A Star's Recipe

Hollywood is so filled with stars giving out such high falutin advice,it's nice to see one that has down to earth, homey suggestions. That star is Valerie Bertinelli and she  has written a great new cookbook. I'ts perfect for home chefs who want old fashioned recipes with a twist.

Valerie Bertinelli's Home Cooking (Oxmoor House Punlishing) is one of those definite must give Christmas gifts for the home chefs in your life.Ms. Bertinelli is no glam star pushing juice cleanses and impossible to find ingredients  turned into questionably healthy dishes made by her private chef.. She's one of us, shopping at her local farmer's market, reinventing classic childhood dishes and celebrating her family's long culinary tradition. I've always liked her as an actress.I love her as a fellow home chef. Our great grandparents are from the same area in Piedmont, in northwestern Italy. I wish she would have added more Piedmontese dishes such as vitello en tonno,  veal in tuna sauce and fileto Piedmontese, filet mignon awash in bagna cauda.It's sort of surprising that she has no sabayon recipe either. It would have been interesting to see her take on it, since the recipe varies from town to town. Still she does have her mother's risotto recipe (made with pork instead of the traditional chicken giblets) and the soothingly refreshing granita. The book is divided into breakfast, main dishes and sides. There are also sections on cocktails which look fun to make and nibbles such as the brown sugar Sriracha bacon bites. Her  recipe introductions are like her, so warm and welcoming,  that you feel a friend has written them.

Ms. Bertinelli cooks like a real person. Her breakfast section includes a mix of sweet and savory. Breakfast enthusiasts will love her Overnight Almond Apricot Muesli, a happy marriage of oats , spices dried fruit and nuts along with her take on a fritata, created with egg whites,arugula, tomatoes and goat cheese. The main meals are amazing. Steak enthusiasts will love the dish her husband, Tom came up with It is a steak rubbed with a blend of espresso granules and chili powder and topped with a generous pat of butter.Her barbecue chicken wirh spicy BBQ sauce will be a summer must have or even a tail gate classic.Ms. Bertinelli also has old school dishes such as her mother's chicken pot pie , elevated to gourmet level with the addition of cremini mushrooms and tuna noodle casserole with potato chip topping - a sure winner with the family. I love her bucatini pasta with wilted spinach and lemon marscapone sauce. Lemon is her favorite flavor and it pops up quite a lot. It's also in her desserts. End any of her meals with the delicate lemon-raspberry panna cotta or her English lemon cake, There are plenty of fun recipes for snacking and entertaining. Party givers will love her microwave potato chips and her mom's batter dipped onion rings along with the recipes for s'mores popcorn and peanut butter chocolate pretzels.

Valerie Bertinelli's Home Cooking is the best holiday gift a home chef could want. It's filled with homey and delicious recipes that are sure to be family classics. Buy it for the cooks in your life or for yourself.

Oodles Of Orzo

Orzo is one of of the most versatile and probably the most fun pastas out there. You can do so much with it from creating a tangy salad to a traditional pasta dish.It's also a perfect side subbing in for rice too.There are a dozens of good hot and cold recipes for this centuries old treat.

Orzo's name comes from the Latin word for barley, hordeum, , named such for its' small grain like shape. Primarliy used in Italy , it is also seen in Greek and Middle Eastern cuisines.It is cooked more or less for nine or ten minutes in boiling salted water, cooked similar to any pasta. Orzo is most versatile in soup and you can easily sub it in for any shells used in minestrone or pasta e fagiole. A different spin on it is Greek chicken soup made with a squirt of lemon. Also a good sick day soup is any broth, whether beef,chicken or even vegetable  with orzo and butter thrown in. As a pasta dish serve with any sauce  although rich pomodoro or tomato tastes the best with it.

Orzo is a great salad base and can go with any mix of vegetables and spices.An easy one is combining orzo with grape tomatoes and feta cheese crumbles. Season with oregano for added zing. Another saladis combing cucumbers,, vine ripe tomatoes  along with garbanzo beans and shredded basil. For a fun tailgate party treat make an orzo salad with crab meat along with Roma tomatoes,  two kind s of bell peppers and the zing of hot pepper. You can also  just make a simple chicken and orzo salad with just an easy red wine vinaigrette mixed in. This would be a  perfect Sunday brunch dish, served with pita bread.

Orzo is one of the most versatile pastas out there. You can have it in soul satisfying soup or pasta after a hard day at work.It can be a fun side at any fall party. It's easy to use and fun for creating different and tasty dishes.