recipes from this book have usually been good. However, this was probably the most boring plate of food I've served up in a long time and won't be repeated.

• Ravioli with radicchio (Ravioli di radicchio)

  • FJT on July 10, 2021

    Really tasty filling for ravioli. Couldn't get radicchio so I substituted Belgian endive.

• Pappardelle with rabbit sauce (Pappardelle al sugo di coniglio)

  • FJT on September 24, 2020

    Nice flavour and it would probably have been better still had I been able to get bone-in rabbit. Definitely one to make again.

• Meat sauce (Ragu di carne)

  • FJT on January 01, 2017

    Very tasty ragu sauce, but it takes ages to make. Browning the meat and then chopping it finely is a very, very time consuming process - if my food processor weren't out of action at the moment I may have been tempted to pulse the meat a few times in it. I can imagine this recipe would be just as tasty and significantly easier to make using pre-ground meat!

• Pappardelle with fennel (Pappardelle al finocchio)

  • FJT on December 28, 2012

    Such a simple recipe, yet so effective. Works equally well with fresh or dried pasta. We loved it!

• Red spaghetti with squid (Spaghetti con calamari)

  • KarinaFrancis on August 04, 2021

    A good weeknight pasta. It’s probably not something you really need a recipe for, but it’s a reminder that seafood doesn’t always need to be tricky or difficult. I had a large squid tube and it was perfectly cooked in 30mins.

• Orecchiette with broad beans (Orecchiette con le fave)

  • FieryFantail on June 26, 2023

    Delicious way to use a glut of summer broad beans