What makes a great sandwich? Ask 10 people and you’ll likely get 20 answers. In my hometown of Chicago, it’s all about the Italian beef sandwich. In Philadelphia, it’s about a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich. In Texas, it could well be ...

Recently I dropped in on a wine and cheese festival in Wisconsin. Several cheese producers were exhibiting their wares, so (naturally) I did some sampling, and chatted a bit with those manning the booths. I asked about a particular pizza cheese that ...

Nobody had to twist my arm to write this column. I am a meat lover from way back, a protein proponent without equal. When I was, oh, about 16 years old, I didn’t have any Italian sausage in the house, so I opened a can of Spam, cut the whole th...

Yield: 4 servings 3 tablespoons butter 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, minced 4 bail leaves, chiffonade ½ tablespoon green chilies, chopped 2 cups heavy cream 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, grated 1 medium tomato, medium...

Canadian bacon is not bacon at all –– it is ham. Canadian bacon is made from the ribeye of the pork loin (eye of the loin). In the United States, pork belly becomes the cut most often used to make Canadian bacon. In Canada, Canadian bacon...

Appetizers are sizzling. I have never seen appetizers getting so much attention. Some restaurants are referring to them as “small plates,” but what we are dealing with here are, in fact, appetizers using a pseudonym. Let’s take a lo...

Some clarification on Pecorino Romano and Romano is in order. A true pecorino Romano is made from Sheep’s milk (pecorino translates as “little sheep”) and comes from an area around Rome (though pecorino is made in many regions of It...

Single-ingredient organic foods, such as mushrooms, meat and cheese, are easy — anything that’s certified organic by a USDA certifier will bear the USDA Organic seal. There are other seals that denote other standards, such as free-range, ...

If there were an Italian dessert hall of fame, cannoli would surely be in it (along with tiramisu, gelato and ricotta cheesecake). The word “cannoli” is as recognizable and understood as the word “pizza.” It has to do with the...

The assignment: How to Make Sausage for Pizza. What kind of sausage? That would be my first question. Italian? Well, the assignment did use the word “pizza,” so I am assuming it’s Italian sausage. But wait. There are as many version...

This month, The Cheese Whiz is addressing two important cheeses –– ricotta and ricotta salata. Though similar in name, these two cheeses are like night and day. Let me explain. In this country, ricotta is made from whole or partially skim...

Mascarpone (mahs-kar-POH-neh) is not actually a cheese (no starter or rennet is used to produce it), but it is always included in the cheese family when the subject of relatives come up. And in the Italian arsenal of cheeses it stands tall. A rich an...