The Stagno di Cabras is a shallow lagoon in western Sardinia where herons and flamingos wade through pools as they hunt for food. The lagoon is trimmed by gravel roads and artichoke fields—if you trust Google Maps to get around the area (you shouldn’t), you will almost certainly end up off-roading through someone’s artichoke patches! The whole area has the feeling of a preindustrial civilization, not just a time before streetlights and paved roads. The traditions of the lagoon feel trapped in a prehistoric age. The main industry in the lagoon, production of bottarga di muggine (gray mullet r ..read more

South Italy’s tables are renowned for their decadent holiday meals, but nothing quite rivals the multi-day feast of Easter. Especially after the ascetic Lenten period, devout Catholics are eager to break their fast and commemorate the resurrection with symbolic foods. For South-dwellers and especially Neapolitans, casatiello is the iconic savory bread for this holiday time. The best versions feature lard from recently slaughtered pigs and inlaid eggs symbolizing the Resurrection. Here is the recipe from Food of the Italian South. Serves 12 For the dough: 600 grams (4¾ cups) bread flour 2 gram ..read more

Food of the Italian Islands, my seventh cookbook and first independently published title, is three weeks old. I had big plans of writing this post when it dropped March 7, but by then I was already deep into a nationwide US book tour, running on fumes, and too exhausted to write anything more than an IG caption. In the end, we all win from this delayed post because if I had written it then, we wouldn’t have the adorable pic below of my mom Joj showing off 300 signed books at Razza in Jersey City last week. I’m back in Roma now looking back on the process of researching (fun!), writing (hard ..read more

UPDATED FOR 2023: I get a lot of emails from readers terrified that they won’t have anywhere to eat in Rome on a Sunday. It’s true that many places are closed, but some of my favorite spots are open for lunch and dinner. You’ll often run into me at Cesare for lunch or Tavernaccia for dinner, but only when I have remembered to make a reservation well in advance. Sunday tables are scarce so be sure you make your plans a week or two in advance (at least), especially because 2023 is shaping up to be the busiest tourist year on record AND IT’S ONLY JANUARY. Wherever you end up, start the day ..read more

First of all, thank you for your patience. The Pollo alla Cacciatora (Chicken Cacciatore) episode of “Katie Parla’s Roman Kitchen” on Recipe.TV premiered 2,000 years ago and yet I am only now sharing the written version. I was so occupied with writing, editing, and printing Food of the Italian Islands (support ya girl and preorder here, per favore!) and I just dropped the ball. My bad! If you haven’t seen the show you can catch the trailer for preview. Check your local listings for the full ep! Pollo alla cacciatora, “hunter’s style chicken,” is a south-central Italian staple. I grew up ..read more

Spaghetti alle vongole is my desert island dish, my death row meal, the thing I crave more than any other food INCLUDING PIZZA. Shocking but true. In spite of this fact, it didn’t make it into Food of the Italian Islands (now available for preorder!!!) because I wanted to give attention to a regional variation from Sardegna, fregula con arselle (video reel here). But I did want to share my version with you here just in case fregula isn’t available locally or you aren’t up for making it. Plus, spaghetti is the prefect pasta shape, so here goes. I make mine in bianco, with extra-virgin oli ..read more

Venice is a tough city for food–and an expensive one, too, especially if you’re accustomed to cities like Rome where you can eat very well on a budget. If you plan ahead and make bookings at restaurants well in advance, you will enjoy Venetian dining, particularly if you are OK budgeting €75 and up per person for a meal including wine. I love institutions like Alle Testiere where everything is very good, Da Ignazio for fish, and Al Covo is great for pasta, fritto misto and a very good grappa selection. Vini da Gigio is another favorite for Venetian classics and a deep wine cellar. Covino and A ..read more

For the past 6 months or so, Delta has been offering COVID-tested flights for essential travelers only between the U.S. and Italy. During this long and successful trial run, travelers who had a negative PCR test 48 hours before departure, and tested negative at the departure AND the arrival airports could enter Italy without quarantining. I took one of these flights from Atlanta to Rome in February and the efficiency was impressive. I never thought I would be so ecstatic about transatlantic travel but it was a breeze and I loved it. The COVID-tested flights were so successful that the Italian ..read more

On a sweltering day in August 2018, Dr. Danielle Callegari and I launched the Gola podcast on Italian food and how it connects to history, culture, and society. Since then, it has been a never ending joy to connect with Danielle, who is truly the smartest human, to spotlight themes, producers, and foods we love. Over the past year in particular we have been overwhelmed by the incredible outpouring of support in the form of messages and donations our listeners have sent. It’s thanks to listeners’ generosity that we are able to research, record, and drop episodes every other week. I h ..read more

If you’ve ever grown your own produce, you already know this: nature is mind blowing. Growing anything at all seems like a small miracle. Especially when it comes to the vast and varied (and variegated!) radicchio family. This past fall and winter, it was emotional to sow and tend the seeds, harvest the plants, then devour their bitter goodness in raw and cooked form. I want you to experience that joy, too. And you really can! My friend Lane Selman, who I first met years ago when I toured her around Rome, just launched a new radicchio seed initiative called the Gusto Italiano Project aimed at ..read more