I love when Italians rub off on me!

   

     Ever since I returned from New England, I've been on a cooking kick. I love to cook anyway, but this is above and beyond my "normal" amount of cooking - especially in the summer heat. I didn't realize it at first, but I spent 13 of the 14 days surrounded by Italians, or in their homes, or eating in an Italian restaurant. I absolutely loved it. It felt like "home", even though I'm not actually Italian. I must have some Italian blood in my somewhere! I've always felt at home among the Italian families and neighborhoods growing up.

     In the last week, I've made so many home cooked meals, I've lost track. I made a Shepherd's Pie tonight (which is traditionally Scottish, made with lamb), but I made it with a mix of ground beef and veal, adding sauteed onions, mushrooms, and garlic. I made a vegetarian version for my daughter that also had red & green peppers, shredded carrots, and peas. I topped both of them with sauteed corn (organic of course), and finished them with homemade mashed potatoes, which I mashed by hand. No hand mixer tonight. I can't tell you how good they both came out, but I know I'll be making this again really soon - just in larger batches!

   







      I bought the ingredients to make an authentic chicken parmigiana tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it. I made sauce this week to go over some goat cheese and roasted pepper ravioli, topped with a dollop of mascarpone cheese. The sauce cooked for over four hours and what a difference time makes! It was so good that I'll be making more for the chicken parm. tomorrow.


     Just to mix it up, I'm going to make an authentic Mexican dish this week too. I'll make chicken (and cheese-filled for my little vegetarian) enchiladas, in a homemade salsa verde, topped with Mexican crema, along with Mexican rice, and homemade refried beans - not from a can, from loose pinto beans). I love cooking so I'm looking forward to making things I've never cooked before - like tomatillos.

     Oh yeah, and while we're on the topic of Mexican food, I also made tacos this past week but instead of putting the meat and things in a tortilla or a shell, we used jicama slices instead. I'd never had it before, but it tasted great. The crunchy texture was perfect and the barely there flavor was perfect, not overpowering anything else.

     Next week after all this I think I'll make some Asian dishes I've never done, like a Lo Mein, some chicken dumplings, and spring rolls.

Are you hungry yet?