This is a taste of rustic Italy, where we first learned the meaning of the word “abbondanza”. This is the Italy of our deepest memories, authentic and imposing, like the looming Medieval fortified hill towns of Tuscany.
Capers
Seared Halibut Wrapped with Prosciutto in Garlic Cream Sauce
We love the delicate finessful flavor of halibut, but there was always something slightly missing in its depth of flavor. Without the powerful umami flavors of tuna or swordfish, the rich exquisite oil-rich salmon, or the dense flavorful flakes of snapper, sea bass or mahi mahi, halibut seems to need some umami richness. Usually in restaurants, halibut is drowned in creams or butter to avoid its tendency to dry out. This little feast solves all those problems… with Italian prosciutto!
Italian Shrimp Pasta
For Rebekah and I, this dish is our most intensely romantic meal… it was the meal that began everything for us as a couple.
Sicilian Lemon Chicken with Green Olives and Capers
Early in the Tenth Century, the Moors of North Africa conquered Sicily and for more than 200 years they transformed the cuisine of this ancient, once Greek island. To this day, many of the classic Sicilian meals trace their origin to the highly sophisticated Moors, who brought with them oranges and lemons, rice and saffron, cloves and nutmeg, raisins and cinnamon, and crucially they brought couscous to soak up all those exotic flavors. We have always loved the aromatic and intoxicating spices and aromas of the cooking of North Africa, and this meal is a fusion of that exotic cuisine with this haunting and beautiful rugged land called Sicily.
Annie’s Deviled Eggs
One of the Father and Daughter rituals that Annie and I have in our wild savory kitchen, on special events and big family feasts, is to make Deviled Eggs as an appetizer. They were easy to learn to make when she was a girl and we both really love them.