I often use sweet potato instead of butternut, cavolo nero or chard instead of spinach. Also, the recipe was originally vegetarian. I like to add diced veil/beef/pork depending on what I have at hand so I don’t have to worry about preparing proteins on the side. I often use bone broth instead of vegetable stock, again depending on what I have.

Another one of those dishes you wouldn’t find in a restaurant. My grandma would slow-cook it for hours and the smell of the herbs would fill the flat. Not your go-to recipe if you’re hungry NOW.

Bone broth is one of the richest sources of proteins (collagen and gelatin that can’t be found in muscle meat), amino acids (such as glycine, proline, glutamine) and minerals (calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, zinc). It can improve gut and cardiovascular system functions, skin health, bones joints and muscles, liver and kidney function, brain and eye health, immune system function and sleep quality.

This recipe was created by our friend Alessia Beltrame. She has been working as a chef for years, has a background in pastry and is extremely passionate about food. Most of her recipes feature potatoes in a way or another, an ingredient that’s very popular in her home region in the North-East of Italy.

I bought a tuna steak at the local fishmonger’s and thought I’d make something I wouldn’t usually opt for (I’m not much of a salad person). The truth is this salad is often made with canned tuna in restaurants, which is a real turn-off for me. I’m quite happy with what I got here.

Another dish that’s traditional in my hometown. It’s mostly cooked in Summer (July and August) when peppers are (used to be?) at their best. Don’t be tempted to use chicken breasts instead of thighs because the fatty meat makes all the difference. What I like the most about this dish is the pepper-favoured juice that I would normally mop up with plenty of sourdough… Not this month!

A dish from the Roman tradition that’s slowly disappearing. My grandma used to make them on occasion and despite being very simple they always felt like a treat. She would use long courgettes, I also found the round ones at my local greengrocer’s and I have to admit they’re not as good.

I’m making a minestrone. It translates to “big soup”, it’s a Winter favourite that uses pretty much whatever vegetables you have in the house and it’s particularly convenient if any of your ingredients had been forgotten and are on the edge of rotting. This is how you save them without wasting a thing.