History Despite that tomatoes were only introduced to Italy in the mid-16th century, tomato sauce, or la salsa di pomodoro, is another staple of cucina povera, which literally translates to poor kitchen – peasant food. The first recipe for tomato-sauce-topped pasta and pizza appeared in 1779 in Antonio Nebbia’s cookbook Il Cuoco Maceratese. Today, the humble tomato sauce is ubiquitous,…
cooking pasta
Easiest Mac and Cheese with Broccoli and Cauliflower (so you can go ahead and feel smug anyway!)
You want mac & cheese… oh but you shouldn’t (for some reason)… but with this recipe, you absolutely should! It’s made with little to no fat/oil, it has vegetables in it, it’s all in one pot and takes no time at all. The concept is simple and based upon this recipe; you’ll basically cook the pasta in…
Pasta e Zucca: Easy Pumpkin Pasta
I love the colour orange. I have to restrain myself from buying orange coloured clothing. It’s a problem. I know. During Autumn, I can buy all sorts of orange foods and that makes me extremely happy. And the best one to buy is pumpkin, also known as winter squash. One of my favourite dishes as…
The Easiest and Creamiest Mac & Cheese
I have been experimenting with, what to me is, a revolutionary cooking method for pasta that uses the gluten released by the pasta as a creaminess enhancer. I was inspired to try this method by a fellow vegan whose details I’ve now misplaced and by preparing my Lady Assassin Spaghetti. As you will see from…
Basic Pasta Cooking
Cooking pasta begins with boiling water. This seems obvious, but I’ve been surprised at how often this isn’t the first step. Mind you, there are dishes that will require something different and that’s usually to achieve a certain effect. From time to time, you will see those recipes here (for example, see The Easiest and…
Neapolitan Classics: Spaghetti Aglio e Olio Alla Oppo
Spaghetti aglio e olio (garlic and oil) are a Neapolitan staple, midnight snack, fast food, comfort food… whatever you like. We LOVE this dish. No one can turn it down – ever! It couldn’t be simpler or faster with garlic, oil, hot pepper (of course!) and spaghetti. But what if you fancy jazzing it up…
