I love pasta in all its forms and I serve it at least once a week. Since I seem to be incapable of making two servings of sauce, inevitably we end up with a freezer full of single portions.  I do not always label these.…

Boulud Sud’s Happy Pasta Hour Is About Both Food and Fun Apr 16, 2018 | 12:01 pm By Monte Mathews Staff Writer 5 pastas are served nightly for half price Photo by Georgina Salter One of five pastas on offer every night, Rigatoni alla Carbonara…

Andrew’s sister Lauren and I have an ongoing contest to find people who comment on a recipe they’ve so radically altered it bears no resemblance to the original. Despite having tinkered with the ingredients, the quantities, the cooking time until the recipe is unrecognizable, you’d…

I am making a concerted effort to put some great vegetarian recipes together for all kinds of reasons—health, being eco-friendly and just giving us all more options for terrific meals.  And there’s another great reason to cook this right now.  It’s Lent!  Aside from its…

What I love about this recipe, which is from Bon Appetit Magazine, is that it’s the perfect escape from winter.  The dish looks like it was made in high summer with its cherry tomatoes, pickled red onion and fistful of parsley leaves.  Then there’s the…

As often as not, Andrew volunteers to bring dessert whenever we’re asked out to dinner.  On this particular occasion, he asked our friends Bill and Peter if they had any requests.   Peter asked for ‘something nutty’.  I seemed to remember an amazing tart Andrew had…

I love “Milanese”, which is basically what this recipe is.  Veal Milanese is its much more expensive cousin.  In Argentina, where it’s wildly popular, it’s called simply “Milanesa” and it’s made with Beef.  In neighboring Chile it’s called Escalopa.  In Mexico, it’s back to being…

I sometimes think I should have called Chewing The Fat “Chewing the Pasta”.  I have such fondness for pasta that I make it on a weekly basis.  I am well aware of how many people eschew its carbohydrates. Sorry, they’re missing one of life’s great…

I got into a peck of trouble for pronouncing Pasta a cold-weather food.  And I have to admit, ‘they’ were right and I was wrong.  Pasta is one of the most adaptable of all foods.  Just think what you can marry it with! Fish, shellfish,…

Letizia Mattiacci: The Umbrian Cook on an American Tour By Monte Mathews Staff Writer Learn how to cook the cuisine of this Italian province from a native cook and teacher. Then you can make dishes like this gorgeous Melanzane alla Parmigiana…Eggplant Parmigiano Experience Umbrian cuisine…

         I confess to being a tomato junkie.  I adore the fruit, and yes, botanically it is a fruit.   Nothing made me happier than the arrival of great little tiny tomatoes variously called ‘cherry’, ‘grape’ and most recently, ‘heirloom mixtures’.   They arrived in this country…

Amanda Hesser of Food 52 and The New York Times         This terrific recipe checks off at least 3 boxes on my list. First, nothing is more comforting on a winter night than a bowl of pasta with a really great sauce.  This fits that…

Basilica de Santa Maria del Fiore The story behind Peposo, a rich stew that owes its flavor to just two key ingredients –Chianti and Black Pepper—is as fascinating as the finished dish.   I read it in Cook’s Illustrated, which, in its usual fashion, went to great…

Paola’s Restaurant  1295 Madison Avenue at 92nd St. NYC Tel: (212) 794-1890 Reservations and Information: www.paolasrestaurant.com Paola’s Pici con Asparagi          Not too long ago, I was early for a lecture in Carnegie Hill, a family-friendly East Side Manhattan neighborhood known to tourists by…