by: Giada De Laurentiis

“Like me, the recipes in this book are Italian through and through, yet completely at home in an American Kitchen. I hope they will help you channel the spirit of those big-hearted Italian cooks and rediscover the simple pleasure of feeding food you feel good about to the people you care about,” Giada De Laurentiis.

Giada’s Italy is a great cookbook for those of all skill levels. I have found over the years that all most all of Giada’s recipes are easy to follow and don’t require many exotic ingredients.

Mussels in White Wine

Mussels are one of my favorite things to eat. I love to order them when I go out. While I have cooked many types of seafood – I haven’t cooked mussels before. This recipe was really simple to make. The most important thing for success in making the mussels is to mise-en-place so you are ready when you need anything. (Curious what mise-en-place is? Check out my post about it here.)

The mussels were so fresh and they tasted as good as you get in a restaurant. I served them with a nice parmesan couscous. Mussels in white wine will be on my meal rotation.

Lemon and Pea Alfredo

I love alfredo sauce – it’s one of my favorite Italian dishes. All of the ingredients were easy to find except the pink peppercorns. I was able to locate a mixed grinder of peppercorns which included pink peppercorns at HomeGoods, so I used that and it worked well.

The recipe was easy to follow and quick to make. I served it with a chicken breast. Next time I make it I will toss the cut up chicken with the pasta to get it completely coated with the sauce.

Italian food is one of my favorites and I am always trying to find new recipes. Giada’s Italy is a great cookbook with a great variety of recipes to please those of all ages. I still have so many recipes from it that I want to make including: positano pizzas, orzo with clams and crab arancini. Italy is on my list of places to travel soon and this cookbook makes me feel like I am a little closer to Italy today.