Summer Italian Tomato Salad

 First tomato salad from the garden. I added a chopped zucchini, tomatoes, red onion, basil, olive oil and a pinch of salt. Delicious and healthy.

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Italian Meatball Recipe

 Italian Meatball Recipe:

• 1 1/2 cup of bread crumbs ( this can be home made from toasted Italian bread or store bought) 
• 1 pound of ground meat, (you can substitute any meat, we prefer Turkey 100% lean.)
• 4 oz. grated cheese Pecorino and Parmigiana
• 2 Tsp of salt
• 1 Tsp of pepper
• 2 Eggs 
• 10 stalk or pieces chopped parsley 
• 2 cloves of garlic 
• 1 or 1/2 cup of water - depending on the quality of your bread crumbs. 

Mix all together, form balls (secret to keeping them nice and together, drip some warm water onto your palm of your hands as your rolling the balls.)  Then once you have your balls ready, fry them in a pan of very hot vegetable oil or canola oil. (some people like to substitute oils, we find this works best for us.)  Flip them till they are golden brown as you can see from today's meatball making.   

If you  have any questions, feel free to email me at margaret@italianamericangirl.com 

Happy Sunday! 

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Making Black Olive Bread - Pane Alle Olive Nere

Well, it's time for a new post and I wanted to share an amazing baked bread that my brother Santo made, its a black olive bread, Italian style.  I believe many Italians make this in many variations as we like to experiment and also be simple with our staple dinner element.  

My brother has since baked a few loaves since this original loaf pictured here, I believe he wanted to perfect it and it almost seemed to get better each time he baked it.  

Now, once he made it, we had a chance to warm up the bread and enjoy with it with extra virgin olive oil and red pepper flakes.  

The next day I cut a slice and made a very glamorous avocado toast, which was amazing.  Pictured to the right I also made a plain authentic pizza type snack.  My brother followed the exact recipe from Orsara Recipes linked here: Black Olive Bread  Leave a comment if you have a good bread recipe to share! 

 

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A Trip Down Memory Lane - The Italian American Girl Story

A little trip down memory lane and retelling the story of why @italianamericangirl is a brand. I started the Italian American Girl blog back in 2008 when social media just came out and blogging was the trend then along with the new sites Twitter and Youtube. I was searching for a way to stay connected to my first generation Italian American friends and acquaintances so we could share stories of upbringing, family and culture. 

Here we are over 14 years later and now the Italian American community has grown online so much due to platforms like Instagram and Facebook. Also, no one was calling us influencers, myself and few others on here who I am still very close with know who we are and were just being authentic and enjoying the connections. The moral of the story is: it wasn’t about numbers, or influence but about connecting and bringing awareness to our culture, upbringing and values. Leave a ♥️ if you agree.  What's your Italian American story? 

Ciao. Xoxo ~Margaret

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I'm Italian and Yes, I Have Curly Hair. Part 3

 

So, you're probably asking right about now, why am I writing about curly hair? Just this week alone my blogs have been about politics and serious topics...well today I want to talk about curly hair. I get tons of emails all the time about yes, my hair.

I have to say, I am very lucky to have super curly hair that's somewhat manageable. There was a time when I didn't know how to style it and always felt like odd girl out..while all my friends had their gorgeous straight hair.

Growing up with curly, frizzy hair always made me feel like a bit of an outcast. During middle school, teasing and spraying hair was pretty big. I could never do that, because if I teased I ended up looking like a poodle who got electrocuted. It was hard.

Then, in my later years in high school, I started to get the hang of it. It isn't till now, that I really love my hair and can style it with super products available for curly, ethnic hair. Yes, whether we like it or not, its "ethnic." If you research the curly hair characteristics and cultures of where people have curly hair, well..you guessed it..I'm in that percentile.

I guess I am the owner of the fitting characteristics of a Southern Italian woman. To add to the curly hair, not only is it hard just to figure out what to do with it, but in a business world such I am in daily..its another job trying to figure out how to fit in with the business types without my hair going wild.

Let me know below if you have a favorite product to use to manage our hair. 

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Italian American Authors and Italian Themed Books 2023 List

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Back in 2009 I started this post with the latest Italian American authors and Italian themed books due to the large amount of inquiries I was receiving to either review or give recommendations.  I thought what better way to help support our community than creating a top list of Italian themed book and Italian American authors. Click on each of the books to get more information to the individual books. 

-Cafe Firenze- Fabio Viviani & Jacapo Falleni

-The Youngest Son- Oreste Leroy Salerni
-Secrets From My Tuscan Kitchen --Judy Witts Francini

-Con Amore- Janice Therese Mancuso

-La Bella Lingua- Dianne Hales

-Never Trust A Thin Cook-- Eric Dregni

-The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken- Laura Schenone

-Old World Daughter New World Mother-- Maria Laurino

-Midnight in Rome-- Michael H. Gyulai

-Harlot's Sauce-- Patricia Volonakis Davis

-My Cousin The Saint- Justin Catanoso

-Searching for Pemberley and The Second Date--Mary Lydon Simonsen

-Italian Heritage Books- By Leon J. Radomile

-101 Glam Girl Ways to an Ultra Chic Lifestyle: A Cheeky Book with Tidbits of Advice for a Glamorous Lifestyle -- Dawn Del Russo

-Gravy Wars: By Lorraine Ranalli

-The Secret Diary of an Italian Girl - Dosi Controneo

If you are an Italian American author and would like to be included on this list, please send an email an to margaret@italianamericangirl.com - Also, if you are on this list from 2009, and would like something updated, please also send an email. 

Thank you. 

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Fresh and Flavorful Basil Pesto Pasta: A Simple Delight

 

Photo by Engin Akyurt 

When it comes to simple yet incredibly satisfying pasta dishes, the best version is just simple. Bursting with vibrant colors, bold flavors, and the aroma of freshly picked basil, this recipe is a testament to the beauty of using fresh ingredients to create a dish that's both comforting and elegant. Here’s a quick and easy recipe to get the best yet quickest pasta dish together: 

Ingredients: * Also I am leaving out nuts in this recipe.

8 oz pasta of your choice (such as spaghetti or penne- I use gluten free)

2 cups fresh basil leaves

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2-3 cloves garlic, peeled

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Prepare the Pesto:

Start by washing and drying the fresh basil leaves. In a food processor, combine the basil and garlic. Pulse until the ingredients are coarsely chopped. With the food processor running, slowly drizzle in the olive oil until the mixture becomes smooth and well blended.

2. Add Cheese and Season:

Transfer the basil mixture to a bowl and stir in the grated Parmesan cheese. If desired, you can also add the Pecorino Romano cheese for an extra layer of flavor. Season the pesto with a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper, adjusting to taste.

3. Cook the Pasta:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the package instructions until al dente. Before draining the pasta, reserve about 1/2 cup of the cooking water. This starchy water will help bind the pesto to the pasta.

4. Combine Pesto and Pasta:

In a skillet or the pot used to cook the pasta, combine the cooked pasta, freshly made pesto, and a splash of the reserved pasta water. Toss everything together until the pasta is evenly coated with the luscious basil pesto. If the sauce seems too thick, you can gradually add more pasta water until you reach your desired consistency.

5. Serve and Garnish:

Divide the pesto-coated pasta among serving plates. For an extra burst of color and flavor, scatter halved cherry tomatoes on top. You can also drizzle a touch of olive oil and sprinkle some extra grated Parmesan cheese over each plate.

Now comes the best part—indulging in your pasta dish. The vibrant green pesto paired with perfectly cooked pasta is a match made in culinary heaven. Each bite showcases the essence of summer with the aromatic basil taking center stage.  Buon appetito!

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