Giardiniera (Pickled Vegetables)

Giardiniera (Pickled Vegetables)

Giardiniera, flavorful marinated vegetables, is a staple in the Italian kitchen. Make up a batch. Great on sandwiches or on an antipasti platter. It’s versatile!

Pickled Peppers

Pickled Peppers

Here’s a really simple recipe to capture the bell pepper bounty in a jar for your winter pantry. Just slice the peppers into strips, make the vinegar brine and put everything in a jar. Pickled peppers, or “vinegar peppers” as my family calls them, keep in 

400 Food Bloggers in SF

400 Food Bloggers in SF

The Foodbuzz Food Blogger Festival was in town. I met some great people and learned a lot.

Village News: Pulcinella, Garchik, Foodbuzz Bloggers & NPR

Village News: Pulcinella, Garchik, Foodbuzz Bloggers & NPR

It’s just been 2 weeks since we saved the severely damaged Song of Pulcinella restoration and rolled it across Columbus Avenue to a safe haven. It’s been a week since I brought the San Francesco statue to Emerald Tablet gallery to oversee the restoration.   

Cavati (Cavatelli) with Vodka Sauce & with Broccoli Rabe

Cavati (Cavatelli) with Vodka Sauce & with Broccoli Rabe

Rhode Island friends are in town and we we’re making 2 classic Italian-American pasta dishes. Carol brought a cavati pasta machine all the way from Little Rhody. I’ve never seen this contraption and I was anxious to try it out. You say cavati, I say 

Lidia Bastianich is an Inspiration

Lidia Bastianich is an Inspiration

Lidia Bastianich inspires me. She’s been a mentor for a long time. I have 6 of her cookbooks and I read them often. Lidia’s Italy has been a PBS blockbuster cooking show for years. I’ve watched them all but my absolute favorite is the one 

North Beach Hot Spot Raves

North Beach Hot Spot Raves

Quite a week for the Village. Two great Chronicle restaurant reviews and USA Today named a North Beach pizzeria the best in the country. North Beach is on fire! Gigi’s Sotto Mare on Green is one of the last remaining traditional Italian-American restaurants. Gigi’s first 

Weekend Recipe: Cavatelli with Arugula

Weekend Recipe: Cavatelli with Arugula

Cavatelli with arugula is a simple, pristine and delicious pasta dish from Apuglia in southern Italia. Make the sauce in the time that it takes to boil the water and cook the pasta.

Saving Vranas’ Song of Pulcinella Mural

Saving Vranas’ Song of Pulcinella Mural

Follow our efforts to restore the damaged “Song of Pulcinella” mural by Vranas and put in on display in North Beach for all to enjoy.

Friday Recipe: Roasted Pork Tenderloin & Toy Box Tomato Salad

Friday Recipe: Roasted Pork Tenderloin & Toy Box Tomato Salad

The toughest part of this meal is cutting the toy box tomatoes in half. You can be eating dinner in about an hour. The crusty, tender slices of pork tenderloin are bathed in a pan sauce scented with garlic, sage and rosemary. The marinated toy 

Village News/Sunday Recipe: Great Parade & Roasted Rosemary Chicken

Village News/Sunday Recipe: Great Parade & Roasted Rosemary Chicken

What a day–the fog finally burned off as we headed down the hill to North Beach’s Caffe Puccini to watch the 143rd Italian Heritage Parade–the oldest in the country. Hundreds were lining the parade route already. The tables set up in the street all over 

Village News: Italian Heritage Parade Sunday!

Village News: Italian Heritage Parade Sunday!

North Beach’s biggest event of the year is this Sunday–the 143rd Annual Italian Heritage Parade–the oldest in America. You gotta be here–it’s a great day in the Village. Floats, politicians, bands, Queen Isabella and her Court, Cristoforo Columbo himself–the Parade has it all and it 

Zucchini, Potato, Onion & Tomato Stew (Ciambotta)

Zucchini, Potato, Onion & Tomato Stew (Ciambotta)

A fan reminded me that zucchini is overflowing the garden, so how about two Friday Recipes to cook this prolific summer vegetable. Gagootz is an Italian-American word for zucchini. It derives from the name of an Italian squash cucuzza.

Have a Drink With Emperor Norton

Have a Drink With Emperor Norton

Over seventy years ago, Peter Macchiarini made up his mind that San Francisco needed a symbol. This idea wasn’t a modest one — Macchiarini was looking for San Francisco’s Statue of Liberty, its Eiffel Tower. Something to erect and have stand tall and proud atop the City by the Bay, embodying the city’s ethos. The decision soon became obvious: Emperor Norton.

Sun’s Out and So Are We

Sun’s Out and So Are We

April is off to a start that’s making us city-dwellers – for the moment at least – forgive the recent rain.