Day 1!

    Today is day one of cooking my way through Dolce Vita. Before cooking, I had to go shopping for some fresh herbs, I had to throw out my bouillon cubes and I had to bust out my cherished bottle of extra virgin olive oil- that was imported to my Mother-in-Law- from Italy. Look how green it is! It's sooo good that sometimes for dinner I pour some in a plate with salt and dunk my Italian bread into it.

When I woke up this morning, it felt like Zia Lucia from Italy- was staying for a few months to cook us her  delicious meals. I couldn't wait to try the first dish in the cook book!

    So my first challenge was to make Insalata del Mercato Ballaro. Now unfortunately nothing is in season here in Toronto, as it is still very cold. However I was sure the recipes would still work out- since David himself grew up in Toronto and ate the mouth-watering recipes in his home.

While preparing this recipe, I learned how to char bell peppers for the first time- without using the bbq! I thought it wouldn't have worked out, but alas; SUCCESS! It's a good thing I didn't give up and substitute it for my MIL's jarred red peppers.

The insalata (salad) tasted so fresh and it was surprisingly light. I enjoyed the flavor combination of the roasted peppers, caramelized onions and potato. It was a success in our household because when the kids came home from school- they ate the whole bowl! Thanks David ;)