Easy Italian for Two

Ciao amici!

Today I decided to share with you one of my favorite types of food to make - anything ITALIAN. It's simple, healthy and best of all DELICIOUS!

For starters I made Bruschetta with tomatoes and fresh parsley, my main meal was three-cheese tortellini with a tomato-based sauce (I cheated and used store-bought pasta but I made the sauce from SCRATCH!), and for my side...potatoes and spinach - YUMMY!!!! Right, here come the recipes! Enjoy! Try! Comment!!!

Tomato and Parsley Bruschetta

-2 Roma tomatoes
-1/4 bunch of fresh parsley
-1 small clove garlic (use more if you like more)
-juice of one lemon (remember to remove the seeds)
-approximately 1 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (best quality you can find -
the greener the better)
-Balsamic Vinegar, to taste (I must admit I forgot to add this but about
1/4 tsp. would be great in it)
-Tabasco sauce, to taste
-salt and pepper, to taste
-parmesan cheese, grated (fresh is best, but use what you like)
-french bread or any kind of baguette you would like to use

Finely chop the parsley and garlic. Add them to a bowl with the olive oil, lemon, salt and pepper. Taste it to see if you like the ratio of olive oil to lemon...if it's too lemony, add more oil, if it's too oily add more lemon. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the baguette into about 1/2-inch thick slices. Brush both sides with olive oil and place on baking sheet. Bake on the middle (or lower) rack for only a minute or two, or until golden-medium (NOT DARK) brown. ***Alternative: if you don't want to turn your oven on for this, use a frying pan and coat it with a little olive oil. Place the bread in the pan and cook for a few minutes, turning over if needed.

Meanwhile, dice the tomatoes into medium-sized chunks. Set them aside.

Once your bread is golden-medium brown, add the tomatoes and Tabasco sauce to the parsley mixture. It should look something like this.

And finally, spoon a generous amount of tomatoes onto the bread and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Take a big bite and let the flavors EXPLODE in your mouth. Enjoy!

Tortellini with Tomato Sauce

-1-2 Tbsp. regular olive oil
-2 cloves garlic
-1 (796 ml/28 fl oz) can whole tomatoes (try to find the ones with the
LEAST amount sodium, you can always add some while cooking)
-2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
-1/2 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar (optional)
-salt and pepper, to taste
-assorted dried herbs (thyme, parsley, oregano, basil, italian seasoning),
to taste
-1-2 Tbsp. sugar
-water (if needed)

Finely chop garlic cloves. Open the can of tomatoes and have it ready next to the stove.

Add oil to large pot, place on stove turned to high heat. Allow the oil to warm up about a minute. Add garlic and continously stir for a few minutes, to allow the flavors to be released. Do NOT BURN. Turn the heat to medium, and quickly add the canned tomatoes (*WARNING it may sputter/sizzle so BE CAREFUL). Carefully stir the tomatoes (DO NOT CRUSH THEM YET), and add the dried herbs, salt and pepper. It should look like this after a few minutes.

Add about 1 Tbsp of sugar (this is NOT for sweetness, but rather to balance the acidity of the tomatoes). Put the cover on and simmer on low-medium heat for about 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Once the tomatoes look like they are ready to fall apart, squish them carefully and stir. Adjust the salt and spices if needed. If you want your sauce to be "saucier", add more water at this point. If you prefer a drier sauce, remove the lid and allow the liquid to dry up. Add balsamic vinegar and fresh parsley and stir for a few minutes. When your sauce is done it should look like this. (I kept mine a little drier and chunkier - if you would like a smoother sauce, use a hand blender.)

Boil your pasta of choice for 8-10 minutes and serve with sauce and grated parmesan.

Potatoes and Spinach on the Side

-2 small-medium potatoes (if you really like potatoes, use larger ones)
-1 bunch of fresh spinach
-2 tsp. unsalted butter
-olive oil
-salt and pepper, to taste

Wash and strain the spinach. Cut off and discard the larger stems, keep the smaller stems and leaves intact.

Dice the potatoes into medium-sized chunks.

Microwave the potatoes on defrost for only a *few* minutes - you do NOT want to completely cook them, just soften them so they cook faster in the pan. Pan fry the potatoes in about 1 Tbsp. olive oil. Stir frequently. When the potatoes have slightly browned, add the spinach on top, lower the heat and place the lid on the saucepan. Allow the spinach to steam a few minutes. Add butter, salt and pepper. Do not worry if the spinach seems too much...it may look like this now...

...but it will look like this in a few minutes.

Toss to finish and serve.

Well, I hope you all enjoyed my attempt at Italian cooking this evening. Hopefully you will try it or, at the very least, it will give you some yummy ideas!

Happy eating!