pickled green tomatoes

In case your stressing about what to do with your end-of-season harvest: 1.) pick the last green tomatoes 2.) wash 3.) slice and salt 4.) stack 24 hours 5.) vinegar 24 hours 6.) drain and pack with hot pepper, garlic, and basil.

easiest "stuffed" zucchini ever

This is so easy, you can prep it way in advance and it basically cooks itself.  Get your zucchini, wash and cut them in half.  Place them on an aluminum foil covered cookie sheet or baking pan, season with some olive oil, salt and pepper then spoon on your favorite Italian-style dip or tapanade.  A few spoons of pesto, an olive tapanade from Harris Teeter or even an artichoke bruschetta topping. Make your own or buy it already made.  Toss it in the oven at 275-300 for 15-20 minutes or until the zucchini are tender with your fork.  Serve warm or room temperature.  An awesome vegan, gluten & dairy free and light carb dish! 

skinny guacamole

Well, we all love our Skinny Margaritas and whole grain tortillas but look at this great tip I got from June Eating Well magazine.  Replace half your avocado with cooked zucchini to cut about 100 calories and 6 grams of fat per serving.  I tried and and it tastes great. Its the same color, consistency and even has more nutritional diversity than regular guac.  If you're not making your own I also don't see why you can't mix in half part zucchini into your favorite store-bought brand.  Eat up and stay skinny!

bacon-wrapped goat cheese-suffed jalapenos

These are so delicious and will go flying of people's plates.  SO simple, you can prep these a day in advance or even fully cook them and just warm in the oven before serving.  Get large jalapeno peppers,cut them in half and fill with goat cheese.  Then wrap with a strip of bacon, secure with a toothpick or two, arrange on some foil then either broil or carefully place in your grill.  Turn once or twice with tongs till the bacon gets crispy and you're done.  
This recipe is very versatile, as you can substitute cheeses or even peppers (if you would like something more or less spicy).  Use your favorite apple-wood smoked bacon, or just a regular cut.  Even think about adding raisins or cranberries to the cheese before you wrap in bacon! 
These are also just as good if you make them earlier in the day or the night before then just heat them in the oven just before serving- no one will know the difference!

pepper and gorgonzola crostini

Another Angela Abrusci masterpiece.  These are great warm but delicious cold so theyre still great to make or at least prep in advance.  Get at least 2 red and 2 yellow bell peppers, and to roast'em, wash them and throw them in the broiler turning as they start to blacken.  After they're evenly blistered and partially charred, let them cool then remove the stems seeds and the black skin (I like to leave some black). Slice them into strips and set them aside.  Then again in the broiler, on a cookie sheet quickly toast a loaf of sliced French bread. Just before you're ready to serve, add a fork full of peppers on each piece of bread still on the cookie sheet, add a little crumble of gorgonzola cheese, drizzle with olive oil and throw it back in the broiler (or a hot oven) for a few seconds only till the cheese starts to melt.  Plate and SERVE!!!! so delicious!  Feel free to substitute a goat cheese or even leave without dairy and just sprinkle with salt.

spicy meatball appetizers

Easy to make and can be done a couple hours in advance since these are fine at room temperature. Get about a pound and a half of lean ground beef (I only get beef ground in-store so I don't have mystery meat body parts coming from a far off warehouse), a cup and a half of bread crumbs, 2-3 cloves of chopped or crushed garlic, some ground black pepper, a handful of chopped cilantro, 3/4 cup of Sriracha (or try a full cup to cup and a half if you want them very spicy), quarter cup of white vinegar, one egg and a light sprinkle of salt.  Mix everything together and roll into bite-sized balls (you can do all of this the night before).  If the mixture is too dry and wont stick add a little more vinegar and if its too wet try sprinkling a bit more breadcrumbs into the mix.  When you're ready heat a pot with about an inch and a half of vegetable oil, gently drop in the meatballs and let them fry till they brown -OR- spread them over a cookie sheet and bake @400 degrees for 15-20 till the brown, turning them gently about half way through (I like them better fried- duh). Serve these on platter with an handful of toothpicks and I like to include another small cup or Sriracha sauce and then another 'cooler' sauce like a ranch or blue cheese for extra dipping. 

stuffed cherry tomatoes

Fantastic for appetizers and you can make them the night before. Wash a pint or two of cherry tomatoes, cut the tops off and with a small melon baller scoop out the inside.  You might need to ruin one or two till you figure out the trick.  Set the tomatoes aside and in a food processor make your own concoction of a chunky cheesy pesto.  If you need inspiration for a start, throw in some fresh basil (at least a fistful of leaves), one cup of parmiggiano, black pepper and half a cup of olive oil.  Start pulsing slowly and add ingredients a little at a time till you have an evenly distributed, loose but still tacky mixture you can spoon in the tomato cavity.  Taste your mixture as you go along till you get the combination you're really looking for and if you want to complicate this even more throw in some roasted peppers or balsamic vinegar. Spoon the mixture in your tomatoes and keep cool till your ready to serve.  I did these for my birthday this year and they made AWESOME garnish for bloody mary's the morning after.

boquerones, marinated white anchovies

don't cringe just cause you hear the word anchovy.  These taste nothing like what you're used to finding in a can and are honestly some of the most delicate and delicious savory snacks you may ever come across. Some of you may know these as boquerones and you'll find them at almost every tapas bar in Barcelona. Making them really isn't that difficult, just salting, cleaning and marinating the fish but at this point you can find them at Whole Foods, Dean & Deluca and a couple other specialty or international stores. Think of these to add to your spread next time you have people over for drinks and appetizers.

greek bruschetta

Its pronounced broo-ske-ta, just so you know.  But when I was in reading, PA, of all places, I saw this and its a great idea.  Get a bag or mini pitas and throw them on a cookie sheet, put a slice of tomato on top and toss it all in the broiler for only a minute- don't leave it too long or it'll burn- just to toast it a little.  Then drop some cubbed feta cheese on top with some parsley and black pepper and drizzle some olive oil.  Retoast if you want the cheese to melt a little more and serve warm. Yum yum

patatas bravas

Yeah, I know everything tastes better fried and you do too... so make sure you get to enjoy it every once in a while.  These are just cubed potatoes dropped in hot canola oil, fried till they're golden brown then sprinkled with sea salt and cracked pepper. Try and fry a hot pepper or two in the oil first to spice it up.  Serve them just like this as a side.  Kids love their bite-size. Toss them over a salad or into a beef stir fry.  Alternate them with mozarella, basil and tomatoes on skewers as an appetizer or leave a platter of them out with toothpicks and a fun aioli at a party.  Just be careful, they go a lot faster than you'd expect.

big baked mussels

Baked mussels are one of my favorite dishes (clams are just as delicious). Get a bag of nice fresh mussels, wash and brush them, debeard them and with a dull non serrated knife open them up. To open, hold the mussel and knife in the same hand while wedging the knife against the hinge of the shell. Squeeze with both hands (as if you had two walnuts in your hand and were cracking them) and one side should slide open. It takes a while to master it and if you didn't understand exactly how I can try to expain it better later. I do believe these days you can purchase fresh mussels already opened if you have a proper fish market- I've also seen them [but never tried them] frozen. Anyway, look in the half shell and be sure to remove any small bits of broken shell. Line them up in a large oven safe pan then sprinkle fresh parsley, grated parmesan cheese, chopped garlic black pepper, hot pepper flakes, a touch of tomato sauce if you have some and finally drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top. Throw it in a preheated 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes till they start to brown. These are fantastic, should be eaten warm and be sure to savor the juices at the bottom of the pan. It takes a while to make but you can prepare and refrigerate them raw in large batches a few hours ahead of time before entertaining. Hands down one of my favorite treats.

peel and eat shrimp

Whether its a small dinner or a back yard bbq, peel and eat shrimp are a great idea. I always say to get them with the head on if thats available but all you need to do is arrange them in a steamer season them however you like and keep them refrigerated till you're ready. Be as creative as you want with celery salt, chili powder, garlic, et cetera - or just buy yourself a can of Old Bay seasoning. Some people like to steam them with beer. Water works just as well. You know they're done when they get nice and red. These don't need to be served hot so they're fine to leave out on a table or buffet throughout the dinner. This small effortless side really pays off in the end.

fresh clams

Sautee half a diced onion in some olive oil with salt and pepper. Add a cup or so of white wine and when it starts to heat add a dozen little neck clams. Cover on low heat, check back in 10-15 minutes and they should be opened, steamed and ready to eat. DELICOUS.

sarde ripiene al forno

Quite impressive for simple dish. Buy a number of fresh cleaned sardines (2-3 per person), if you can buy them butterflied, do that, if not, when you get home all you do is open the cavity and run your thumb nail under the spine (starting from where the head was) to the end of the fish and breaking off the bone just before the tail. So you basically have one flat filet of sardine meat with the [decorative] tail at the end. Lightly flour each side and lay them flat on a work surface skin side down. In a large mixing bowl combine breadcrumbs, one beaten egg, a fair amount of

grated cheese, fresh parsley, finely chopped nuts if you have them, hot pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Mix that all together (add breadcrumbs if too soft, add some white wine if too dry), spoon a bit of the mixture on each of the sardine fillets, roll them and lay them flat, seam side down in an oiled baking pan. Once they're all packed pour some white wine on bottom of the pan and bake covered for about 10 minutes then uncovered for another 10-15 minutes. You can prep these well in advance but pop them in the oven last minute so they can be enjoyed warm. This is a delicious treat I learned from my Zia Luisa in Sardinia a few years ago. Give it a shot and I can guarantee that people who aren't even devoted seafood fans will love this.

stuffed cherry peppers

You can buy these peppers already preserved in a jar in the Italian section of most supermarkets or you can make your own by boiling them in a 1:1 white vinegar:H2O solution. Carefully remove the stems and seeds, then in a separate bowl mix bread crumbs, parsley, capers, cheese, toasted chopped nuts, garlic, if you like add anchovies or prosciutto or even raisins if you want them sweeter. These are delicious, spicy, vinegary treats- one is never enough. You can prepare them even a day in advance and refrigerate (so they're perfect to bring over as an appetizer to someone's house) OR even freeze them and when they thaw bake them until the tips are slightly golden brown. They're sure to impress even the toughest of crowds.