Memorie di Angelina

22/08/2026

Recently sat down with acclaimed cookbook author Domenica Marchetti of Domenica Cooks and Substacker Giovanna Solimando to talk about summer culinary techniques. Here's my run down of our conversation, along with some of my favorite summer dishes.

Talking summer cooking techniques with Domenica Marchetti and Giovanna Solimando

15/08/2026

Poor cucuzza. This Rodney Dangerfield of the vegetable world gets no respect. An extravagantly long and slender summer squash typical of Sicily, it’s the butt of endless jokes. Like the local proverb I learned last time I was there for a family wedding: condiscila come vuoi, è sempre cucuzza! Or in the original Sicilian: Cònzala comu vo’ ca sempri cucuzza è. Roughly translated, it means ‘dress it up however you like, it’s still cucuzza!’ Said of ugly truths that, as much as you try to pretend otherwise, can’t be remedied. Something like our expression ‘putting lipstick on a pig’.

The proverb is a bit unfair. It’s true that summer squashes in general don’t have a lot of intrinsic taste. But if you do dress them up, they can be quite tasty. I can think of no better example than pasta con i tenerumi, a soup of pasta with cucuzza coupled with its tender shoots and leaves called tenerumi, which give the dish its name.

A summer soup may seem like a oxymoron, but this one makes perfect sense. It’s actually inhabits a middle ground between a proper pasta and a soup. And it’s usually served only slightly warm or even room temperature. Like so many summer dishes, the recipe is fairly care-free, requiring only about 15 minutes over the stove. You simmer cucuzza and tenerumi in water to cover, add broken up spaghetti to cook until it’s al dente, then finish with a quick fresh tomato sauce popularly called picchi-pacchi, which you’ve made separately while the vegetables and pasta are cooking. And done!

The main challenge in making pasta con i tenerumi is finding its star vegetable. Here in North America cucuzza was actually pretty popular among the Italian diaspora back in the day, especially those of Sicilian descent of course. Today it’s nearly vanished from our markets. And tenerumi are even harder to find. But there are some decent substitutions you can make for both. It may not taste quite like the original, but it’s delicious all the same.

You’ll find a link to the recipe in the comments below!

08/08/2026

This savory chicken dish, also known as pollo alla romana, is one of the classics of Roman cookery, every bit as quintessentially Roman as the city’s internationally famous pasta dishes. A favorite in Rome this time of year when both peppers and tomatoes are in season, it’s traditional to serve pollo con i peperoni for the Ferragosto holiday on August 15.

There are probably as many ways to make pollo con i peperoni as there are cooks. In this rendition, you brown the cut up chicken in oll, then braise it together with peppers and tomatoes until falling off the bone tender. Simple but intensely flavorful. In other words, very Roman.

This local dish was made nationally famous by the beloved, larger than life actor-chef-restauranteur Elena Fabrizi, popularly known as Sora Lella, when she presented her version of it on national TV in 1967. It is said to be the first instance of a TV cooking segment ever in the country.

Visit the blog for the recipe, and to learn more about this dish, the origins and customs of the Ferragosto holiday, and the life and times of the inimitable Sora Lella. You can ever watch her make her version of pollo con i peperoni during her fabled TV appearance! You’ll find a link in the comments below.

25/07/2026

Here’s an intriguing twist on a classic dish: pasta vongole e pistacchi or Pasta with Clams and Pistachios.

You make this dish basically just like the original pasta alle vongole, but you enrich the sauce with a dollop of crema di pistachio (pistachio butter) and then top the pasta with chopped pistachios. It’s a lovely combination of flavors and textures. The nuttiness and mild sweetness of the pistachios compliment the brininess of the clams nicely. And the pistachio butter lends a beguiling creaminess to the sauce, while the topping adds a little crunch. And if you ask me, it’s easy on the eyes as well.

Like the original recipe, pasta vongole e pistacchi is the kind of dish you can whip up in minutes, just the time it takes to bring a pot of water to a boil and then cook your pasta. So if like me you have an adventurous palate, it’s definitely worth a try. And who knows? It may even become part of your regular rotation.

You’ll find a link to the recipe in the comments below.

18/07/2026

Did I ever tell you I love salsa tonnata? If you don’t know it, salsa tonnata is a wonderfully tasty and creamy smooth cold tuna sauce made by blending jarred or canned tuna with mayo, capers and anchovies. No cooking involved, and you can throw it together literally in seconds. No wonder it’s a summer staple in Italian cookery.

Aside from its classic use in vitello tonnato, known in English as tunnied veal, there are all sorts of other uses for salsa tonnata. Here’s one that may sound a bit odd at first blush, but is actually genius: melanzane tonnate, grilled or griddled eggplant slices napped with salsa tonnata.

Assuming you don’t bother with salting the eggplants—which you shouldn’t need to do if they’re young and fresh—you can whip up this dish in less than 15 minutes, with only five minutes or so of actual cooking. So it’s the perfect dish for these dog days of summer.

Melanzane tonnate makes for a lovely summer starter or buffet dish. In larger portions it could even serve as a light main course or weeknight dinner.

You’ll find a link to the recipe in the comments below!

11/07/2026

Well, the dog days of summer have well and truly arrived. And on both sides of the Atlantic, it seems. Even if we’re lucky enough to have AC, high temps nevertheless have me thinking about ways to beat the heat.

Here’s one that helps the denizens of the Eternal City endure the hot Roman summer: grattachecca, the quintessentially Roman shaved ice. While grattachecca as we know it today goes back to the early 20th century, Romans have enjoyed flavored ice going back all the way to ancient times. Today’s grattachecca is a street food, typically served in a tall plastic cup, with a long spoon to scoop it up and a straw to lap up the final bits as the ice inevitably melts before you have a chance to finish it.

Sadly, grattachecca isn’t quite as common as it once was, but you’ll still find stands around town, with many of the better known ones clustered near or along the Lungotevere, the boulevard that runs through the center of town along the banks of the river Tiber.

Making grattachecca at home

Of course, unless you happen to be visiting Rome or actually living there, you’ll have to make your grattachecca at home. The good news is that it couldn’t be simpler. You just shave or crush some ice, drizzle it with fruit syrups or juice, then, if you like, garnish it, typically with fresh fruit, coconut or a sprig of mint depending on your other flavors.

There are countless flavor combinations to choose from, but a few classics include orzata, an almond syrup, lemonocco, a mix of coconut syrup and fresh lemon or orange juice, amarena (wild cherry), watermelon and mint. Garnishes should match or complement the flavoring. The sky’s the limit.

Click below to learn more about this delicious frozen dessert, where you can find it in Rome and how to make it at home.

04/07/2026

Concia di zucchine is a centuries old classic of the Roman Jewish kitchen.

Like scapece, concia di zucchine is essentially fried and marinated zucchini, but it has some of its own unique characteristics, first and foremost the use of the lovely Roman varietal called zucchina romanesca and the quintessentially Roman mint called mentuccia. Sadly, both are difficult, if not impossible to find outside Italy, and it’s not really possible to reproduce the precise taste and texture of concia without them. But no worries, even a dish made with standard zucchini and mint will be delicious.

Concia di zucchine is a versatile dish. You can serve it as an antipasto, on top of bread, as a side for grilled, roasted or boiled meats or fish, or as part of a summer buffet. I’ve had it on grilled bread with stracciatella cheese and it was amazing.

You’ll find a link to the recipe in the comments below!

20/06/2026

Arrosticini are grilled lamb skewers unique to the Abruzzo region. They are so beloved by the people of Abruzzo that they are practically the symbol of the region’s culinary culture and, by extension, the region itself.

These little skewers are said to have originated among the shepherds of the Gran Sasso, the highest reaches of the Appenine mountains found in central Abruzzo. The shepherds would sustain themselves during their long migrations away from home by foraging shoots and twigs to skewer tiny bits of the meat from the oldest of the their flock. The meat of those old animals was tough, but cutting it into tiny cubes interspersed with fat on a skewer and grilling it over an open fire rendered it not only edible, but delicious.

I’ve said many times over the years that simplicity is the hallmark of Italian cookery. Well, arrosticini may well be the best example of that axiom. They are astonishingly simple to make, involving literally just two ingredients: mature lamb and salt.

Arrosticini are traditionally made on a special purpose grill called a fornacella (or lu furnacell’ in Abruzzese dialect). It looks a bit like a narrow canal filled with charcoal. The ends of the skewers sit on the sides, away from the hot coals so they don’t burn. Now, if you don’t own or want want to splurge on a fornacella, an ordinary charcoal grill will work, provided you folllow a few simple tipsx

You’ll find a link to the recipe and grilling tips in the comments below.

13/06/2026

Rice salads are a staple on summer tables in Italy. They’re an especially fine choice for cookouts and other summer get togethers, as they can (and in fact should) be made ahead, which frees you up to spend more time with your family or guests.

There are countless ways to dress a rice salad. But there’s another, less obvious way to create variety, and that’s the changing up the rice. One of the most visually striking possibilities is a black rice romantically monikered riso Venero, literally meaning “Venus rice”. It is an excellent rice for salads as it stays firm and separate even when it’s fully cooked.

In this lovely rice salad, riso Venere is tossed with quickly sautéed shrimp and zucchini, fruity olive oil, mint, lemon zest and just a few drops of freshly squeezed lemon juice. The black (actually a dark violet) rice provides a striking contrast to the pink crustacean and green vegetable. It’s a dish that’s bound to impress your guests.

And it tastes as good as it looks. Riso Venere has a pleasing nuttiness that pairs beautifully with the briny shrimp and sweet zucchini, there’s just enough lemon and herbs to brighten things nicely.

You’ll find a link to the recipe and more on riso Venere in the comments below!

06/06/2026

At first glance, the iconic Neapolitan dish called ziti lardiati looks like a fairly ordinary pasta al pomodoro. But looks can be deceiving, and in this case they’re most definitely are.

As the name implies, lardo, a kind of cured pork fat back, is the defining ingredient of the sauce. It’s minced together with onion and garlic, then slowly rendered until it is meltingly soft and transparent. Fresh cherry tomatoes, are added, perhaps with a splash of passata, to simmer briefly, just until they melt into a chunky yet silky sauce.

After such a short cook time, the sauce still tastes of fresh tomato, but it has surprising depth and complexity, with a beguiling blend of flavors and textures. It’s savory and sweet at the same time, with a hint of heat if you add the optional pinch of hot pepper. And the mouth feel combines a slightly chunky texture from the cherry tomatoes with a velvety richness from the lardo. You would never expect such rich complexity from a dish with only a handful of ingredients and such a short cook tme.

I think it’s defintely a dish you’ll want to try at least once. And with fresh tomatoes finally beginning to appear in our markets, this is a lovely way to celebrate the arrival of summer’s bounty.

Recipe link in the comments below!