Pasta

Up until a few days ago, I had no idea what orecchiette was. Come to find out, it’s merely another shape of pasta. It sort of looks like small shells, but it’s a bit thicker with more firmness. It’s made up of the same exact ingredients as most other pastas, so I could have easily […]

I’ve loved pierogies as long as I can remember. I used to buy them in huge bags from the frozen aisle of the supermarket. There weren’t many in the bag, but I do recall being stuffed after I ate some of them. They’re like huge raviolis that are filled with all sorts of great ingredients. […]

If there’s one thing I really try to avoid, it’s washing pots and pans. The problem is, many recipes call for many tools to be used – pots and pans being a good majority of them. I think I’ve come to terms with it, but when a recipe comes along that only requires one holding […]

Putting this recipe together was easier than I thought it would be. When I first browsed through the instructions, I saw some ingredients that I don’t work with a lot. Shrimp and kalamata olives being two of them. And for whatever reason, whenever I see broth included in a recipe ingredient list, I think things […]

If you told me I’d be making homemade ravioli two months ago, I wouldn’t have believed you. It’s crazy how far I’ve come in such a short time. I already put together a really nice fettuccini alfredo dish and today, it was some tasty squash ravioli with an awesome hazelnut butter sauce. And these aren’t […]

I was talking to Laura a few days ago when I said “You know, I’m starting to like all this cooking. It gives me a feeling of control.” What I was referring to was the control I’ve given myself to measure what type of ingredients I put into my body. For years (and still today […]

I’ve never prepared baked manicotti before. Actually, I can’t even remember the last time I ate baked manicotti. Though I’m sure I’ve enjoyed it somewhere down the line, I have no recollection of it. I do, however, recall helping either my mother or Laura pull apart lasagna noodles after they bonded to each other in […]

I’ve recently reached the Classic Sauces & Pasta section of America’s Test Kitchen online cooking school. This suits me fine because there are two really nice looking recipes I’d like to tackle in this area. The first, which I’ll post below, includes an interesting version of pesto that originated in southern Italy and the second […]

While the last macaroni and cheese recipe I wrote about was something almost over the top, this one is what you’d likely see in a restaurant or on the table of someone who really knows their mac and cheese. And in all honesty, I’m not sure which recipe I like better. While I thoroughly enjoyed […]

Boy have I got a good one for you today. This is probably the heartiest, most filling and most wonderfully tasting macaroni and cheese dish I’ve ever eaten. And it’s all because of a fine fellow named Jeff Rogers (aka The Culinary Fanatic). I found this recipe on Youtube a few weeks ago as I […]