The temperature is finally dropping close to freezing at night here in Rome, which is actually one of my favorite times of the year. I love keeping the fireplace going and burrowing under a pile of warm blankets on the bed, and most of all I love winter foods. I thought a very hearty soup…
A friend of mine hosts a Christmas cocktail party for his staff and their families at his home each year, with his son as the bartender. He is in the throes of organizing this year’s party, and as we talked about how the event would all come together, it gave me the idea for this…
Thanksgiving is synonymous with pie, to me. I know a lot of people think of turkey, but I think of sweet potato pie. Yes, I am in the sweet potato pie, not pumpkin pie, camp as that is what was always served in my family at Thanksgiving and Christmas. I try each Thanksgiving to feature…
There’s no denying that we have a sweet tooth here at Design Sponge. Dessert is definitely my favorite part of Thanksgiving, and most holidays. A pie or cake are also easy dishes to bake and take if you’re a guest during the holidays, or even if you just want one (or a selection!) for your…
I love being able to feature non-American cuisine on this column as a reflection of how I myself eat, but also because I think there is so much out there to taste and try, I hope to inspire our readers to be as curious as I am. Bethany Kehdy, the blogger behind Dirty Kitchen Secrets…
I have tried for so long to get some traditional British cooking here on the column and finally I’ve done it! We have over the years had the Eton Mess, the traditional English meal, and today we have bacon and thyme Yorkshire puddings, by blogger Izy from Top with Cinnamon. I love the tutorials that…
I have managed to be swept into the cocktail fold by virtue of editing and producing the Behind the Bar column. I have started to taste new spirits, and have started exploring any cocktails made with ginger beer, starting with my favorite Dark and Stormy. I was therefore quite enticed when Talmadge from Pharmacie sent…
Kylie Antolini, the blogger behind The Baking Bird, put together a recipe for a honey thyme apple crisp this week to celebrate the arrival of autumn and to give an alternative to the typical apple pie recipe you’d expect to see this time of year. Kylie also chose the crisp because it’s quicker than apple…
A few weeks ago, we ran a recipe for a Monte Cristo sandwich with fried egg, and I shared a bit of my own personal enthusiasm for the versatility of the egg. This week’s recipe for baked eggs by Food52′s Amanda Hesser, takes eggs back to basics, presenting them in one of the simplest ways…
Biscuits. I don’t think this week’s post needs any other intro! OK, so maybe just a few words… This week’s recipe for classic buttermilk biscuits is the family recipe of Carrie Morey, owner of Callie’s Charleston Biscuits (named after her mother, Callie White). The recipe is the centerpiece of her new cookbook, A true southerner,…
It was so hot this summer, I had a daily ritual of stopping by a gelateria on my way home to get some very brief relief. It is now fortunately about 30 degrees cooler (but still pretty warm), but I still am weaning myself from my gelato habit. Kate Taylor, author of the whole food…
Over the years, it seems like every other week a new study comes out about the nutritional values of the eggs. Sometimes the yolk is the bad guy, sometimes the whites. I stopped trying to keep up with science when I had twelve eggs in one week and my cholesterol level went down. I really…
Apple season is upon us! My daydreaming will soon begin to meander toward all the many different ways I can consume apples. My favorite way is on a flaky crust in the form of an apple pie. This week, photographer Lara Ferroni shares a cocktail version of the apple pie, with cinnamon meringue. If I…
Remember how excited I was for Nicole Taylor’s Cherokee Rose Pound Cake earlier this year? Here’s another pound cake that made me just as happy, with the added bonus that it’s gluten-free. Kyra Bussanich, owner of Kyra’s Bake Shop and two-time winner of “Cupcake Wars”, developed this version of her quick and easy gluten-free pound…
Several years ago, when I was first introduced to photographer Jennifer Martine, she offered me her wild mushroom risotto. One son, a few years and three amazing recipes later, as the temperature drops, Jennifer is back with her recipe. As the temperature drops each autumn, I start to look forward to all of my favorite…
Summer is over, but the best time to take a holiday in Italy is just starting. Despite the oppressive heat, I personally prefer to stay in Rome in August when the city is empty, cars aren’t double and triple parked and on the sidewalk blocking all the pictures you may want to take of monuments…
This summer was incredibly hot in Rome. The arrival of September has done us a tiny favor of bringing the temperature down to what should have been normal summer weather in the first place. For this reason, we still have excellent summer produce in the markets, and I’ll be able to enjoy some of my…
I promise this is the last recipe with tomatoes as protagonist for this summer! I was all ready to explore other ingredients, when I was wooed by this tomato tatin by pastry chef / photographer duo Whip + Click. I love a good pastry recipe that can be used in different recipes if I decide…
Temperatures are almost back to normal summer levels in Rome, which is still hot, but at least you can go outside now. That means gelato stops periodically to refresh. I have worked my way through Rome food whiz, Katie Parla’s list of gelaterie and have settled on my favorites (and no, Giolitti and San Crispino…
Thank you in advance for allowing me another tomato recipe this summer. It is indeed one of my favorite summer fruits (or vegetables, depending on how you view them). This week’s recipe, pomodori col riso (rice-stuffed tomatoes), is a staple of the Roman ‘fast food’ scene. By fast food, I mean the roast chicken and…
