Here you’ll find everything I’m preparing in my kitchen - from veggies, to leftovers and pasta. I eat simply, and I cook for one, but love cooking for others. And no matter what, I always pause to plate pretty.
Most of my meals are often times the result of freestyle recipe free ingredient riffing and a trip to the vegetable market. Produce is my passion, and I hope that you won’t simply come here for a recipe - but that you’ll read, cook and create a new story of your own.
I believe there’s power in a stocked pantry and freezer. From traditional Italian dishes to alternative sweets, vegan and vegetarian swaps - there’s something for everyone.
It has been years since I have made puttanesca sauce, so I’m really excited to be sharing this recipe on Tina to Table. Do you know what puttanesca sauce is? Puttanesca is a tomato based sauce loaded with olives, capers, anchovy and red pepper flakes. It is slightly sweet, salty, spicy and thick with love and flavor. When I was growing up, we ate a lot of spaghetti alla puttanesca, particularly on Friday’s during Lent — but as an adult I really favored eating white fish bathed in this hearty sauce, well, for numerous reasons. Sure, I love pasta, but I’m actually a bigger fan of being able to eat salty, briny sauce by the spoonful.
I love roasted brussels sprouts with olive oil, salt, pepper and a sprinkle of Locatelli. So salty and delicious. And in my hay day of college and early working days, weight loss and limited income, I’d often buy frozen brussels sprouts, steam them and then bathe them in butter, garlic powder, salt and black pepper. I know you’re probably judging me, but they were inexpensive and filling — the butter was the trick to making them tasty — satisfying. I was that girl, with the tupperware, in the microwave at work. Now, my tastes are a bit more refined — I haven’t had a frozen, steamed sprout in about 20+ years.
A few weeks ago I prepared a Butternut Squash, Caramelized Onion, Crispy Kale & Cheddar Quiche along with this Bacon, Spinach, Caramelized Onion, Smoked Gouda Quiche. I made two quiches at once because I knew I wanted to have a spare for a quick dinner that would require nothing more than a reheat and preparing a salad. You know, some days you just don’t feel like cooking — so having a quiche in the freezer can be clutch on those nights. Well, that and they’re great for breakfast reheats, lunches and when you get an unexpected meal guest.
My aunt’s favorite scone flavor is cranberry orange, and I can’t blame her because it’s sweet and also very slightly citrusy. It has a really balanced wake up flavor, making it the perfect breakfast treat. Now, I’ve been making cranberry orange scones for quite a while and have tweaked the recipe time and time again over the years. This time, my aunt bought heavy cream to make the scones, where in the past I have always used half and half. I was curious to see where the heavy cream would take the scones and, it turns out, it took them to an even fluffier and creamier — somewhat pillow like
Cabbage gets a bad wrap for being gassy and it’s often relegated to use only for coleslaw and St. Patrick’s Day. But the red cabbage is a powerhouse of a vegetable, loaded with so many health benefits and nutrients. It packs loads of Vitamin C (great for immunity and collagen production) and Vitamin K (oh, hey, strong bones), aids in decreasing inflammation, is heart healthy and it’s also high in fiber — which is not only a benefit for our hearts but for digestion. While at my aunt and uncle’s house we’ve been preparing and eating red cabbage at least once a week alongside braised kale and collard greens.
I’ve been making this very chicken thigh dish for at least 9 or 10 years now. I love it so very much as an alternative to chicken marsala and even chicken cacciatore. Loaded with fresh spring vegetables in a white wine and herb sauce, this dish is a simple one pan dinner to make on a weeknight but it could easily impress your family or guests on a weekend. This dish is made with skinless, boneless chicken thighs which are way more flavorful and tender
If you’re looking for a way to add a little more green to your dinner table, look no further than the asparagus! And I’m not talking about steamed asparagus (although, I personally LOVE steamed asparagus with lots of salt, lemon and oil), but oven roasted asparagus takes about 10 minutes to prepare and really enhances the flavor profile of this lean green veggie — especially once you add a pop of lemon, garlic and pecorino romano to them.
When I was preparing salmon for dinner last week, I wanted to make a side that would have veggies and fiber but wasn’t a typical salad with a lettuce base. I love making creative salads, but I hadn’t made a grain salad in quite some time. I think grain salads are the perfect hearty but light offering to spring eating and, so, my aunt and I agreed on farro. Farro is a wheat based grain that has a nutty texture. It can be substituted with barley in many recipes,
Salmon is an easy weeknight meal that provides protein and heart and brain healthy OMEGA-3 fatty acids. It’s a powerful food that bakes in the oven in minutes. It’s one of those “no excuses” meals when it comes to cooking. This super simple salmon is made with a marinade that doubles as a vinaigrette for salads or steamed vegetables.
Pizza Rustica translates to rustic pie. It’s a southern Italian savory Easter pie comprised of mixed cured meats and cheeses that are lovingly encased in buttery pie shell. If there’s anything that takes me back to the Easter Sunday’s of my past, it’s Pizza Rustica.
Pastiera di Grano is a traditional Neapolitan Italian pie that is served during Easter for dessert. It is creamy, light and bursting with citrus flavor — made with ricotta, soaked wheat berries, sugar, orange blossom water, orange zest, lemon zest and citron. Pastiera di Grano is encased in a buttery and flaky pastry shell, topped with a lattice crust and powdered sugar.
Easter calls preparing lamb and this simple marinade recipe will make your holiday roast sing of spring. Adapted from Ina Garten’s marinade for rack of lamb, this version has the addition of extra virgin olive oil. Rack of lamb typically has much more fat on the meat itself, so the extra addition of oil isn’t necessary. Leg of lamb is a leaner cut and could use a little more fat for cooking and flavor.
Last week, as I contemplated what to prepare for dinner, I stared down bell peppers, tomatoes and a package of meat that was in the refrigerator. The weather was cool, alarmingly cold, really, for April, and called for a warming meal. I recalled Susana’s meal, Stamatis stuffed peppers and tomatoes and swiftly got to work on recalling the flavors. I moved slowly, stopping to think about the taste, gathering all of the ingredients, and got to work. This recipe and process is not for the impatient or faint of heart in the kitchen.
In my opinion, one of the essentials to cooking is being able to make a simple and tasty marinade or vinaigrette. Packaged marinades and dressings are something I can’t get behind because of the additives and extra sugar, also, we never at them growing up. When I was working as a cooking coach, I often told my clients that the first thing to learn, because it’s simple and accessible, is how to make a homemade dressing. Ingredients as basic as lemon, olive oil and salt suffice on a salad or summer chicken on the barbecue.
I’m dedicating a specific post to caramelized onions because, well, I consider them to be essential to so many delicious dishes prepared in the kitchen. From eggs to quiches, burgers and grilled cheeses, chicken dishes and even a salad — caramelized onions can take the flavor profile of any dish and raise it to the next level. I promise. The secret to jammy, thick and rich caramelized onions? Patience and high quality balsamic vinegar, a secret weapon that is used for deglazing the pan and can even speed up cooking time because the acid helps to break down the onions.
Few things remind me of childhood, my grandmother’s cooking and when my father used to cook, then a big, piping hot pot of fagioli. Growing up, beans were a staple in our home and they still are. Beans are a hearty, inexpensive, healthy and warming food — a food we ate 1 to 2 times a week no matter the season. I was that kid who looked forward to opening a lunch thermos full of beans and pasta, a bit odd, sure, maybe, but my love of cooking and eating, was born from watching the people I love cook their hearts out in the kitchen.
I know, I know. This is the L O N G E S T quiche name ever! BUT it’s worth saying 10 times fast and it’s certainly worth making too. My auntie recently had a hip replacement and, well with my shoulder coming along with healing, I thought it would be a smart idea to have a quiche or two in the house to heat up for easy weeknight meals. So, if you’re looking for a make-ahead meal idea, look no further than the fully loaded, elegant and tasty quiche.
At a local Greek restaurant in Astoria, Queens, sitting in their hot steam table, prepared and ready to order, they had an eggplant dish called “Imam.” I would often order the stuffed eggplant when I went to the restaurant and on days where I was too tired to cook and, so, I’d pick it up as take-out fare. Imam is bathed in onions, tomatoes and herbs and, best of all, slick with oil. I’d often approach the steam table at the restaurant intent on ordering something different
