Ricotta and Herb Stuffed Chicken, Grilled Veggie Couscous, and a Fresh Salad from my Garden

With the long weekend ahead of us and the Fourth of July right around the corner you might consider this as one of your meals, Ricotta and Herb Stuffed Chicken. Placing an herby, cheesy and citrusy mixture of creamy ricotta underneath the skin turns a simple chicken into something quite amazing!

I get all my chicken from Whole Foods, I know where they come from and I love how clean and fresh they look and the friendly butcher behind the counter is always happy to do anything I ask so I don't even have to get my hands messy! Lately every chicken I buy I've been asking him to cut the back out for me, better known as spatchcocked or butterflied. I just love how even and fast it cooks up being cut that way.

For this particular recipe you're going to be loosening the skin all around which will make it easier for you to place your ricotta mixture underneath. Just wiggle your fingers carefully under the skin along the top and bottom of the breast, thighs and tops of the legs.

For the ricotta filling mix up 1lb of ricotta with fresh herbs of your choice, I used basil and parsley along with grated parmesan or romano cheese, salt, pepper, lemon zest and chopped sundried tomatoes. In a small pan, saute 1 clove of minced garlic and either sliced green onions or the lighter part of a leek, when soft, toss and stir into the ricotta mixture.

Lift up the skin and stuff your bird wiggling the ricotta mixture down to cover all areas. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil on top. Roast in a 450F oven for 30 minutes with tin foil over the breast part, then remove foil and turn oven down to 400F and continue cooking until internal temperature reaches 180F. Let it rest before cutting into it. (You could grill this but make sure you don't lose your ricotta mixture.)

While the chicken is cooking in the oven you can be outside grilling up some vegetables for this delicious side dish of Grilled Vegetable Couscous, better yet get it done earlier in the day so you can be sipping your favorite drink instead!

Cook your couscous according to the package, I like the large Israeli couscous, toast it first in olive oil then add water, it's usually equal amounts. I had 1 1/3 cups of couscous and the same amount of water. When it cools down to room temperature add your grilled veggies, I used red, yellow, orange and green peppers, Vadalia onions, portobello mushrooms and fresh corn. Add lots of chopped basil, olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper to taste.

I'm excited to share my first romaine salad of the year that my green thumb husband grew for us, he has it growing in pots as well as in the ground.

He won't let me cut the leaves off for fear I might destroy the plant, he's very particular. Look how proud he is!

The leaves were so tender and fresh even the core was delicious, simply dressed with my very best olive oil, fresh squeezed lemon juice and light shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano, simply the best!

Have a great weekend and Buon Appetito!

A Chicago Culinary Adventure with Bertolli

This past Saturday I was invited along with other Chicago based bloggers to spend the day experiencing authentic Italy in Chicago through the eyes of Bertolli. I was told to prepare my palate for a truly delectable day, and it certainly was!


Our initial meet up was to be at L'Appetito, a cozy Italian deli located on the lower level of the John Hancock building off of Michigan Ave. Our gracious hosts from the Zocalo Group were there to welcome us all. L' Appetito was the first authentic Italian deli on the gold coast and still remains twenty four years later.

The weather was beautiful and the deli was bustling with people inside and out enjoying all their favorite Italian eats like gelato, cappuccino, espresso, fresh baked pastries, cookies, sandwiches, subs and much more!

As we dipped our biscotti and savored each bite of authentic Italian cookies we enjoyed hearing how this family business got started and how much it has evolved through out the years.

You could imagine our excitement when these beauties were brought to our table, Affogato, a classic Italian dessert consisting of creamy vanilla gelato being "drowned" in warm espresso, a match made in heaven! If you haven't tried Affogato yet, you must! It's the perfect summertime dessert! I was so impressed with their gelato, very authentic taste and texture and their exclusive use of Illy brand coffee. Check out a previous post I did on Affogato here.

Our next stop was at Chicago French Market to visit Pastoral Artisan Cheese, Bread & Wine. Waiting for us was an Italian cheese tasting, custom made especially for our event.

Our taste buds were heightened as we sampled, ***Montasio Vino Rosso, a cows milk cheese covered with Cabernet and Merlot. *** Podda*** Taleggio*** a wonderful Gorgonzola DOP Piccante, somewhat spicy, loved it! and the king of all cheeses, *** Parmigiano Reggiano.

After the tasting we had time to walk around the French Market which is actually a year-round indoor marketplace filled with local artisans and purveyors.

Next stop on our journey was to Old Town Oil, located on Wells St. where we had the opportunity to taste specialty olive oils and balsamic vinegars from around the world.

Each one unique in it's own special way, grassy, fruity, spicy, full bodied. Tasting olive oil is similar to a wine tasting. I especially loved their Tuscan Herb, I pictured it drizzled over grilled vegetables, it has a wonderful infused herby flavor!

It was fun sampling all the balsamic vinegars, aged, white and specialty, Some of my favorite flavors were, fig, tangerine, pomegranate, raspberry, honey and ginger, Sicilian lemon, white peach and jalapeno. I never knew there were so many different flavored vinegars!

We still a little time left before dinner so we all walked over to The Spice House, where I was introduced to my new favorite ingredient, tomato powder. Rich tasting and very tomato-ey I can't wait to add it into pasta dough.

The last stop on our journey was dinner at Coco Pazzo, on Hubbard St. Coco Pazzo was the first Chicago restaurant to focus solely on the Tuscan region of Italy. The minute you walk in you're welcomed by the beautiful loft style setting.

But my focus was all on the antipasto table which caught my eye immediately, a colorful display of all my favorite vegetables, meats and cheeses, all cooked to perfection!

Owner, Jack Weiss graciously spent time at our table welcoming us and telling us his story of how Coco Pazzo came to be. Manager Roberto explained the type of wine we would be having with each course from their award winning all Italian wine list, and the talented Executive Chef, Chris Macchia explained the custom pasta menu he created for us.

We started out our meal with amazing antipasto platters along with slices of warm homemade foccacia bread, I would have been happy stopping right there!

Then came the pasta, Mezzelune Gorgonzola, handmade half moon pasta, gorgonzolla filled, asparagus sauce. Tagliolini Neri, black squid ink pasta, rock shrimp, zucchini, tomato, chilles and basil. Pappadelle al Coniglio, homemade wide flat noodles, braised rabbit, white wine, aromatic vegetables, thyme.

I never had rabbit before so I was a little hesitant, but it looked so good I just went for it, and guess what? I loved it!

We finished our meal with a sampling of four different desserts, each one better than the other and a hot steamy cup of espresso!

A big thanks for all the goodies we got to take home throughout the day, and a giant thanks to all the Zucalo gals that took such good care of us, and of course, Bertolli!

Foodie Field Trip to Freddy's

There's a little Italian gem that is near and dear to my heart, it's located on a corner in a very unpretentious neighborhood, the name of that gem is called Freddy's Pizza, but don't let the name fool you, this is so much more than a pizza place, Freddy's is a landmark!
We've been going to Freddy's for years, ever since my kids were little, and today with families of their own they still continue to go, it's that kind of place, once you go, you're hooked for good!

Last week my girlfriends and I went to Freddy's for lunch, we arrived right before they opened , got a little table in their screened in area and managed to order our lunch before the constant flood of patrons started forming a line. This is a small place, the aisles are tight but nobody cares because you're here for the food, Italian ice and gelato, and it's so worth the wait!

Owner Joe Quercia who emigrated from Naples, Italy and his wonderful wife Ann Marie treat you like family when you walk in, no matter how busy they are they never seem to get flustered and always take the time to walk around asking how everything is, always making you feel welcome.

The aisles are filled with imported pastas, oils, giardinara, eggplant salad and various other Italian goodies, ( too many to mention). Farther down the small aisle you'll hit the deli section filled with imported cheese and meats, fresh mozzarella, homemade sopressata and the most delicious Italian sausage. Warm crusty bread and foccacia is brought out before you and smells are so enticing you just can't resist! Have I mentioned the pepperoni bread? Oh my, when you see it you can't hesitate for a second, because it will be gone!

A slight turn from the deli and you start seeing all the fresh homemade Italian specialties lined up, platter after platter of beautifully presented food. This is old world cooking made with loving hands and the taste confirms it all!

Lemon chicken, eggplant, meatballs, sausage and peppers, Italian beef, prosciutto sandwiches on focaccia, to name a few.

Antipasto everywhere, seafood salad, fried artichokes, roman style artichokes, garlicky rapini, ( Outstanding, I get some every time) arancini, salami salad, caprese, garbanzo bean, I could go on and on!

As you walk along the counter it's almost impossible to make choices because everything looks so amazing!

Thin crust, thick crust, Neapolitan style pizza with every different combination you can think of coming out of the oven piping hot!

Homemade ravioli, gnocchi, and various other pastas bathing in the most delectable sauce.

In the mood for risotto? No problem, it's there for you in all it's creamy glory!

That prosciutto just melts in your mouth!

We have a system when we go there, someone holds the table and a couple of us go up and start ordering, a little bit of this and a little bit of that, old favorites and something new, it dosen't matter what you get, it's all good!.
We bring it back to the table and savor every bite.

No fine china here, heavy duty paper plates with plastic forks and spoons, this was our glutinous table we could barely fit all the plates on. I'm still dreaming about those green olives, so creamy and buttery, I made sure they were all gone before we left.

After we're done eating we go back in for dessert, gelato and Italian ice is a must!

When we're done with dessert it's time to shop for goodies to bring home. A loaf or two of pepperoni bread will always go home with me along with a couple pounds of sausage.

Their Italian ice, what can I say, I crave it on a hot summer day, let's just say we've made many trips out there just for that over the years. Their gelato is amazing, no wonder it has been voted "Best gelato in all of Chicago" by Chicago Magazine!

One lick and you're transported to Italy!

So when you go you absolutely have to try both the Italian ice and the gelato, it's a must!

Here's my friends loaded down with goodies to take home.

I did some shopping too!

I told you I love the pepperoni bread!

In close, if you live in the Chicagoland area and have never been to Freddy's plan to go ASAP, you'll thank me later!

Freddy's Pizza

1600 South 61st. Ave.

Cicero (2 blocks West of Austin Blvd)

M-Sat 10 - 7

Closed Sundays

Cash Only!

The Thrill of the Grill!

I made this fish yesterday, it was 98 degrees out and my oven wasn't going on. It's so quick to put together, it cooks up fast and the taste? Well, you'll just have to try it, all I can say is that you won't be disappointed!

I take a shallow baking sheet and wrap the top and bottom with tin foil. Drizzle olive oil on the bottom, and add thinly sliced garlic on the top. Place your fish fillets over the sliced garlic, I used tilapia.

Season your fish with salt, pepper, and a sprinkling of paprika for color. Toss in some fresh herbs, I used parsley and basil. Add sliced cherry tomatoes, and kalamata olives and a small handful of capers. Scatter a few lemon slices around and add some of the juice. Finish off by drizzling olive oil all over.

Place the pan on a hot grill and close the lid. The smell is intoxicating as the garlic starts cooking and infuses the fish. When your fish is firm to the touch, it's done! This is great for a crowd, you can even use shrimp and a 1/2 sheet pan for more space. For my 4 fillets I just used a 1/4 sheet pan.

The flavors all blend together leaving an exceptional taste!

Straight from the farmers market, fresh asparagus and sweet knobby onions. ( that's what I call them.) You got to have some veggies on the side!

When I see pretty artichokes I can't resist them, I love them grilled and I often make them throughout the summer, a great way to start out your meal!

Basically I trim and quarter my artichokes and slowly boil them until tender. I let them cool completely down, then I pull out the choke and prickly leaves. Place the quartered artichokes in a bowl, drizzle olive oil all over, place grated romano cheese between the leaves along with salt, pepper, finely chopped garlic and fresh parsley. Place them on a hot grill turning them over until the cheese gets crusty and garlic cooks, it just takes a few minutes.

So good!