Sherried Tomatoes

These Sherried Tomatoes are delicious and make a great side dish to your meal. There is a subtle touch of fresh dill and they can be made 1 hour ahead and then are put under the broiler for a few minutes until the cheese melts and is bubbly and golden.

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Vegetable Chili

This is one of my all-time favorite chili recipes, which happens to be vegetarian. It's the perfect thing to make for a crowd with a regular chili con carne. It will please your vegetarian guests and the carnivores as well. It's delicious!

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Lemony Shrimp with White Beans and Couscous

This Lemony Shrimp with White Beans and Couscous is super fast to make. I used Israeli Couscous, but you could use orzo or a wide pasta such as a pappardelle. The key is to not overcook the shrimp!

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Butter Roasted Tomatoes, Beans, Kale, and Sausage Gratin

It’s winter and it’s cold. All you want is something hearty and stick-to-your-ribs good. But you’ve also been eating comfort food for the past month...enter this Butter Roasted Tomatoes, Beans, Kale, and Sausage Gratin. Rethink your winter carbo-load with this guiltless (but comforting!) veggie-loaded dish. You can leave out the sausage and make it truly vegetarian.

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Channa Masala Tomato Soup

This Channa Masala Tomato Soup, which is a combination of Trader Joe's Organic Low Sodium Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Soup and frozen Channa Masala is absolutely delicious. I am going to make sure to always have the ingredients on hand. Serve it with their Malabari Paratha. 

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Creamy Mushroom Chicken

This Creamy Mushroom Chicken is perfect for a busy work week. It only takes 30 minutes to make. The chicken and mushrooms get pan-seared and are enveloped in a rich cream sauce. No canned cream of mushroom soup is involved!

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Josephina’s

I used to cater a big party on New Year's Eve every year and someone always brought this hors d'oeuvres called Josephina’s. It was one of the most delicious appetizers I've ever had. People inhaled them, or as they say in England - "Hoovered" them up. You've got to try them!

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Passata Sauce from Pizzeria Mozza

Years ago, I took the last pizza class at Pizzeria Mozza with my good friend Chris, who happens to be one of my mentors. I want to tell you about the sauce. This sauce is so easy, it seems like you’ve forgotten something. There is no garlic, no herbs in this sauce!

For their pizzas – also called Passato. The sauce is not complex, instead showcasing the ingredients.

KEY 
The variety of tomato. Best: San Marzano. You want tomatoes that have more meat—lots of flesh – less water, fewer seeds, and sweeter. “DOP” designation is important. Homegrown tomatoes are often very watery making them less desirable since so much water would have to be cooked off.

TIPS 
Pan you use to cook sauce should be twice the size as amount of product you’re adding. A heavy pan—the heavier the better – should be used because it prevents sticking. Enameled cast iron (like Le Creuset) is perfect. Simmer the sauce gently until you get the taste you want. Taste often. It should not take that long to produce the sauce as it is simple with few ingredients.  Do not cook it to a paste.

Cool down the sauce before putting in on pizza dough.  It's a 2-ounce ladle of sauce per pizza. No more. You can also use this sauce for pasta as well.

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Basil Grape Crush

We went away last weekend to do some wine tasting in Santa Ynez. On the way home we stopped at this restaurant in Montecito, CA called the Honor Bar. The food was outstanding. I noticed they had a drink called a Grape Crush on the menu, which I had never heard of before. So my husband made me one when we got home. It's very refreshing. You can use red or green grapes.

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Creamy Lemon-Dill Shrimp

I made this Creamy Lemon-Dill Shrimp using Florida Gulf pink shrimp. Years ago, I was hired to demo Florida pink shrimp at a Whole Foods convention. I made shrimp scampi about 100 times for 2 days! I fell in love with pink shrimp. The combination of cream, lemon and dill is absolutely perfect.

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