Rigali Style Zuppa Toscana Recipe AKA Tuscany Soup Better than Olive Garden's

Buongiorno miei amata amici! Since we are on the subject of Fall and Winter’s delectable comfort foods, my list would not be legit without our family’s version of Zuppa Toscana! This is a family friendly favorite!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Italian Sausage (sweet, mild, or hot depending on whom you are serving, for our family I use Johnsonville's Sweet Italian Sausage, and basil is what gives it the sweetness)
• 6-8 slices of Bacon
• 12-16 Cups of Chicken Broth (enough to cover potatoes when boiling in a stock pot) 
• 1 onion finely chopped 
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, minced 
• ¼ cup of Italian Spaghetti Seasoning (such as Tone's from Sam's Club)
• 2 springs of Oregano finely chopped 
• 10 potatoes, peeled and sliced 
• 1 pint of heavy cream 
• 1 bunch of Basil and 1 bunch of Italian Parsley, both chopped (or substitute kale or spinach)  

Directions:

First cook 6-8 slices of bacon until crisp. Remove from pan, but leave bacon grease behind. Now add the onion, garlic, and Italian Sausage and cook, stirring occasionally. When Italian Sausage is almost done, crumble bacon into it and cook for a few more minutes.

Meanwhile, bring chicken broth to a boil in a stock pot. Add ¼ cup or so of Italian Spaghetti Seasoning (I used Tone’s brand) to broth. Once broth is to a rolling boil, add the oregano and potatoes. Cook potatoes until tender. Add meat, onion, and garlic mixture to broth and potatoes in stock pot. Then stir in the heavy cream. (If you want it thicker, you can either add some instant mashed potato flakes or whisk some flour/cornstarch into some milk and add to it.) Last, but not least, stir in the chopped basil and Italian Parsley. Serve Zuppa Toscana hot with a side of warm sourdough bread.

Itsa Gooda Italiano Ricotta Gnocchi Recipe

Buongiorno miei amata amici! Fall and Winter are coming quickly upon us. This is the time of year we crave warm, comfort foods. Ricotta Gnocchi is one of my favorite comfort foods.

 Itsa Gooda Italiano Ricotta Gnocchi Recipe

Ingredients:

Directions:

Drain Ricotta Cheese in a strainer for about 15 minutes. Then add it to a mixing bowl and stir in the Romano/Parmesan Cheese, garlic powder, pepper, and salt. Mix in the eggs then slowly incorporate enough flour until it holds together and is not too sticky to roll out. It depends on the moisture of the Ricotta as to how much flour this requires.

Bring a stock pot with the chicken broth in it to a boil. Either roll out the dough into ropes and cut with a pizza cutter into inch sized pieces or just tear off pieces of dough right out of the bowl and add to boiling water. The Gnocchi should drop to the bottom and rise to the top as it cooks.

When all gnocchi has boiled at least 2-5 minutes, then add the butter, garlic, and heavy cream and stir until it starts to thicken. If needed add the milk with flour whisked into it to thicken to your liking.

Add the Basil and Italian Parsley at the end so the fresh basil does not lose its flavor or substitute pesto.