Blog - Proud Italian Cook

FALL…CHICAGO STYLE!!!!

October 21, 2007 by Marie 5 Comments

It hasn’t felt much like fall here because the weather has been so warm, with many days still in the 80’s. Until today!! Finally, fall has arrived! The temperatures are cooler, the trees are full of color, and the leaves are falling everywhere! So today is not a cooking post, because the whole day was spent outside enjoying this beautiful day!! Thank goodness for leftovers!! because that is whats for dinner tonight!!!

Here are a few pictures of Fall Chicago Style!

5 Comments Filed Under: Chicago Tagged: fall, leaves, trees

STUFFED PEPPERS WITH SAUSAGE AND FONTINA

October 18, 2007 by Marie 18 Comments

My Hubby called from work the other day and with much excitement he said,”Guess what I got today?”so I’m thinking WOW!, maybe he got a raise or something! Instead he said, ” A gigantic bag of Melrose peppers!! I could see how happy he was so I said, “Great!!” It just so happens, my Hubby did a favor for some nice Italian man who grows tons of them in his backyard, and to say Thanks, he brought him a huge bag.

I previously wrote a post on Melrose Peppers a while back just because my Hubby loves them so much, and as I said before, he would just eat that for dinner with some good Italian bread. I normally just saute them in a pan with olive oil, a little garlic and salt and pepper, then add a little red sauce at the end. So, because there were so many, I did a bunch like that, and the ones that were really big, I decided to stuff them. I happen to have a big hunk of Fontina cheese in the frig, and some Italian sausage in bulk. So all I did was cook up the sausage, cube up the cheese, and stuffed the peppers, I also had some leftover marinara, that I layered in also.

There were pans of peppers everywhere!!! So I made a quick call to my Son,( who’s taking after his Dad in the Melrose Pepper department) to stop by on his way home from work for a care package to take home. And without hesitation he said, “I’ll be there”!! So ,as you can see , although they are a very simple dish they are one of my family’s favorite!!

For those of you who never heard of Melrose Peppers, they look like a Cubanelle, banana shaped, very sweet and tender. I wonder if any of you heard of them, or is it just a Chicago thing? I hope my pictures do them justice!!

Buon Appetito!!

18 Comments Filed Under: Chicago Tagged: fontina, sausage, stuffed peppers

SPAGHETTI WITH PANCETTA AND MUSHROOMS

October 16, 2007 by Marie 2 Comments

I like to make a pasta dish at least one night during the week, normally I do it with vegetables, whatever I might have on hand at the time. Yesterday I looked and saw this beautiful package of Cremini mushrooms, which also are called Baby Portabellas. I also had a small container of diced Pancetta. “Nice combo” I thought!! So I pulled out my trusty saute pan and started to cook up the Pancetta till nice and slightly crispy, after which I drained. Then back in the pan with a drizzle of olive oil & some onions, & garlic When the pasta was done I drained it and tossed it in the pan with everything. It was finished off with a generous amount of Romano cheese and a sprinkling of fresh parsley!! It’s a quick meal that doesn’t take much time, but definitely tastes like you did!!!

Buon Appetito!!

2 Comments Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged: cremini, pancetta, spaghetti