Shredded Wheat Blackberry Muffins

I hate throwing away food. Even when I ruin a recipe I'll try to salvage the food so as not to waste it. So every time I open my cabinet and see the bright orange box of shredded wheat staring at me, I feel a pang of guilt. I want to throw it away, but I just can't. There is nothing wrong with the cereal, I just don't like it. I bought it on a whim, figuring it would be a nice healthy way to start my day; instead, it tasted a bit like straw.
Since I simply can't throw the stuff out, I figured I'd try to bake with it. I did a quick google search and came up with a few promising recipes. I tweaked them a little and came up with Shredded Wheat Blackberry Muffins. Surprisingly, these muffins are moist and cakey. No straw-like texture here. Gian Luca didn't even believe I put some cereal in there. So the shredded wheat can stay!

Shredded Wheat Blackberry Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar + 1 tablespoon for topping
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups crushed shredded wheat
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup blackberries ( fresh or frozen)*
1 tbsp. lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon


Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add in crushed cereal. Add egg, milk and oil and stir until fully incorporated. Fold in the blackberries, lemon juice and lemon . Line a 12 muffin pan with cupcake liners ( or grease the pan). Fill each cup 2/3 full. Sprinkle the top of each muffin with a little bit of sugar. Bake on middle rack for 18-25 minutes* ( this may take slightly longer if using frozen berries). The tops of the muffins should be golden brown. Cool in muffin pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 12 medium muffins

Chicken soup: a two for one

So far, October has been good to us. Despite the non-stop rain, we had an amazing weekend, largely because of my brother Joey, who came to visit. During his stay, we consumed so much food, hitting up five of our favorite restaurants in just three days. We all woke up this morning feeling full and a bit tired of eating. But, as it always happens, the more you eat, the more hungry you get, so as Joey hit the road again, heading for Denver, I got in my car and headed for the grocery store.
It's not only been raining these past few days, its also been cold. I don't mean a little October chill either, I mean frosted fingers and purple lips cold. And when its like this the only thing I want to eat is soup.
I think every culture has a great chicken soup recipe, but of course, I favor the Italian version that I grew up with. Since Italians like to have a first and second course, our chicken was always served separately from the soup, making the dinner last twice as long and feel twice as satisfying. Who wouldn't want to get two dishes out of one easy pot?]
So tonight, its a two for one. Brodo con Pastina and Chicken with Salsa Verde. Enjoy!

Brodo con Pastina
for the Chicken Broth:
4 chicken thighs ( with bone and skin on)
4 stalks of celery ( with leaves), cut into quarters
2 carrots peeled and cut into quarters
1 small potato, peeled
1 small onion, cut into quarters
1 roma tomato
Salt and pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a large stockpot, cover with water and bring to a boil. Lower the flame and simmer on medium heat for 2 hours.
Remove from heat. Strain the chicken and veggies, set aside for later.
( this will yield 3 quarts of chicken stock, which can be stored in the fridge for 3 days or frozen for up to 1 month)

for the pastina:
1/4 cup of acini de pepe, ( or orzo)
3 cups water.
1 teaspoon of salt

Bring salted water to boil. Add the pasta and cook for 8 minutes. Strain and add the pasta to your chicken broth.
Top with pecorino romano cheese and enjoy.

Salsa Verde
1 bunch Italian parsley
8 basil leaves
3 anchovies ( packed in olive oil)
1 teaspoon of capers
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 boiled potato ( from soup)

Blend first seven ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Mash the potato into the sauce with a fork until smooth.
Serve this sauce with the boiled chicken and veggies from the soup.

The best apple cake

Last night we had Gian Luca's labmates and their wives/ girlfriends over for dinner. As I said before, I have been so busy this week ( and I still am) but I love the fact that, even when we are crazy busy, we invite people over for dinner.
Still, we needed to keep it fairly simple (no homemade lasagna this time). But I just can't invite people over and not bake something.
See, if I had to choose between cooking or baking I'd 100% choose baking as my preference. There is just something about mixing ingredients together and popping them in the oven.
I even love the waiting, as it usually allows me to chat with friends on the phone. Then there's the smell of sweets wafting through the apartment, waiting for them to cool and finally, the pay big off. I always said that if I were to change careers I'd love to open up a bakery. Who knows... maybe some day. But for now, I have my family and friends to bake for. So yesterday afternoon, that is exactly what I did.
My mom called as I was peeling the apples for this cake, and it turns out that she was making the exact same cake for a friend's birthday. It makes sense that she was making this particular cake because it is the best apple cake I've ever tried. I can't even describe how moist it is. You're just going to have to bake it and see for yourself.

The best apple cake

5-6 medium apples, cored, peeled, and sliced to 1/8" thickness
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar + 1/2 cup for the apples
1 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla
3 teaspoons baking powder
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon


Preheat oven at 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a tube pan. Set aside

Place the sliced apples in a bowl and mix with 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Set aside.

Beat the eggs and remaining sugar until well incorporated. Add the veg oil, orange juice and vanilla. Mix well.
Sift together flour and baking powder. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet, mixing well. Pour 1/2 of the batter into the prepared tube pan. Layer 1/2 of the sliced apples on top of the batter. Cover with remaining batter and top with remaining apples.
Bake on middle rack for 45 minutes or until tester comes out clean* Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with vanilla ice cream ( if desired).

* My oven is funny so I bake this at 350 degrees for 25 minutes then lower the heat to 325 and bake for another 35 minutes.

a quick one

Uffi, this week has been pretty hectic, and the next couple days will be even more so. But it's all hectic in the best way as I've been working hard and having fun in the meantime.


Even amidst all the chaos, sometimes I just need to bake something. But today it had to be quick.
So while the baking time on this Marble Loaf Cake* is actually pretty long, the prep time ( or the actual time spent working on it was really fast).

I also took advantage of the long baking time as an excuse to sit in front of my computer and sketch out the structure of my novel. Yay!

Oh, by the way, Happy Autumn!

* From Food and Wine Magazine

If you know me

I have big dreams. If you know me, you already know that. You also know that I'm pretty good at setting a goal and getting things accomplished. You remember grad school, managing a restaurant, moving to Manhattan, then to Rome, because you were there with me. And you were also there when I got what I wanted and it wasn't at all what I expected. So you stayed with me while I cried through my entire first year of teaching, then again, two years later, when I left the job. And you listened, even when my dreams seemed outlandish, like when I came home the night of meeting Gian Luca and swooned that " I want to marry that man!"
But I have a secret. None of these accomplishments are mine. I did not create them and they would not be possible if it weren't for others. Yes, if it weren't for God and the team of people who support and love me unconditionally then I would have nothing.
See, if you know me you know that there is one thing that I still haven't crossed off my list. Yep, that pesky book I started, oh three years ago has had enough time to rest. Oddly enough, it does center around food, though when I started writing it I had no intentions of ever starting a food blog. Its just that my mom was roasting these tomatoes, and smelling them, a story came into my head. So I wrote it down. Now, 220 pages later, I need to clean it up. I'm giving myself 12 weeks to finish revising it and I need your help.
So, I implore you, if you know me, please, please help kick my butt( and if you don't know me but feel like you do, you can help too!). Ask me if I did my work, make me feel guilty, or best yet, send me a comment to keep me on track.
I can't promise I'll succeed, but with your help, I know I'll try.

A repeat offender

I know what your thinking... another pasta dish. But I promised I'd cook something else and I did. We're off of pasta ( at least for tonight).
I'm not accustomed to eating the same thing every night. I'm not saying that I don't eat leftovers, I actually really love them, but if I'm cooking I'll never cook the same thing two days in a row. I don't even like repeating flavors. Its just not my style. So today I was surprised when, midway through cooking, I reached for the oregano.
I hardly ever use the herb. In fact, I bought the little jar months ago when Gian Luca wanted to make his Mariottini Pizza. And after that night, it sat on our shelf until yesterday. But there was something about the soft aroma that rose up from that pan and lingered in the kitchen. I wanted more.
So tonight, I reached for it again, and sprinkled it liberally on some fresh cod and potatoes before popping them in the oven.
Once again, I wandered through the apartment savoring the aroma of oregano.

Baked Cod with Potatoes

4 medium cod filets
4 large potatoes
1 cup marinara sauce
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Blanch potatoes in boiling salted water until soft but still a bit firm. Drain and slice into 1/8" rounds.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Cover the bottom of a medium baking dish with a thin layer of marinara sauce. Layer the cod and potatoes in the dish. Sprinkle with oregano, salt and pepper, drizzle with olive oil. Place a bit more marinara sauce on top.
Bake for 15-18 minutes.

A southern girl

I realize that all I've been cooking lately is pasta, and that all of my recent posts have been based on pasta. It's not that I'm uninspired, I'd love to cook something else. But the truth is, Gian Luca has this huge deadline and basically he's been living in the lab. We've either been eating out quickly at campus restaurants, or eating on the lounge tables in the Science Library. So it's not that I don't want to cook, I just feel weird eating multiple courses while college students stare hungrily at us as they walk by. And pasta travels well. So, here's another one, I promise I'll cook something else soon.
Tonight's pasta was not thrown together, but rather, inspired by a dish that my mom used to make for the take-out section of her restaurant. She called it Sicilian Eggplant Casserole, although I am not quite sure why. Basically it was sliced eggplant, tomatoes, onions and dried black olives, drizzled with olive oil and oregano and baked in the oven. It was fabulous, but I'm not sure if it is authentically Sicilian.
My mother has never been to Sicily ( either have I). And honestly, I will probably never go there. I have nothing against Sicily, and I'm sure its amazingly beautiful, but frankly, I'm tired of defending other parts of Southern Italy.
My family is from the south and I am proud to be a southern girl. But the first thing people say when I tell them that we're from Southern Italy is, "Oh, Sicily?" Soon enough, I'm explaining that no, my family is not from Sicily, we are from Basilicata.

Basilicata is the small, almost forgotten region of Italy about 6 hours south of Rome. I always tell people that it is the arch of Italy's boot. It is bordered by the Tyrrhenian and Ionian seas and the Apennines mountains run right through the center of the region. Its two major cities, Potenza and Matera are slowly gaining tourism but, besides that, the region has not been explored by many Americans. But that's ok. I like that fact that I've been places that not too many others have been. My mom's town, Salandra, is pretty much my favorite place on earth (and, by the way, the setting of my novel-in-progress). The sunset in Salandra

Ok, sorry for the tangent. Back to the pasta. I was craving my mother's Sicilian Eggplant Casserole ( authentic or not) so I created a pasta dish inspired by it. Enjoy!

Sicilian Eggplant Pasta

1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 of one medium eggplant, cut in 1/8" cubes
4 Roma tomatoes finely diced
1/2 cup dried black olives
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup ricotta salata ( or feta cheese)

Cook pasta in boiling salted water.
As the pasta is cooking, heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and tomatoes and saute until the onions are translucent and the tomatoes have softened and start to break up. Add the diced eggplant, black olives, red pepper flakes, oregano, and salt and pepper. Stir and add one ladle ( about 1/2 cup) of the pasta water. Cover and allow the sauce to simmer for a few minutes. Add the pasta to the sauce and toss.
Top with ricotta salata, or feta cheese.