Basic Ingredients for White Pizza with Herbs:

• 1 recipe Basic Pizza Dough, rolled out
• 5 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 4 tablespoons mixed fresh herbs (rosemary, basil, parsley, sage, or thyme)

Directions for White Pizza with Herbs:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Brush 2 tablespoons olive oil on pizza dough and sprinkle some salt evenly over dough.  Distribute herb mixture evenly over dough.
• Drizzle remaining olive oil and some pepper to taste and place in oven.  Bake about 30 minutes.  Crust should be nice and golden brown.

Serves 4.

Tip:  Use fresh herbs, if possible, because fresh herbs are so much more flavorful.

Ingredients for Pizza with Potato and Rosemary:

• 1 recipe Basic Pizza Dough, rolled out
• olive oil
• 1 large Yukon or Russett potato, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1-2 sprigs fresh rosemary

Directions for Pizaa with Potato and Rosemary:

• Preheat oven to 400° F.
• Brush some of the olive oil on pizza dough.  Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste and arrange potatoes and rosemary.  Place in oven.
• Bake about 30 minutes, remove from oven, and cool slightly.  Cut into wedges.

This recipe for Pizaa with Potato and Rosemary serves 4.

Ingredients for Stuffed Flank Steak:

• 2 eggs, hard-boiled
• 4-6 baby carrots, steamed, sliced
• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak
• 2 sliced baked ham
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 1/2 cup vegetable stock
• 1/4 cup white wine

Directions for Stuffed Flank Steak:

• Peel eggs and chill in refrigerator.  When cool, slice and set aside.
• Steam carrots until tender.  Drain and set aside.
• Use meat mallet to tenderize steak on both sides.  Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.
• Lay slices of ham, carrots, and eggs on flank steak.  Roll flank steak and secure with twine.
• In semi-deep pot, combine olive oil, butter, garlic, rosemary, and onion.  Cook over medium heat.  Add flank steak and brown on all sides.
• When meat browns on all sides, add vegetable stock and wine.  Reduce heat and cook about 1½ to 2 hours.
• Remove twine prior to slicing and serving.

This Stuffed Flank Steak recipe serves 4.

Ingredients for Pork Roast with Herbs and Garlic:

• 1 pork tenderloin
• 1 garlic love, peeled
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 4 leaves sage
• 1 sprig thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions for Pork Roast with Herbs and Garlic:

• Lay pork tenderloin flat and rub with garlic clove.
• In large bowl, combine olive oil, garlic, rosemary, sage, thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper to taste, and lemon juice.  Stir to mix well.
• Add pork tenderloin and marinate about 2 hours in refrigerator.
• Preheat oven to 400° F.
• Place pork with marinade in oven-safe dish and cook for 1 hour or until it cooks thoroughly.
• Remove from oven and serve onplatter with cooked marinade drizzled over pork tenderloin or served from gravy boat.

This Pork Roast with Herbs and Garlic recipe serves 4 to 6.

Ingredients for Chickpea Soup:

• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 baby carrots, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 (16 ounce) cans chickpeas
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary
• 1 cube vegetable bouillon
• 6 ounces tubini pasta or other small pasta
• Grated parmigiano cheese

Directions for Chickpea Soup:

• In large, deep pot, combine olive oil, carrots, and onions.  Sauté until onions are translucent.
• Add chickpeas (with juices), rosemary, salt and pepper to taste and vegetable bouillon.  Stir to mix well.
• Cover and simmer on low heat about 30 minutes.  Check periodically and stir.
• Add 6-8 cups water and bring to boil.  Add pasta and cook according to package directions.  Garnish with parmigiano cheese and serve hot.

This Chickpea Soup recipe serves 4 to 6.

Tip:  Pasta may be omitted from this recipe if desired.

Roasted Potatoes (Patate Arrosto)

 

Roasted potatoes are called Patate Arrosto in Italian. Whatever you call them, they are delicious. The outside is a bit crunchy with a soft center that is full of flavor due to the olive oil and rosemary used in this recipe. This is a very common dish that mamma makes especially when she is preparing Italian meatballs (polpette), Italian meatloaf (polpettone), Oven-baked Chicken (Pollo al Forno), or Pork Roast (Arrosto di Maiale).

Ingredients for Roasted Potatoes:

• 6 to 8 Large Russet potatoes
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 sprigs of fresh Rosemary

Directions for Roasted Potatoes:

• Preheat oven to 350° F (176° C).
• Wash and peel potatoes.  Cut potatoes in half, then into quarters.  Set potatoes aside.
• In an oven-safe dish or foil roasting pan, add olive oil, garlic, potatoes, salt, and pepper.  Mix well.  Add more olive oil if potatoes are not coated.
• Sprinkle rosemary pieces over top of potatoes.
• Place in oven and stir occasionally during the baking process.  Bake for about 1 ½ hours or until potatoes are golden brown. 

This Roasted Potatoes recipe will serve 4 to 6.

Wash chicken before cooking.

There a variety of ways to make Chicken Cacciatore, sometimes with tomatoes and sometimes with peppers. But, this simple, classic recipe needs no entourage. The chicken is so tender, it just falls off the bone and into your mouth.

Ingredients for Chicken Cacciatore:

• 5 lb. whole chicken
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil, enough to coat bottom of pan
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/3 cup white wine vinegar
• 3 sprigs fresh rosemary

Directions for Chicken Cacciatore:

Cut chicken into pieces.

• Spray a large, deep skillet with cooking spray.
• Add chicken, garlic, salt, and pepper.
• Cover and cook over medium to high heat.
• After 10 to 15 minutes, add olive oil and white wine. Continue to cook, turning chicken on all sides.
• After 15 more minutes, add white wine vinegar and continue to cook for approximately 15 to 20 more minutes or until chicken is cooked thoroughly.
• In the last 5 minutes of cooking, add the rosemary.

This recipe for Chicken Cacciatore serves 4 to 6 people.

Chicken Cacciatore