Cooking Italian with Joe

06/22/2026

Eggplant Meatball Recipe from Sicily and Grandpa Cooking Italian with Joe!
❤️🇮🇹🍆 Eggplant Meatballs (Polpette di Melanzane) – Cooking Italian With Joe Borio. Join me in the villa in Italy, in our kitchen, as we make a famous family recipe from my grandfather, who was Sicilian.
These crispy fried eggplant meatballs are a classic Italian favorite — meatless but so flavorful and satisfying. With a kick of red pepper flakes, they’re perfect in marinara sauce over pasta or as a delicious appetizer.
**Ingredients** (makes about 30–36 meatballs):
- 3 medium eggplants (about 3–3.75 lbs), cubed
- 2–2¼ cups breadcrumbs (plus extra for coating)
- 1 cup + 2 Tbsp grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese
- 4 large eggs
- ¾ cup fresh basil (or basil + parsley), chopped
- 4–5 garlic cloves, minced
- ⅓–½ cup olive oil (plus plenty more for frying)
- 1½–3 tsp red pepper flakes (adjust for your heat preference)
- 1½ tsp salt (or to taste)
- ¾–1½ tsp black pepper
**Instructions:**
1. Cube the eggplants and roast or sauté with olive oil, salt, garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes until very soft. Let cool, then mash or pulse lightly.
2. In a large bowl, mix the cooked eggplant with breadcrumbs, grated cheese, 4 eggs, chopped herbs, remaining garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Let the mixture rest 10 minutes. Add more breadcrumbs if too wet.
3. Roll into 1–2 inch balls. For extra crispiness, roll them in additional breadcrumbs.
4. Heat a generous layer of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry the meatballs in batches, turning gently until golden and crispy on all sides (8–12 minutes per batch). Drain on paper towels.
5. Simmer the fried meatballs in warm marinara sauce for 5–10 minutes to soak up all that flavor.
Tender on the inside, crispy on the outside, with just the right spicy kick! These are sure to become a family favorite.
If you try this recipe, let me know how they turned out in the comments!
👍 **Like** if you love eggplant recipes
❤️ **Share** with your Italian food-loving friends
🔔 **Follow** and **Subscribe** for more authentic Italian recipes every week!

Eggplant Meatball Recipe from Sicily and Grandpa Cooking Italian wi...

06/21/2026

❤️🇮🇹🍆 Eggplant Meatballs (Polpette di Melanzane) – Cooking Italian With Joe Borio
Hey everyone! These crispy fried eggplant meatballs are a classic Italian favorite — meatless but so flavorful and satisfying. With a kick of red pepper flakes, they’re perfect in marinara sauce over pasta or as a delicious appetizer.

**Ingredients** (makes about 30–36 meatballs):

- 3 medium eggplants (about 3–3.75 lbs), cubed
- 2–2¼ cups breadcrumbs (plus extra for coating)
- 1 cup + 2 Tbsp grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese
- 4 large eggs
- ¾ cup fresh basil (or basil + parsley), chopped
- 4–5 garlic cloves, minced
- ⅓–½ cup olive oil (plus plenty more for frying)
- 1½–3 tsp red pepper flakes (adjust for your heat preference)
- 1½ tsp salt (or to taste)
- ¾–1½ tsp black pepper

**Instructions:**

1. Cube the eggplants and roast or sauté with olive oil, salt, garlic, and a pinch of red pepper flakes until very soft. Let cool, then mash or pulse lightly.
2. In a large bowl, mix the cooked eggplant with breadcrumbs, grated cheese, 4 eggs, chopped herbs, remaining garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Let the mixture rest 10 minutes. Add more breadcrumbs if too wet.
3. Roll into 1–2 inch balls. For extra crispiness, roll them in additional breadcrumbs.
4. Heat a generous layer of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry the meatballs in batches, turning gently until golden and crispy on all sides (8–12 minutes per batch). Drain on paper towels.
5. Simmer the fried meatballs in warm marinara sauce for 5–10 minutes to soak up all that flavor.

Tender on the inside, crispy on the outside, with just the right spicy kick! These are sure to become a family favorite.

If you try this recipe, let me know how they turned out in the comments!

👍 **Like** if you love eggplant recipes
❤️ **Share** with your Italian food-loving friends
🔔 **Follow** and **Subscribe** for more authentic Italian recipes every week!

06/21/2026

To my Dad. Happy Father’s Day. See you again someday. My hero!

A man who understands sacrifice — not as a burden, but as a calling. He placed his own needs last so his children could have more. Who gave the years of his youth so that ours could be fuller, richer, and better.

A man who shared his knowledge and wisdom not to be remembered, but to shape something greater than himself. Who taught honor, character, integrity, and love — not with lectures, but with the examples of his life and actions.

A man who treated my mother with kindness and tenderness, and in doing so, quietly taught his children how to love another person. He conducted himself in business and friendship with honesty and integrity, always. Who understood that putting others first wasn't weakness — it was the whole point.

A man who, when his child turned 50, still opened his arms. Still offered comfort. Still pressed a kiss to the cheek with a tear in his eye and a prayer in his heart for the best in everyone around him.

His picture will never appear on the cover of Time Magazine. He won't be listed in Forbes or named the world's most anything. He has never sought recognition, fame, or wealth — and that, perhaps, is the most remarkable thing about him. As at the end of his journey here on earth, he was wealthy beyond Measure. He was recognized in his community always, and he was admired by many. His greatest day is simply knowing his children are happy, healthy, and loved.

But if you want to know what a hero looks like — what genuine greatness, quiet strength, and authentic leadership truly are — you need only study his life.

In an age that searches desperately for examples of integrity, kindness, and moral courage, I don't have to look far. I only have to look at him. My dad and my mother together stand as two of the finest examples of what is good in humanity — in this country, in this world.

I don't know if it was by design or by grace or by the sheer luck of the draw that I was born his son. But I know this: I am among the most fortunate people who have ever lived. Not everyone gets to be raised by greatness. I was.

The third child of two Italian immigrants, arriving here in the United States with his older brother and sister. My father, as a young adult, served in the military during the Korean War. He attended Cornell University on an academic scholarship and ended his college education prematurely to help his brother and mother operate the family business, Restaurant Borio Restaurant because of his father’s failing health. My father was never able to get back to College and decided it was in the best interest of his family to continue helping out the family business. He worked as a manager, a bartender, and primarily a cook, taking a faltering and struggling business and turning it into a successful legacy in the community. He certainly didn’t know it at the time, and pushed back often as a teenager against the lessons that now serve me as a man.

When I struggle and feel lost, I look for inspiration during difficult times. I’m so blessed. Unfortunate to only have to look at the life of my father to find the answers.

Dad — I hope that today, even for just a moment, you can feel some small reflection of the joy and honor you have given me every single day of my life.

Happy Father's Day
Joseph Borio Jr.
Born 9/28/2026

06/15/2026

🍆✨ Something absolutely delicious is coming your way from the kitchen at the villa in Puglia Italy…🇮🇹. Message below and guess what it is?!?!

An authentic recipe straight from the heart of Southern Italy — one that has been passed down through generations and belongs on every family table.

I’m in the kitchen this week, and trust me, you do NOT want to miss this one. 🇮🇹❤️

Tune in this week for a beautiful, delicious, authentic recipe your family will enjoy for generations to come. This is the kind of cooking that brings everyone together — the way it was always meant to be.

Stay tuned… 👀🔥

💛 If you love authentic Italian cooking, make sure you:
👍 LIKE this post
🔔 FOLLOW Cooking Italian With Joe
📤 SHARE with someone who loves great food

06/13/2026

Let's Make the Pasta of My Childhood ❤️ Filidini “Threads of the God.” A simple, comforting pasta that my grandmother Caroline Borio made for me throughout my entire childhood. She was from Piedmont in Northern Italy, and this was our special family dish.
It’s her version of the famous ultra-thin Sardinian pasta known as Filindeau (Threads of the Gods). Delicate, almost hair-thin strands of pasta gently tossed in a silky sauce of butter, pasta water, and lots of Parmigiano Reggiano. No complicated ingredients — just pure comfort, warmth, and beautiful memories.
Enjoy as I show you exactly how my Otalian grandmother prepared it: quick-cooking thin pasta gently folded (never stirred) until it becomes creamy, fragrant, and coated in that delicious cheesy-butter sauce. It’s ready in minutes and tastes like everything I remember as a small boy!
This one’s for the kid in all of us.
Full recipe below — save it, make it, and share it with someone you love.
If this brought back warm memories for you, drop a ❤️ or tell me your favorite childhood dish in the comments!
👉 Follow for more recipes
👉 Subscribe on YouTube for the longer versions
Thank you Nonna Caroline for all the beautiful memories. ❤️
🍝🇮🇹❤️ Please Like, Share, Subscribe. Joe Borio, host of YouTube Cooking Italian with Joe
Filidini – The Pasta of My Childhood ❤️
Ingredients (serves 4 small portions):
• ½ pound (225g) extra-thin pasta (Filini, capellini, or the thinnest spaghetti you can find)
• 4 quarts water
• Sea salt
• 1 tablespoon high-quality extra virgin olive oil
• 5–6 tablespoons high-quality butter
• ½ cup or more finely grated Parmigiano Reggiano (plus extra for finishing)
Method:
1. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a pot and season generously with sea salt.
2. While the water is heating, drizzle 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil into your serving bowl. This prevents sticking and adds flavor.
3. Add the pasta to the boiling water. It cooks very fast — usually 3 to 4 minutes. Cook to al dente.
4. When the pasta is ready, scoop out about 4 tablespoons of pasta water and add it to the serving bowl. Drain the pasta.
5. Immediately empty the pot and place your cast-iron pan back on the stove (do not turn the heat on). Use the residual heat in the pan.
6. Add the drained pasta and the reserved pasta

06/13/2026

👋❤️👇Getting ready to shoot another video and recipe from the Villa in Vico Del Gargano Puglia Italy! 🇮🇹 🍝🇮🇹❤️ Please Like, Share, Subscribe. Joe Borio, host of YouTube Cooking Italian with Joe Borio, sharing stories, Italian recipes, travel tips, and all to Love about Italy 🇮🇹! Check us out. . homemade italianfood

06/06/2026

🚗✨ Say hello to our brand new car in Italy! After years with our poor old beat-up Panda that had nothing working, we finally upgraded and we’re SO excited! New Panda Hybrid! White with all the bells and whistles. This little beauty is perfect for our narrow streets here in the beautiful old village of Vico del Gargano. Nothing bigger would fit anyway!
75 horses, working air conditioning, power windows… it feels like total luxury compared to the old one 😂 We can’t wait to cruise around, hit the market, grab fresh ingredients, and cook up all the great recipes I want to share with you guys!
We’re officially Italians now — just need to slap that sticker on the back! 🇮🇹❤️
Love this place. Love this car. New adventures incoming!

🍝🇮🇹❤️ Please Like, Share, Subscribe. Joe Borio, host of YouTube Cooking Italian with Joe Borio, sharing stories, Italian recipes, travel tips, and all to Love about Italy 🇮🇹! Check us out. .

06/05/2026

👇Which one would you have for breakfast in Italy? 🇮🇹🍦
Morning in Vico Del Gargano with my friend Antonio at Capriccio! We’re standing in front of the gelato case and I ask him… “Okay, which one for breakfast?” 😂
He smiles, walks me right next door to Sweet Capricho, and shows me why Italians do breakfast right. They just added an amazing coffee (so good!), plus stunning new desserts shaped like real food — they look almost too beautiful to eat. And of course, fresh croissants on the way out.
So tell me… gelato for breakfast? Or are we going with the pastries and coffee?
Drop your choice below! ⬇️


🍝🇮🇹❤️ Please Like, Share, Subscribe. Joe Borio, host of YouTube Cooking Italian with Joe Borio, sharing stories, Italian recipes, travel tips, and all to Love about Italy 🇮🇹! Check us out. . homemade italianfood

06/03/2026

🍇 🇮🇹❤️ Just went LIVE from our stunning Villa La Kala de Borio in Vico Del Gargano, Italy! ✨
I took you through the beautiful vines surrounding the villa — from those delicate little flowers to the tiny baby grapes that are slowly growing into full, juicy clusters ready to become incredible wine. It’s amazing watching nature do its magic right here in this special corner of Puglia.
Thank you so much to everyone who joined the live! We’re truly excited and grateful to be building our community here — your support means the world. If you enjoyed it, please like, share, and follow so we can keep bringing you more beautiful moments from the villa! ❤️
The replay is now up — go check it out!
Drop a comment below: Are there any recipes, topics, or things you’d love me to cook, share, or discuss in future lives? Your ideas are always welcome!
Can’t wait to connect more with all of you.
🍝🇮🇹❤️ Please Like, Share, Subscribe. Joe Borio, host of YouTube Cooking Italian with Joe Borio, sharing stories, Italian recipes, travel tips, and all to Love about Italy 🇮🇹! Check us out. .