PAZZO!

I know, I know.  I've been absent...again.  Those of you who actually follow my blog are probably suffering from Rip Van Winkle syndrome and falling asleep waiting for the next posting.  Ok, here it is.

I've been to quite a few wonderful restaurants here in Naples-land.  But, the most recent has proven to be the most accurately representative of great Italian restaurants "Up North."  Drum roll......PAZZO!

The word translates to mean, "crazy, bonkers, daft, cuckoo..." you get the idea.  I'm not sure why the owners chose this name for this wonderful restaurant, but, hey.  Who cares!  This place has homemade pasta, delicious sauces, gravies, desserts...and, the atmosphere is friendly, warm, and classy.  What else do you need in a restaurant?

I'm going to skip right to my entree: Pollo Vodka Penne
Grilled chicken tossed with penne pasta, crispy prosciutto and
hearts of artichoke in a cream and fresh basil pesto
finished with a vodka kissed tomato sauce

Ok.  So this was BEYOND fabulous.  I brought half of it home for the next day...my date had one of the specials...and oh, what a special it was!  A HUGE veal chop Parmesan.  This dish was not only cooked to tender perfection, it was enormous!  And the sauce...just the right amount of marinara, mozzarella, and fresh basil.  So....so...North.

I highly recommend PAZZO! to anyone visiting the Naples area.  Their website is below:

http://www.pazzoitaliancafe.com/

Lidia's Italy

Not that Lidia Bastianich needs any promotion from me....or anyone for that matter, since she and her children are accomplished culinary professionals--Lidia is the owner of several successful restaurants. Stop in to Lidia's Italy, and enjoy all that her site has to offer. Her television show of the same name brings the viewer into her warm kitchen where she shares her heritage and expertise of traditional Italian cuisine. Lidia might even treat us with a song....and she ends her show by inviting her guests: "Tutti a tavola a mangiare!" Everyone, come to the table and eat!

http://www.lidiasitaly.com/

Lemon Pistachio Biscotti

I'll be posting the above recipe on foodbuzz, if you'd like to check it out there. It's also in my cookbook, Bill of Fare.