Category: italian
Don’t Toss Those Spinach Stems! Channel Your Inner Jewish Nonna and Make Testine di Spinaci
May 10, 2020
Like a lot of people, this pandemic has got me doubling down on reducing food waste. Not that it was ever something I didn’t care about, but every last scrap has never seemed more precious than it does right now. For me, that means cooking with some veggie scraps I formerly would’ve tossed without a […]
Venetian Purim Cookies: Impade
February 11, 2019
Given that my blog is called Poppy and Prune, you might assume I am a hamantaschen fan. And you wouldn’t be wrong. But I also love learning about lesser-known Purim delicacies. Like impade, a hard S-shaped cookie filled with almond paste, a traditional Venetian Jewish dolci (sweet) traditionally eaten at Purim, but also enjoyed year […]
Latkes Before Potato: Taste-testing Cheese, Buckwheat, and Chestnut Pancakes
November 19, 2018
Nothing says “Hanukkah tradition” better than a crispy potato latke, right? WRONG! Even though potato latkes have come to dominate the Hanukkah food scene here in the US in the twenty-first century, they’re actually a relative newcomer to the Jewish culinary repertoire. The potato, a native of South America, didn’t even arrive in Europe until […]
Torta Turchesca: A Venetian Rice Pudding Tart for Shavuot
May 10, 2018
Part pie, part rice pudding, this luscious Venetian tart is 100% delicious.
A Taste of Spring for Passover: Italian Asparagus Soup with Saffron
March 12, 2018
I love serving asparagus at Passover. It’s one of my favorite vegetables, and since I (more or less) only eat it seasonally, Passover tends to fall around the beginning of the season. My seders usually feature roasted asparagus spears, but I’m always on the lookout for new and different ways to serve this delectable harbinger […]
Something Different for Purim: Queen Esther’s Artichoke Soup
January 22, 2018
I know, I know—it’s more than a month until Purim. But it’s never too early to start planning! Besides, I have a trove of off-the-beaten-track Purim recipes I want to share with you, and there’s no time like the present to get started. Named after Queen Esther, this unusual Italian Jewish artichoke soup takes advantage […]