All Posts By: NANCY DeLUCIA REAL

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Prep time: 10 to 12 minutes (for the squash) and 8 to 10 minutes (for the pasta)
Serves: 4

This pasta dish is perfect for a Fall meal, especially for your Thanksgiving dinner. You can make this as a first course (smaller portion) or it can serve four as a main dish. Pasta with Roasted Squash and Peas fuse together and delight the palate. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
4 cups pre-cut butternut squash (3/4-inch pieces are best), rinsed and drained
3/4 teaspoon salt
ground black pepper, to taste
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 pound rotini or other short pasta variety (E.g., substitute with penne or rigatoni)
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup fresh or frozen peas
parsley, basil or mint leaves (for garnish)
extra olive oil (to finish the dish at the end)
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese
Fresh Italian flat parsley leaves or basil leaves
Crushed, dried or fresh pepperoncino chiles

Directions for Broiling the Squash:
1. Turn on the oven broiler element (this is the top grill that turns red).

2. In the meantime, place the drained squash in a 4-quart bowl and toss together with the salt, ground black pepper and olive oil.

3. Transfer the squash to an oiled 18-inch X 12-inch baking sheet (lined with aluminum foil, if desired. DO NOT LINE WITH PARCHMENT AS THE BROILER WITH BURN IT).

4. Place the baking sheet with the squash on an oven rack that is set six inches below the top broiler.

5. Broil the squash for 6 minutes or until slightly charred.

6. After 6 minutes, toss the squash and broil it for an additional 6 minutes.

7. Taste the squash – it should be “al dente” or crunchy-tender. If needed, broil the squash for an additional 1 to 2 minutes.

8.Transfer the roasted squash to a glass or porcelain bowl; set aside.

Directions for the Pasta:
1. Bring a 4 to 6-quart saucepot filled with water to a boil.

2. When water boils, add one pound of pasta to it; add 1 teaspoon salt and stir.

3. Cook the pasta for 8 minutes; after 8 minutes, taste the pasta.

4. After 8 minutes, add the peas to the pasta in boiling water.

5. If needed, cook pasta for an additional 2 to 4 minutes, tasting it after every 2 minutes until it is “al dente” or crunchy-tender.

6. Drain the pasta/peas in a colander; return drained pasta/peas to the saucepot.

7. Toss in the roasted squash.

8. Taste the pasta and adjust salt, black pepper and extra virgin olive oil levels.

9. Serve immediately and garnish with parsley or basil.

10. Ask guests to add their own grated cheese and peperoncino chiles.
Text & Photograph ©2024 Nancy DeLucia Real

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Prep time: 10 to 12 minutes
Serves: 4

Wanna freak everyone out at your Halloween dinner or party? They won’t believe that a scary dish such as black fettuccine can be so delicious!

Ingredients:
1 pound black fettuccine (homemade and premade; available at Eataly foods store or other supermarket)
Your favorite tomato sauce for pasta
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese
Crushed, dried pepperoncino

Directions:
1. Bring a 4-quart saucepot of water to a boil.

2. Add the fettuccine to boiling water.

3. If homemade and fresh, boil the fettuccine for about 3 to 5 minutes (after 3 minutes, taste for doneness and boil a little longer if it’s not done).

4. If the fettuccine is from a package and dry, boil it for about 7 to 10 minutes.

5. While the fettuccine boil, keep the tomato sauce warm in a small saucepot; set aside.

6. When fettuccine has cooked, drain and return to the same saucepot.

7. Add sauce, stir and serve.

8. Ask guests to add their own Parmigiana Reggiano or Pecorino cheese and crushed peperoncino (dried chilis).
Text & Photograph ©2024 Nancy DeLucia Real

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Prep time: 10 minutes
Serves: 2

For those of us who avoid carbs and need to “pretend” we’re eating pasta, this recipe featuring zucchini as the pasta works really well. You can pair it with your favorite sauce. Mine is Bolognese (featured in photograph). As you enjoy this dish, you forget it’s not pasta!

Ingredients:

1 package (8 to 10 ounces) fresh zucchini, precut into spirals
Your favorite pasta sauce
Grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino Romano cheese
Crushed, dried pepperoncino

Directions:
1. Bring a 4-cup saucepot of water to a boil.

2. Add zucchini and boil for about 2 to 3 minutes (taste zucchini after 2 minutes to check doneness).

3. Drain zucchini and return it to the saucepot.

4. Add sauce, stir and serve.
Text & Photograph ©2024 Nancy DeLucia Real

SEE RECIPE FOTO ON FACEBOOK/THE KITCHEN BUZZZ AND INSTAGRAM/THE KITCHEN BUZZZ

Prep time: 10 minutes
Serves: 4

Aside from serving watermelon as a fruit course, you can use it in a salad. This Watermelon, Beet & Mint Salad goes alongside meat, fish, vegetarian or vegan recipes. Its flavors are refreshing and complement savory and/or spicy dishes. Enjoy this salad all summer!

Ingredients:

4 cups fresh watermelon, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
3 pink or yellow beets, precooked* and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1/2 cup thinly-sliced red onion
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup slivered fresh mint leaves (this is done by holding multiple leaves in hands and using shears to cut thin slivers)

Directions:

1. In a 3-quart mixing bowl, combine the watermelon and beet cubes with the red onion slices.

2. Gently stir in the olive oil, Dijon mustard, salt and ground black pepper.

3. Taste and adjust seasonings. If you wish, add 1 to 2 more tablespoons olive oil.

4. Stir in 1/4 cup slivered mint leaves.

5. Transfer the salad to a serving bowl; cover with plastic wrap and set aside on counter until ready to serve (up to 5 hours).

6. At serving time, give the salad a stir (oil will have settled at bottom) and garnish with remaining slivered mint leaves.

*TO PRECOOK BEETS:
1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Cut off beet ends, peel beets and wrap each one in aluminum foil.
3. Set them on bottom oven rack.
4. Bake beets for 25 to 30 minutes or until a knife inserts easily into one beet.
5. Cool beets on a plate. Use as directed in this recipe.

Text & Photograph ©2024 Nancy DeLucia Real

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Active prep time: 20 minutes (cooking milk mixture)
Inactive prep time: 90 minutes (cooling mixture & freezing time)
Serves: 4 to 6

Kulfi is a frozen dairy dessert (similar to ice cream) from the Indian subcontinent and the Middle East. The term kulfi has its roots in Persian – it means covered cup. It is believed this dessert originated in the Mughal Empire in the 16th century. This invention of kulfi was recorded in detail in the Mughal Emperor Akbar’s administration. The dairy mixture was flavored with pistachios and saffron, packed into metal cones and immersed in slurry ice.

Kulfi comes in various flavors. However, this recipe is the original Mughal Indian version with cardamom, saffron and pistachios.

Although Delhi is considered the birthplace of Kulfi, it is likely that Kulfi originally evolved in Persia (present-day Iran). As far back as 500 BCE in the Achaemenid Empire of Persia, ice creams and sorbets were created with rosewater, fruits and honey. It is likely that the Mughals elaborated on the Persian desserts to create this creamy ice cream called Kulfi.

If you desire a similar Persian-style frozen dessert called Bastani, use the optional rosewater ingredient listed herein. In this recipe and photo, I leaned towards the Persian flavors!

Ingredients:
2 cups whole milk
½ cup condensed milk
¼ cup dry milk powder
2 teaspoons granulated white sugar
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
2 saffron threads or 2 envelopes each measuring 0.125 grams ground saffron
1 to 2 tablespoons rosewater (optional)
¼ cup chopped, unsalted pistachios

Directions:
1. Stir the milk, condensed milk and dry milk powder together in a heavy, stainless steel saucepot.

2. Bring the milk mixture to a boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.

3. When mixture comes to a boil, stir in the sugar, cardamom, saffron and, if desired, add 2 teaspoons rosewater.

4. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring constantly (take care that mixture does not stick to bottom of saucepot or burn).

5. After mixture has simmered 10 minutes and has reduced and thickened, stir in the pistachios.

6. Immediately transfer the mixture to a porcelain or glass bowl; cover with plastic wrap and let milk mixture cool completely – about 30 minutes.

7. After milk mixture has cooled completely, transfer it to popsicle molds or, alternatively, to a 4-cup metal bowl.

8. If using the metal bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap and freeze the kulfi for one hour.

9. When kulfi has set and looks frozen, serve it in small bowls, garnished with chopped pistachios.

Text & Photograph ©2024 Nancy DeLucia Real