Who is it that told me that food and fashion have nothing in common? It must have been someone that has never experienced the center of Rome on a sunny, Sunday afternoon!   It is fashionably chic there  to get dressed up..ever so stylish… in the afternoon for a ‘passeggiata’ (afternoon walk) and present a ‘bella figura’ . One just strolls to the most fashionable coffee bars and sips..ever so fashionably slow..their espresso or iced espresso or Granita.

Granita

1 1/2 cups espresso coffee

1 cup springwater

3 tablespoons of sugar

1 vanilla stick

crushed ice

Place water, sugar and the vanilla stick in a pan and bring to a boil/ When boiling, remove from heat. Let cool, remove vanilla stick. Place in an ice cube tray ,place in freezer, let mixture turn to ice. When frozen place in ice crusher or chop carefully with knife. Place 3 tblsps of crushed ice in each glass, pour hot coffee over ice.Serve immediately. Top with freshly whipped cream.

For more recipes get your copy of The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions-2nd edition- the book selected as Best Italian Cuisine Book in the USA

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See you September 10-12 at Hudson Valley Wine Festival in Rhinebeck, NY. Book signing and on stage cooking demos from The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions- 2nd edition

Maria

One of my first loves is food..but I have been known to have a fondness for Fashion and when in the kitchen-a home one or a professional kitchen-I am perplexed with a dilemma..wanting to always look ’smashing’ in the kitchen but wanting to make the food look and taste ’smashing’ as well…not as easy to do as it looks on TV

The other day my better half  commented, as I was lovingly preparing the risotto  ‘a deux’ “La Befana, but Christmas is over” (La befana is the good Christmas witch)..I realized I was taking the comfort of my home kitchen too lightly..baggy sweater, baggy comfy pants..baggy apron..hair pulled back in a frizzed out ponytail…ahhhh!! what have I done….so today I set out to find a solution to the fashion in the kitchen problem..ambiance has everything to do with food..and the cook is part of the ambiance…

Just in time for Valentine’s Day..apron elegance has beautiful stylish aprons so you can add some  style to any kitchen..

How  to accomplish both?…after all you should look just as smashing as your food tastes..

With these aprons..I will never be mistaken for La Befana..but maybe cupid or well someone else that is sweet and sassy…

For recipes and menus for Valentines’s Day

Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene

Maria

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