Ciao Amici,
My name is Ellen, and I want to welcome you to An Italian Dish. Thank you for being part of this adventure. With a 30 year teaching career under my belt, I am putting my love and passion for writing, travel, and Italian cooking into this blog.
I am a California native with Italian heritage who has a desire to share authentic Italian recipes and travel adventures. I want to take you with me, so please subscribe here so you can receive my most recent posts and Italian recipes fresh off the plate. Did I mention that I want to eat Italian food?
Here are some of my articles on travel and a variety of other topics of interest:
Author Interviews:
The Ghosts of Italy: In Conversation with Angela Paolantonio
My child, the blog.
Making travel plans for 2018? How about Urbania, Italy?
Italy North to South 2017
On the Menu Tonight in Venice
5 Off-Beat Things to Do in Venice, Italy
5 Steps to (finally) Fulfilling Your Travel Dreams
Italian Diaries
Big Night: Everything you want in a foodie film
In the Evacuation Zone
Slow Down and Taste the Food
My Italian Grandmother’s Gift
How Do You Define Freedom? Biking around Florence
A bit more about me. I was raised in Northern California and spent a great deal of time with my Italian grandmother. I learned many cooking skills and the joy of time spent in the kitchen. When I was 15, she took me to Boston’s North End to meet my Italian relatives. It was then that my love of everything Italian was born.
I have raised two children and cooked a family meal just about every night. During that busy time, cooking was just a daily chore, but now that my kids are grown, Italian cooking is a passion and a creative outlet.
Some of the things I love about Italy: warm gnocchi, chocolate gelato, train rides through sunflower fields, bridges over rivers, grilled artichokes, outdoor markets, and eating an entire pizza for lunch. I even love my attempts at carrying on a conversation in Italian.
In Italy there is a reverence for sacred ingredients and pride in the preparation of each dish. I love the fact that names of cheeses are protected by law. I am interested in the use of local food and humane farming practices. I guess that is the California girl in me.
I long to share information, stories and recipes with you, my faithful readers, so together, we will become drenched in the slow, Italian life. Stay tuned!
p.s. I love feedback and recipe suggestions, so please feel free to leave a comment!