Sorry, but there are very few similarities between authentic classic Italian Regional Cuisines in Italy and North or South American or Asian Italian food or any other country. Totally different !
You can only experience this on an extended trip through Italy to know the true nuances and the products are so so different …
Been there .
Use a mold to make a nest…BRILLIANT. This alone worth the price of admission.
I use molds for my Risotto and also my Paellas too …
Visually, it creates “art of plating” … We enjoy it !
Thanks for the compliment !! Have a lovely day. It is 12am midnight here, so I must say goodnight.
Truth be told, valley to valley, village to village, nonna to nonna, there will be “OMG” nuances. We so underestimate casalinga cooking.
Venezia - Winter 2019 …
Pompei - Campania - Winter 2019 … (The octopus and the Pasta with shellfish ) …
Grappa - Cordial Liqueur …
Looks delicious! What recipe do you use (if any)?
pure nonsense and downright condescending. There are some things that are totally different, some that are exactly the same and some that are actually better on this side of the Atlantic. Why MUST some people not respect other peoples joy of their culture, instead telling me on a post where I’m not sure I mentioned this was “authentic” that it’s just not good enough and I need to leave my job and spend 6 months traveling thru Italy to understand it’s cuisine, nuances et al… Been there, done that…have been thru most of Italy’s regions and I bring those “nuances” home to my kitchen. Take it as a compliment to your cuisine instead of telling me it’s just not even close. Yes it is. and sometimes it’s not. It’s food…it’s not cancer treatment…don’t be so exclusive. And…the dish I ‘m highlighting here. I’ve had it in Matera, Basilicata, in my cousins’ home. Mine matches theirs. But it’s not a competition.
Bravo. 
well said .
Ha! I see you’ve noticed I have trouble keeping my eye on the ball or staying on script! Basically, I mix a half pint of ricotta with half pound of spinach, stemmed, blanched and chopped finely, an egg yolk or so, quarter cup parmesan, several tablespoons flour, large pinch of freshly ground nutmeg, cracked black pepper. Form into balls, roll lightly in salted flour. Simmer in salted water in a shallow saucepan or deep skillet. DO NOT LET WATER BOIL or you risk ravioli falling apart.
Serve with tomato sauce, besciamella, walnut sauce or your choice.
In the spirit of this CptQ. may I heartily recommend (assign?) “Treasures of the Italian Table, Italy’s celebrated foods and the artsans who make them” by Burton Anderson. This would be a cookbook but it has few recipes, a travel book but most of the places described would not welcome tourists if they even now still exist, a romance, and I guess that is what it is. Wonderful descriptions of the history and production of such diverse products as white truffles, Tuscan bread, olive oil, pizza, parmigiano reggiano, culatello, risotto, balsamic vinegar, and more. Out of print, but available at many public libraries.
A while ago, I bought a tiny bottle of colatura di alici from Cetara. I tasted side by side with a very good 70º fish sauce of Vietnam, they were nearly identical, maybe one was slightly more salty than the other. The tiny Italian bottle of 50ml was 20,4€, I go for a Vietnamese one ever since.
Just relabel it “barca rossa”.
While I was still in grade school, my US born, 100% Genovese sister-in-law, used to take me to Liguria Bakery in San Francisco’s North Beach. I can at this moment recall the aroma that engulfed you when you walked in the door. Their foccacia has been my standard, and none have equaled it in all these years.
I started on a campaign to get close. This actually was quite satisfactory, using NYT 18 hour dough, patted out onto olive oil coated pan.
