Gianni's North Beach

Friday Recipe: Tomato & Onion Focaccia

The tiny tomatoes glistened like jewels. They inspired a gift to celebrate late August in San Francisco–a red and gold cherry tomato and young onion focaccia.

Hotness Challenge – Macaroni with a Baby Back Rib Sauce

Calabrians love hot peppers that make their food zesty and memorable. How many drops can you take?

Village News–More New North Beach Restos & Shops

It’s an exciting time to be in North Beach–lots of new places opening in the Village.

Friday Recipe: Belly-Button Ricotta Gnocchi in a Sage Burnt Butter Sauce

The rising popularity of the potato gnocchi video promtped me to share a simpler gnocchi recipe using ricotta to make the dough instead of potato.

Little Scaloppine Bundles

These little bundles are sometimes called scaloppine “rollatini” (little rolls with a filling) or scaloppine “ripieni” (stuffed).

North Beach Sunday Farmer’s Market

Sunday was a chilly, foggy morning and the Village was still abuzz. North Beach denizens flocked to the Farmer’s Market near the library (Columbus/Mason).

10 for 1 – Super Versatile Scallopine

At least 10 different dish variations are possible from this one veal cutlet recipe.

Spaghetti Pie

So I had some spaghetti with basil pesto left over from last night’s dinner. Boy-oh-boy the next day it’s breakfast–a spaghetti pie.

Basil Pesto–The Genoa Way?

Just a few ingredients and you’ve got this pesto in 10 minutes. Use it to dress fettuccine as they do in Genoa (they call the dish trenette) or with spaghetti as I did this time.

Romano Bean Salad

Gotta love this time of the year when so many fantastic vegetables are in season. Romano beans (aka Italian flat beans or pole beans) are aplenty.

A basic recipe from Campania that you can have as I make it here and eat in 10 minutes. These quickly steamed cozze e vongole (mussels and clams) are just out of the Bay of Naples, pristine and briny.

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.

The Boats Are In!

A man can only be confined to the concrete jungle for so long. I needed a break from the city. I boarded Amtrak at Penn Station for the 3 hour ride up the coast to Rhode Island, looking forward to a week on the beach before heading back to San Francisco. A special dinner with friends at their beach house was on the schedule.