Gorgonzola - The Italian Blue

If you like blue cheese, but you haven't tried gorgonzola (), you're going to love it. If you don't like blue cheese, and you try gorgonzola, you might very well start to like blue cheese! In fact, next to the traditional Gorgonzola Piccante (pungent), the milder Gorgonzola Dolce (sweet) meets the palate of those who are not too fond of 'blue' flavors... read more

The Italian Bar

This article hopes to shed some light on another North American misconception. Despite being licensed, bars in Italy are nothing like pubs. They are more similar to coffee shops, but they are actually far more than that: they are a service that runs all day with a wide range of food items, and a necessity for tourists with fast and affordable refreshments.

Bars can also be the source of misunderstandings that may cause frustration for tourists, mostly due to the many unwritten rules that they conform to, and to their many exceptions. This post explores the significance of bars in the Italian popular culture and gives important tips for travelers who are unfamiliar with their ins and outs... read more

Tagliatelle Timbale with Wine Gravy

A few weeks ago, I was thrilled to be invited by Roz from La Bella Vita to write a guest post for her blog. She asked if I could present a traditional Italian Christmas dish. I didn't really have a dish that is only for Christmas, so I chose a recipe for really special occasions - an Italian classic adapted from Silver Spoon's "Pasticcio di Tagliatelle"... read more

Saffron Penne

Roasted zucchini and/or shrimp are common additions to saffron-based pasta sauces. This recipe, however, is about the simplest saffron sauce, which is just made of saffron and cream.

The fat contained in the cream has the ability to bind with parts of the saffron compound that are not water-soluble, thus extracting even more saffron flavor. Just like in Milanese-style risotto, the addition of Parmesan brings extra depth and completes the dish.

This recipes makes use of a full packet of ground saffron... read more

Table Service, an Ocean Apart

The customer experience in restaurants can be radically different between Italy and Canada. Most of my considerations can probably apply to all of North America, but in this article I will be referring specifically to my Canadian experience... read more

Pasticcini, Italian Fine Pastries

Pasticcini are exquisite Italian fine pastries which have been perfected over the centuries to bring the best flavors, textures and fragrances. In the Italian tradition, assorted pasticcini are served as a dessert, as a treat to accompany coffee, tea or hot chocolate, or as a cake alternative for celebrations and other special occasions (in which case they are usually accompanied with 'spumante', the Italian sparkling wine).

The word 'pasticcino' is a diminutive of 'pasticcio', which in turn derives from Vulgar Latin pasticium, a dish made by mixing various ingredients, mostly wrapped in dough ('pasta')... read more