An Interview with Dorie Greenspan Interview Cookbooks Amy Kundrat November 12, 2010 “Cooking is a very generous act, particularly baking. It’s sad to get through life without a cookie but you could.” It’s impossible not to be smitten with Dorie Greenspan. The James Beard award-winning author of ten cookbooks, including the recent Around My French Table: More Than 300 Recipes From My Home to Yours, will present her latest cookbook at the Darien Library in conjunction with Barrett Bookstore on November 18 at 7 pm. This compilation of recipes inspired by contemporary French home cooking, shows us that it's not necessarily all about being Escoffier. We had a chance to chat with the gracious author, Francophile and cook about everything from her favorite Connecticut haunts (she has a home in Westbrook, CT), to her favorite recipes, memorable kitchen flops, and what makes a good home cook. Read More Chef Talk: Da Pietro's Chef Scotti's Grilled Calamari Salad Interview Features Seafood Westport Recipe Christy Colasurdo December 14, 2009 Though better known around these parts for his inventive creations at DaPietro’s Restaurant in Westport, chef Pietro Scotti is all about tradition when it comes to the holidays. Leading up to Christmas, he bakes and decorates gingerbread houses with his kids, Tomaso, 7, and Lucia, 5, and sips festive hot cider with star anise, cinnamon and orange slices. He also bakes “Chicolino,” a bread with prosciutto and egg filling and a traditional sweet baked dessert that includes capellini pasta (go figure!), candied fruit, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Hailing from Ischia, a tiny fishing village in Italy, Pietro recalls fondly his family shopping excursions to the waterfront dock. There, his mother chose fish so fresh it was literally splashing around in buckets for his family’s “Feast of the Seven Fishes” Christmas Eve meal. When asked to provide CTbites with a favorite holiday recipe, Pietro chose this grilled calamari salad because it’s simple, clean and easy to prepare—a modern riff on a classic—but also because it reminds him of his childhood. Isn’t that what traditional holiday cooking is all about? Read More Newer Older Our Sponsors Sign Me Up! Archive of All Reviews Openings Featured Coracora Peruvian Cuisine Opens Flagship Location in West Hartford’s Blue Back Square Hidden Gem: Dama Rose Middle Eastern Cuisine Opens in West Haven The Haven Opens in Norwalk Featuring a Speakeasy, Rooftop, Cafe, and Event Space Cowboy Butter in New Milford: Hindsight BBQ's Sister Restaurant, a "Boujee" BBQ Joint + Steakhouse Fire & Spice Opens in Bridgeport With A+ Peruvian Rotisserie Chicken & More Craft Beer + Music: Twelvenote Brew Co. Opens in Black Rock Joylark Plant Kitchen & Bar Opens in Fairfield Chef Peter X. Kelly Takes Over The Waveny Tavern in New Canaan tacobarn Opens in Newtown From Restaurateur David Boyajian Chef Ian Vest Opens Modern Italian Restaurant, Talia, in Port Chester Specialty Coffee Shop, Carpe Diem Cafe, Opens in Norwalk Malby Bakery Opens in New Haven with Creative Pastries & Elevated Classics Dos Hermanos Guatemalan Bakery & Cafe Opens in Bridgeport Little Lotus Omakase Opens in New Haven LobsterCraft Food Truck X SONO 1420 Weekend Tasting Room Fireside Collab Delamar Hotels Opens American-Mediterranean Restaurant, Dandelion, in Westport Find Us On Instagram
Chef Talk: Da Pietro's Chef Scotti's Grilled Calamari Salad Interview Features Seafood Westport Recipe Christy Colasurdo December 14, 2009 Though better known around these parts for his inventive creations at DaPietro’s Restaurant in Westport, chef Pietro Scotti is all about tradition when it comes to the holidays. Leading up to Christmas, he bakes and decorates gingerbread houses with his kids, Tomaso, 7, and Lucia, 5, and sips festive hot cider with star anise, cinnamon and orange slices. He also bakes “Chicolino,” a bread with prosciutto and egg filling and a traditional sweet baked dessert that includes capellini pasta (go figure!), candied fruit, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Hailing from Ischia, a tiny fishing village in Italy, Pietro recalls fondly his family shopping excursions to the waterfront dock. There, his mother chose fish so fresh it was literally splashing around in buckets for his family’s “Feast of the Seven Fishes” Christmas Eve meal. When asked to provide CTbites with a favorite holiday recipe, Pietro chose this grilled calamari salad because it’s simple, clean and easy to prepare—a modern riff on a classic—but also because it reminds him of his childhood. Isn’t that what traditional holiday cooking is all about? Read More
