One Italian Girl

06/03/2026

I am going to re-share this delicious quinoa salad for my new followers. This is good enough to bring to a barbecue. Quinoa is really healthy, but admittedly, you have to do something to it because it doesn’t have a lot of flavor. This is the perfect fix!
All of you lovely people have a wonderful day!

NEED A HEALTHY LUNCH FOR THE WEEK?

Try this quinoa salad. Great for a party or family for a side dish. It is also wonderful if you incorporate a protein into it for a weekday lunch. If you have vegans joining you, just leave out the feta cheese or put it on the side.

 GREEK STYLE QUINOA SALAD

INGREDIENTS:
• 3 cups of quinoa, cooked and chilled
• One small package of tricolored, mini tomatoes
• One block of feta cheese, cut into small bite-size pieces
• One cucumber, peeled, de seeded, and cut into bite-size pieces
• Eight basil leaves, chiffonade cut
• 3 chopped scallions
• 2 dozen halved Kalamata olives
• 1/4 cup of pine nuts (optional)
DRESSING:
• 1/2 of good quality olive oil
• Juice of one lemon
• One quarter cup of either balsamic vinegar
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
• make sure that the quinoa is chilled, and then mix all of the ingredients with it until well Incorporated.
• Mix all of the dressing ingredients and then then pour over the quinoa mixture and mix well.
• This is best served slightly chill

06/01/2026

Thank you to all of my new followers… Welcome I appreciate you. I thought I would share another meatless Monday option with you. As you’ll notice a lot of my recipes are common ingredients with a little bit of a different twist to make a weeknight feel a little fancy. Here is a delicious pasta and artichoke heart recipe. Enjoy!

VEGANS…this one’s for you! It is also for anyone else that’s looking for a quick easy dinner to prepare on a weeknight. This can be prepared using one pot, and it’s quick to make.

PASTA WITH ARTICHOKES, LEMON, THYME, AND WINE

INGREDIENTS:
• 1 pound of pasta, cooked and reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water
• 12 ounces of frozen or canned in water artichoke hearts, drained with water pressed out, and roughly chopped
• 1 lemon, cut in half
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• Crushed red pepper to your taste (I used 1 teaspoon).
• Leaves of five sprigs of time
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil
• Nutritional yeast (vegan) or Romano cheese for topping
DIRECTIONS:
• Cook your pasta of choice, remembering to reserve about 1/4 cup of the pasta water after cooking
• Heat a tablespoon of olive oil on medium high in a nonstick pan
• Place half of the arctichoke hearts into the oil. Let cook for about two minutes until slightly crisp and browned and then flip and cook another minute or two.
• Remove with a slotted spoon and place on some paper towels, and sprinkle with some kosher salt
• Place another tablespoon of olive oil in the pan, and repeat with the other half of the artichoke hearts.
• Turn the heat of the pan down and place the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the pan. Place the garlic in, the crushed red pepper flakes, the lemon halves, and the thyme. Cook until lemon is slightly browned, and then squeeze out the juice into the pan.
• Add the wine and the pasta water into the pan and reduce down for a couple of minutes
• Add the pasta and the artichokes back into the pan and give a good stir. Let cook for a few minutes, stirring occasionally
• Add kosher salt and pepper to your taste
• For serving, top with either nutritional yeast (vegan) or fresh grated Romano cheese

06/01/2026

Looking for a Meatless Monday option? Look no further….

06/01/2026

The simplicity of chicken cutlets and a great salad combined with some garlic bread made for a wonderful Sunday night dinner. Chicken cutlets are very simple to make… even faster than a drive to Chick-fil-A!
Add in a top notch cosmopolitan made by the world’s most handsome man and it was a perfect Sunday evening!
Chicken cutlets are easy to make… Take some thin sliced chicken breast, dip in some flour, egg, and some Panko breadcrumbs mixed with fresh grated Parmesan cheese. Add some salt and pepper and then cook in some heated olive oil for just a few minutes on each side. 

05/31/2026

Italian Pasta Salad is proof that simple ingredients can steal the show. 🇮🇹✨
Tender pasta tossed with fresh mini mozzarella balls, tomatoes, olives, artichoke hearts, basil, and Italian dressing (recipe in comments), finished with a drizzle of balsamic glaze. Every bite is packed with fresh flavors that taste like summer in a bowl.
Whether you're headed to a backyard barbecue, or just meal-prepping for the week, this colorful pasta salad is always a crowd-pleaser.

05/31/2026

Sometimes the simplest dishes are the ones that stay with you forever. 🇮🇹
This humble Italian peasant classic combines pasta, chickpeas, good olive oil, and Parmesan into something far greater than the sum of its parts. You can also add some minced garlic for extra zing. Just pantry staples transformed into pure comfort.
It's the kind of meal Italian grandmothers, including my great grandmother DeVito, made for generations—hearty, nourishing, affordable, and absolutely delicious. Proof that great food doesn't have to be complicated.

05/27/2026

Quick weeknight side dish that’s fancy enough to bring to a weekend party.
Fresh, crunchy, creamy, tangy, spicy…
Tomatoes, cucumber, purple onion, avocado, and a homemade jalapeño olive oil lime dressing that absolutely understood the assignment. Finished with a little balsamic drizzle because balance. 💚

05/27/2026

Tonight’s healthy oven-fried chicken came out golden, savory, and satisfying (this is a staple at my house and just search on my page and you will find the recipe) alongside peppery arugula, sauteed mushrooms, lemon, thyme, and cauliflower gnocchi (courtesy of Trader Joe’s) that I cooked in the air fryer before adding to the dish . Basically the kind of dinner that makes you feel like you have your life together for at least one evening. 🍗✨

05/25/2026

Somewhere between a backyard cookout and a little coastal daydream… ✨🔥🦪
These grilled clams got the full treatment: butter, white wine, olive oil, fresh thyme, lemon, and sweet leeks bubbling together right over the fire. Crusty bread highly encouraged because that broth is absolutely not staying behind. 🍋

Clam cleaning tip…rinse the clams and place in ice water and a good dose of cornmeal to draw out the sand. Rinse again and no more scrubbing!

05/23/2026

Last night was a great night to stay in and enjoy some delicious lemon martinis! Very easy to make except you definitely need to use fresh squeezed lemon juice. But on a cold rainy night, what else do you have to do?

LEMON DROP MARTINI:
* 2 oz Grey Goose lemon vodka
* 1 oz Cointreau
* 1.5 Oz fresh lemon juice
* 1/2 to 3/4 oz simple syrup
Place above ingredients into a shaker with ice and shake very well. Pour into a martini glass. I like to save the “dirty ice “ on the side in case I need to water it down a little bit.
You can serve in a glass with a sugared rim. I just don’t like the extra sugar. Garnish with a little bit of lemon peel.