It was not better. In fact, it was totally inedible. I have not had something this bad in a long time. I was so disappointed. You know when you love to eat something and you totally have a craving for it and it totally does not measure up? Well this was way beyond that. I was so looking forward to this soup. I had thought about it all day. And it was unbelievably awful.

The texture was brothy when you want a bean soup to be thick and creamy, and the flavor was (is putrid too strong a word?). I am not sure if it was the shallots or the garlic but I have never had such bad white bean soup.

I would not make this again. I hope you stay clear of it too!

It is always interesting to see what chefs think of as a good curry sauce. I am always skeptical since I have my one favorite way to make a curry sauce but I really liked Giada’s version. I also think that good curry sauce depends on a good curry spice. Curry comes in many flavors, so I recommend that you taste several brands and styles until you find the one that you like the best. At first glance I thought the recipe made a little too much dressing but there was sandwich seemed a little dry when I only used half so, I quickly used up the full amount.

I was also really lucky to have gotten a beautiful tender head of radicchio that added crunch to the sandwich.I served a fresh green bean salad with the sandwich.

The next time I make this dish (which I think I actually will), I would scoop out some of the bread inside the roll so I am eating less bread and more curried chicken. But I wouldn’t change anything else!

To try it yourself, click here http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/everyday-italian/curried-chicken-sandwich-with-radicchio-and-pancetta-recipe/index.html

To see Giada make it, click here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/curried-chicken-sandwich/31798.html

I usually broil my salmon with just salt and pepper but this recipe called for frying it in oil. Since salmon is already a fatty fish, I would definitely broil the salmon if I were to make this again. I don’t think the extra oil is necessary, especially since there is a lot in the pea puree.

The pea puree was really interesting. I know the word “interesting” is usually a bad thing to say about – well, almost anything, but especially – food. But it was interesting. The puree involves no cooking. Just puree the ingredients. The mint really comes through and slightly overpowers the peas. The texture was really nice against the richness of the salmon but the brodetto broke up my peas too much. Next time, I would either simmer the brodetto longer so it thickens more or I would add less to each dish.

Overall, this was easy and fun to make since it is different for me. However, I think this dish is more suitable for a starter and not an entree since for me the flavors were just a little too much when all put together.  

To try this recipe yourself, click here:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/salmon-in-lemon-brodetto-with-pea-puree-recipe/index.html

I have not been doing a lot of cooking as of late, mostly due to the heat (and some laziness, I admit it!). But I went over to my best friends for dinner on Friday night and I thought I would make these and bring them over. They were a hit! Even the kids kept comign back for seconds.

I will no doubt make these many more times – for breakfast without the glaze, as the cake for berry trifles, for brunch, tea parties with my daughter or just when I want something fluffy and lemony.

Barbara, you are gonna love these!

Here’s the recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/lemon-ricotta-cookies-with-lemon-glaze-recipe/index.html

This recipe is light and lemony and just really simple and delicious. This is really another recipe of Giada’s that also reflect my style of cooking: not fussy, just fabulous. While we usually eat pastas as the main and only dish - we tend to make pretty hearty pastas – this one does better with a starter like bruschetta with tomatoes or white bean puree to help make it a more satisfying meal.

For my daughter, who is not ready for shellfish, I pulled out some linguine before combining it with the shrimp, blanched some broccoli in the pasta water, and drizzled it all with the lemon oil, and added a couple slices of her new favorite meat - prosciutto on the side. She loves to slurp up pasta (even linguine!).

This week, I am deliberating about how to incorporate desserts into my meal plan. We are trying to eat more heathfuly so I might just make the desserts as special occasions arise. I will get to them all – as planned – but it might just take a little longer.

Pinwheels are also known as Stromboli. Some people mistake for Calzones, more like pockets folded over with meat and veggies (or whatever the chef desirs). Stromboli is very similar – bread dough topped with yummy ingredients - but instead of being folded over like a pocket, it is rolled into a cylinder (like a burrito) and baked to golden perfection.

Today, my daughter and I dropped my husband off at my parents house to hang out (well, play PS3 ), so we could go shopping and finish getting a couple things ready for Father’s Day tomorrow. Instead of just picking him up and cooking at home, we decided to bring all the ingredients over to make the pinwheels and share the fun!

While the guys played their games, the girls got busy in the kitchen. We made two “pinwheels” tonight: one following the recipe precisely and the other stuffed with salami instead of prosciutto. The recipe came together very quickly; each of us taking on a particular job: I prepared the dough, mom grated the cheese, and Emily sprinkled on the toppings.  After about 15 minutes, the pinwheels were in the oven. There is something soul-satisfying about warm bread baking inthe oven.

20 minutes later, the pinwheels were ready to be pulled and cooled.  We cut into them and the cheese came running out – mmm, mmm. We made a side salad and served ourselves up a helping. We all enjoyed the pinwheels. They were warm, delicious and filling. (My dad wants to make them again – next time with pepporoni.)

There is not a lot of prep work involved. You could make these pretty quick with whatever ingredients you have on hand.  Just be sure to prepare your dough early in the day or the night before or pick up a fresh package of pizza dough at Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods. 

This is a great recipe to make with kids! It would be a fun dish to make with your family with everyone picking their own ingredients and dressing half of the dough with their picks.

Tip for next time – add a little more cheese!

Saturday is cooking and movie night! Each week, we will pick a new movie to watch together as a family and hangout together. This summer, our town is doing movies in the park on Saturday nights so that fits right into our schedule. It is going to be a blast! Maybe I will even throw in a little movie review into the blog!

I went grocery shopping early this morning so I am all set for tomorrow’s recipes where I will tackle another pasta and a dessert! Actually, I better read then again since I *might* need to make the dessert tonight! So check back in tomorrow when I dish on the latest dishes from Giada’s Kitchen, New Italian Favorites.

Caprese salad is one of my favorite summer dishes. Simply layer slices fresh mozzarella, fresh basil leaves, and slices of  peak of the season tomatoes, drizzle with a olive oil and dust with a pinch of salt and fresh-cracked black pepper. It is so easy to put together, and no cooking involved! It is a great dish to make for a party, serve as starter to your meal or as a side. Giada took it one step further and turned it into a pasta dish. Brilliant!

Giada features it under her “Not just for kids” section and I think it is particularly appealing to kids because of the spiral noodles – though my kid took one bite of the mozzarella and said, “What is this? I don’t like it!” (So I went back to the kitchen and made her a little sourdough toast pizza – marinara sauce on toasted sourdough with “string cheese” not “mozzarella” and broiled for 2 minutes to melt the cheese.)

This pasta is really fresh tasting and light. I made just a half recipe and it was ample for 2 adults and 1 child with a little leftover for lunch tomorrow. If you have had cappellini – this is really similar with the addition of the mozzarella. However, like a lot of recipes I run into there are a couple of things I would change in the future:

1. Add more tomatoes. With only a half recipe, I may not have gotten the full effect, but as a tomato lover, I would definitely add more next time.
2. I would set the table and get everyone ready to eat and then add the fresh mozzarella at the last minute. I spent about a minute chopping the mozz into cute little bite size piece so the cheese would be in each bite and threw it in the bowl with the pasta and sauce and then I went to set the table. When I came back – just 2 minutes later, tops – the cheese had all fallen to the bottom and melted into a big clump! Not good! I had to break the cheese up by hand and try to distribute it evenly in the bowls.

But I will definitely make this pasta again, especially in the summer when I want something light and easy. Mange bene!

So the Strata is cooked and ready to eat…and the verdict is: it is good.  (My daughter likes it and asked for seconds which is a great sign from a picky eater.)

I am used to savory stratas but this dish would be great for a brunch. It is really just like a bread pudding. I ate mine drizzled with maple syrup since it was the morning. But I could easily see this with ice cream for dessert.

I think the recipe as written is a good base recipe but it does feel a little bland and incomplete on its own (without any accompaniments). I used Beckmann’s Sourdough sliced bread (from Whole Foods) and fresh ricotta from the deli. If I were to make it again, I would try fresh berries, not frozen as the recipe calls for, and I would maybe add a smidgen of orange zest to pull that flavor in a little more. Maybe dust it with confectioner’s sugar, add a pat of butter to the top, and then drizzle on the maple sugar generously.

PS – Try the strata at room temp. We were excited to eat it as soon as it came out of the oven and waited the recommended 5 minutes but a bite 15 minutes later was much better!