This is a hearty soup that’s a meal in it’s self, guaranteed to keep you warm and cozy in the fall and winter seasons. The star of the show is the savoy cabbage.  Savoy cabbage is similar to green cabbage but it’s much sweeter and milder tasting. Savoy cabbage has crinkly ruffled leaves and it […] The post Savoy Cabbage Soup, Italian Style appeared first on Proud Italian Cook ..read more

Eggplant rollatini, sliced and roasted eggplant wrapped around cheesy, herby ricotta bundles that are nestled into a baking dish topped with homemade marinara, which I prefer, or a good quality store bought. This version that I’m featuring here is a lighter version where the eggplant isn’t breaded or fried. Over the years I have come […] The post Eggplant Rollatini, A Lighter Version appeared first on Proud Italian Cook ..read more

Sometimes it’s even too hot to grill outdoors, such was the case when this salad was made. When temperatures are high in the 90’s, a nice light and fresh salad always makes for a great meal. Shrimp, charred corn, summer tomatoes are the key ingredients in this salad, along with toasted ciabatta croutons along and […] The post Summer Shrimp and Charred Corn Panzanella Salad appeared first on Proud Italian Cook ..read more

A warm summer day calls for a nice cold and refreshing drink of limoncello. Not only is it a wonderful drink to sip slowly and enjoy, and by the way today happens to be National Limoncello Day,  it’s also used in cooking and baking, so having a bottle stashed away in your freezer is a good thing. I made these delicious cookies using limoncello crema, if you haven’t tried the creamy version of limoncello I encourage you to do so, it’s out of this world amazing. This is the perfect pairing for a hot summer treat. The cookies are infused with the limoncello crema, lemon zest and juice. The ..read more

This is the season for outdoor cooking with BBQ’s, picnic’s, parties, graduations and all sorts of get-together’s. As you can see from my previous few posts lately, I’ve been on a salad kick. This antipasto potato salad is perfect for any of those occasions, I think you’re going to love it! This is not your traditional American potato salad made with mayo, which by the way I think is delicious too. This one is called an antipasto potato salad because it’s filled with ingredients you would find on a nice big antipasto platter with the addition of potatoes. For the potatoes I used a mix of red ..read more

This fresh berry salad is bright and flavorful and pretty to look at because of all the vibrant colors. It’s a showstopper salad to serve at your next big party or get- together. It literally goes with so many things you might have as a main course. You might think, “fruit in a salad?” I’m here to say, “Oh yes!” Beautiful leafy greens are the base for this salad along with juicy, ripe fresh blueberries and strawberries. Creamy avocado, crisp cucumbers and red onion along with balls of bocconcini, fresh mozzarella. For the crunch factor there’s candied pecans and pepitas. Present this salad ..read more

Spring is officially here and the warmer weather has arrived and so has grilling season. I know you can grill all year long but I much prefer doing it in the warmer weather. This orzo salad is the perfect side dish to anything you’ll be putting on your grill. It’s bright, fresh, colorful, easy to serve, and great for summer parties because you can leave it out and eat it at room temp and you don’t have to worry about it spoiling. You might want to throw some colored bell peppers on the grill and cook them ahead before you assemble this salad. I usually grill a red, yellow and  orange p ..read more

This creamy mushroom pasta is packed with spring vegetables and those chunky meaty mushrooms make it so cozy and delicious. As far as mushrooms go feel free to chose your favorites, you can do all of one kind or a mix of a few different ones. Here I used a chef’s sampler of wild mushrooms that I bought at Costco. Fresh asparagus is in abundance right now and it’s the perfect addition along with fresh or frozen peas. Sautéed together with shallots, garlic, some white wine and heavy cream which creates a rich and velvety cream sauce. Oh and don’t forget to add in a healthy measure of finely ..read more

This pistachio cake is the perfect dessert for any occasion but especially for pistachio lovers. It has a dense crumb, sort of like a poundcake and it’s subtly sweet, it’s filled with finely chopped pistachio’s along with rich and creamy pistachio butter. The frosting is in a league of it’s own, the mascarpone cheese takes it over the top, it’s my new favorite frosting right now, move over cream cheese! This is the star of the show, pistachio cream, pistachio butter, it’s also called pistachio paste, you can fine it at Italian markets or online, it has such concentrated pistachio flavor, the ..read more

I found these cookies in one of my old Saveur Italian cookbooks that was published back in 2015. These Umbrian snowflake cookies are served at festivals, wineries and charity bake sales and are a favorite of the residents from Montefalco in Umbria. When flipping through the book, just the look of these cookies immediately caught my eye and I had to make them, I also thought how fun to make them in the winter, hence the name Umbrian”snowflake” cookies. The ingredients are pretty basic, but think of the end result as an elevated chocolate chip cookie, with crunchy cornflakes in and out of the ..read more