Category Archives: Italian Food

THE RESTAURANT BIZ: LIFE LESSONS

Down and out with a nasty case of flu for the past week, it’s time to catch up. Writing deadlines first, and what’s been going on with the local restaurants and chefs second.

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PANTRY PASTA: COMFORT FOOD

Your day was meh. If you’re anything like me, you come home to the place where you can shut out the rest of the world, put on what ever old thing makes you comfortable, maybe a little music and maybe a glass of wine or a beer. Okay, feeling a bit better you peruse the take-out menu folder and shuffle through it like you don’t have it memorized.

Pizza? no. Chinese? no. Okay, I have a suggestion for you. Hit the pantry. Go in and pull out all of those jars and cans that have been sitting on the shelf. Look through the fridge. Is there a box of pasta? Spaghetti? Good. Here’s the recipe — and I use that word loosely — that I make when I want honest to goodness, simple comfort food in a hurry.

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ANTIPASTO: THE NEW TV DINNER

No matter how you slice it, everyone looks forward to Friday night. End of the workweek for many, date night for others, game night or just downtime, it is what we crave.

What we want most is the time to relax. A few no hassle, change out of our face-the-world clothes and just let go and breathe. To that end, we have gone a pretty simple, no cook dinner route in our kitchen.

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CHALLENGE: TASTING MANY RESTAURANTS IN ONE NIGHT

Previewing what a restaurant has to offer before you commit to a reservation? Is this possible? If you attended the Holiday Flavour party at the Molly Pitcher Inn on the beautiful Navesink River in Red Bank, NJ, you may have tasted more than 20 restaurant offerings.

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COOKING BY THE BOOK: A COLLECTION

When is a collection not a case of hoarding? Recently, I found a group of fellow cookbook collectors on facebook. They call themselves The Cookbook Junkies. Like me, this is a group of cookbook aficionados who have amassed or are in the process of putting together collections of cookbooks. I think everyone has their own reason for what appeals to them, but it can be rewarding and comforting to find like-minded compatibility.

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