Anthony's Italian Recipe Visitor Photos! Part 1

Anthony's Italian Recipe Visitor Photos! Part 1	Take me back to the main recipes page plase .

This is a section of the site where I will be posting photos emailed to me by visitors. Below are photos that visitors took while having a great time making the sauce. :-) Please feel free to submit any photos of your culinary experience while making or eating this sauce recipe and I will promptly get them up on the site! I would welcome them. It's great fun to see people enjoying the whole Italian cooking experience!

These photos were sent in by Daniel,

...coming to you from Maryland, USA

~ Thanks for the photos Daniel :-)

Hi Anthony,

I wanted to send you a message to to say how wonderful it was to find your website. I have never made my own sauce but was by my Italian mothers side (maiden name Vecchio) many times when she would make hers. It was always an event with much love and laughter, and many of the best times I spent with her were in the kitchen. She loved cooking and seeing people enjoy her food. She also worked as a cook and frequently said she felt guilty for being paid to do something she loved so much. Unfortunately she passed away unexpectedly last December, and I miss her very much. Through the healing process I remembered hearing her say that cooking was her therapy. While I also enjoy cooking very much, I was pretty lost on where to start with making a great spaghetti sauce like hers but I felt it would do me good to tackle it.

That is when I "Googled" my way to your site where I read all of your recipes and watched your videos. I love your way of presenting these recipes and appreciate that you have shared many of your personal experiences. This all adds to the authenticity of the food and traditions you were brought up with and have shared with your family. I first made the chicken cutlets and they turned out great! I have made the sauce twice, and it is spectacular. Attached are a few pics of my 2nd sauce/meatball adventure this passed Saturday. Each time I have included the pork chops, meatballs, and sausage. I haven't tried the braciole but I intend to the next time I make the sauce (soon!). I also would like to make a double batch the next time so I can have plenty leftovers for lasagna! It's making me hungry just thinking about it!

The main reason I felt compelled to send you a message is to tell you that I feel happiness and love whenever I set out to make the sauce. It brings me back to the days with my mother in the kitchen. It truly warms my heart, and I thank you for helping make that happen.

Salute!
D.J

These photos were sent in by Ken,

...coming to you from New Jersey, USA

~ Thanks for the photos Ken! :-)

Anthony, Here are nice pictures of The NJ Italians...with Sausage Bread! Today is Easter Sunday and we followed your sausage bread recipe exactly and it was delicious. We have been trying to duplicate our grandmother's recipe for years...but she took the secret to the grave with her...but your recipe revived the spirit and tradition...we are sure to try your other recipes. We are NJ Italians who love to cook..eat ..and talk about eating.. Ciao. Ken

PS...I make my own sausage...another good secret of nona.

These photos were sent in by Tejal,

...coming to you from Clemente, CA , USA!

~ Thanks for the photos Tejal! :-)

Hey Anthony,

My husband is a platoon commander for an infantry unit in the United States Marine Corp. Lately, his marines have been going through some rough months of training. One weekend when they came back from the field, I surprised them with fudgy brownies and some peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. They later told my husband how much they appreciated the home cooked baked goodies since they hardly get any being so far away from home. I thought about it and if brownies and cookies made them that happy, then surely a home cooked meal would make them feel especially loved. I thought about what dishes would be universal and spaghetti with a meat sauce and garlic bread came to mind. I am Indian by birth, and therefore do not posses the amazing Italian cooking genes (my room mate in college had a full blooded Italian mother - so I know the difference it makes!). I was wondering if you had any recipes that you could suggest for 43 hungry marines.

I read your "Anthony's Pasta sauce" recipe and it looks great, but I didn't know how many people it fed. I will be making the food by myself, so I don't think I have enough time to make meatballs (plus, I don't know how expensive that would be! military pay isn't quite what is used to be). My husband came home last night suggesting Friday, October 1st, as it will be the last day before their at sea periods before their deployment. I know this is a tall order, but if you have the time to suggest something either today or tomorrow... it would be so great! Thanks in advance, Tejal

..... I sent her details on this, I will add them to sauce talk for some good details on how to make the sauce for 40!Well, she tackled that project and it came out great! This is no small feat! I have made sauce and meatballs for 40 before and it's no easy task! Good Job Tejal!!! So here is her response after the event :-)I was so happy to hear this came out well!

Anthony!!! Okay first, holy mother of God..! That was the best sauce ever... I snuck a taste as you suggested!! Thankfully, I work from home and for the government, so since the fiscal year was over... things were pretty slow! I started my Italian Culinary Adventure on Thursday morning (8AM). I started with rolling the meatballs (since I was using 6lbs of beef to feed all those marines). 86 meatballs later, I fried up the pork chops and meatballs, then started on the sauce... I followed every detail down to the T. I did however, have to do with out the braciole and Italian sausage (for cost and time). I finished the sauce around 5 PM. I had to rearrange my fridge a bit to accommodate three large sauce pots (hint: remove shelves!). Friday morning, I started reheating the sauce around 10 AM, then moved onto making the 6 pounds of pasta. Started traying the pasta around 2PM. Since, I wasn't sure when Evan and his platoon would be back from the field operation, I set my oven to 200 degrees and warmed the trays. I topped each one with parmesan and fresh parsley (marines may not care about presentation, but its love!). Evan's company didn't end up getting back until 6 PM, an hour later than expected. Evan's platoon was kind enough to share some of their food with other marines in their company. It just shows how great his marines really are! Evan tried to explain the sheer look of happiness that the marines had on their face when there were called into the kitchen. Evan said how much they love having a home cooked meal. I completely agree with your philosophy of sharing food = sharing love. I took as many pictures as I could while cooking. I am not allowed in the barracks, but Evan tried to get as many pictures as he could. There aren't any pictures of us, so I threw one in there, so you could put a face with a name. (See above) I cannot express the many thanks from the marines and from myself for sharing your amazing family cooking secrets. If you have any more for a crowd, do pass them on... when I have recovered from this adventure, I would love to tackle another one! Thanks again from my family and 1st Marines, 1st Battalion, Alpha Company, 1st Platoon! ~ Tejal

Click HERE for more photos of Tejal's cooking experience!

These photos were sent in by David S.,

...coming to you from Brunswick, Ohio, USA!

~ Thanks for the photos David! :-)

David called my pasta sauce recipe "Godfather Spaghetti" because he watches the Godfather trilogy all day while he makes the spaghetti sauce and meatballs recipe with a nice bottle of Francis Ford Coppola wine. ;-) Sounds like a fun day! He recently gave my Sausage Bread recipe a try. I love the modifications he made to this recipe and I'm going to try them out for sure! He put egg wash on the inside and outside of the dough. I never would have tried this, but it certainly looks good!I love this presentation with the sauce and the peppers! Just lovely!

You can see on the right here the egg wash with parsley and garlic powder that David used for the inside and outside of the dough. An interesting technique! I've gotta try this! I'm sure this adds a lot of flavor to the bread! You see above how he spread the egg wash in the inside if the dough before adding any filling.

Anthony, I made your sausage bread recipe with a few changes.

Our local grocer has a pizza shop inside so I used their fresh pizza dough.
I rolled out the dough longwise.
In my egg wash I put some fresh parsley and 1 tsp of garlic powder.
I brushed the egg was on the inside of the rolled out dough.
Then I put about 2C of mozzarella cheese shredded first.
Then the sausage and pepper with a few mushrooms.
I rolled it up like a jellyroll folding in the sides to seal.
Egg wash on the outside, let it rest for 30 min and then baked at 350 for an hour.
Served it with a side of warm marinara and ring peppers. ;-)

Pretty flippin good!!! That's my daughter above, stealing half of it to take home! The sausage bread was AWESOME. Rolling it up like a jellyroll distributed the contents really well. The Godfather trilogy was great! What fun! The spaghetti was wonderful. I tell everyone about your site. They think it’s a hoot.

Thanks! David

Click HERE for more photos of David's cooking experience!

Above, we have a wonderful shot of this amazing sausage bread! David did a good job with this! The addition of mozzarella cheese and mushrooms is a great! I am looking forward to making this variation! YUM!

These photos were sent in by David,

...coming to you from Cedar Falls/Waterloo, Iowa, USA!

~ Thanks for the photos David! :-)

Dave emailed me as he was working his way through the sauce....

Anthony,
I am getting ready to try your pasta sauce for the first time. I have a friend that indicates it is the best he has ever had. I have read the recipe/instructions several times to familiarize myself to make it a bit easier the first time. Me and whatever of that wine does not go in the sauce are listening and cooking italian today! Dinner tonight is gonna be money!.... Done and simmering..... I have tasted the meatballs and they are absolutely awesome! I am going to turn everything off at about 1:30 and let sit until around 6pm and then bring the heat back up. Paired with your garlic bread recipe and a good Italian salad and it will be perfect. I've seen 17 friends in a half a day! Attached are a couple more pictures. Dinner was awesome! Thanks for all of your help!

Dave

Dave had some really good questions when he was making the sauce that prompted me to add some more tips to the Anthony's Pasta Cooking, Leftovers and other secret Italian Cooking Tips for Grandma's Pasta Sauce page.

Click HERE for more photos of Daniel's cooking experience!

These photos were sent in by Daniel,

...coming to you from Lincoln, CA, USA!

~ Thanks for the photos Daniel! :-)

..Hey Anthony,

Greetings from California! My wife and I discovered your site about five years ago and we just wanted to tell you how much we love it. We have been making your sauce for five years now and we can't tell you how much everyone loves it. We have started making double the amount every year and canning it to give to our friends and relatives. Every year we are always asked, "when are you guys making the sauce?" I always tell them about your site, and a few of them have even started making their own batches. Every recipe we have tried has been awesome, especially the garlic bread. It has been a tradition for the last five years for my wife and I to make the sauce on New Years day. Since it was our first New Years with our new daughter Madelyn, we took some pictures to share with you and your readers. I can't tell you how much fun we have doing this every year and we wanted to thank you for the great recipes.

Sincerely, Daniel

Click HERE for more photos of Daniel's cooking experience!

These photos were sent in by Adam,

...coming to you from New Zealand!

~ Thanks for the photos Adam! :-)

Kiora (good health) Anthony,

Thanks for sharing your great recipe and itunes music stream, Spaghetti sundays here in NZ are becoming a bit of a regular thing, two weeks in a row in fact the neighbors are getting use to the Italian booming acc

The left overs I have for lunch on Mondays are starting a trend amongst my staff and now insist it's ok to drink wine on monday lunchtimes.

Any cheers once again.

~ Adam

These photos were sent in by Jim,

...coming to you from Dallas, Texas, USA

~ Thanks for the photos Jim! :-)

Anthony, I have been wanting to make this since I saw it on your web site. Came out
excellent....I just added a few chopped onions with the garlic!:-) Thanks, Jim

Oh man! Just look at that Spinach Frittata!!! Jim did a great job! This is such a tasty dish! Wonderful to have this as a sandwish with some fresh Italian bread, thinly sliced and lightly toasted.

Above is a wonderful presentation for this tastey treat! My grandmother used to make this with Asparagase, delicious!!!!! Really goes great with a nice glass of red wine! Jim deviated slightly from my recipe and added onions, shown on the left. Looks good! I'm going to have to try that next time I make it.

Click HERE for more photos of Jim's cooking experience!

These photos were sent in by Nathan,

...coming to you from Syracuse, Utah, USA

~ Thanks for the photos Nathan! :-)

Dear Anthony,
I was always under the impression that a meat ball was just a rolled up ball of hamburger. I recently made a trip to San Fransisco for business. I was in a carnivorous mood, but could not find a steakhouse with less then a two hour wait. I settled for a quaint little Italian place where I insisted on Meatballs to satisfy my need for meat. What an explosion of taste. It was then that I vowed to discover the secrets of good Italian food. I goggled my way to your web site and spent the next two weeks planning sufficient time to try your recipes. My kids and I followed the recipe to the letter and were rewarded with a fantastic meal. (despite the fact that it cost me $72 to buy everything I needed...I didn't have anything, and I needed a good Movie to go with the meal. We now refer to your sauce as the seventy two dollar sauce...and worth every penny.) Not only was the meal great, but the time spent with my kids making it was priceless. I have rediscovered cooking. Thanks for a fun recipe to make and read. ~ P.S. Today is my day off and the kids have requested $72 sauce for dinner. It's off to the store for sausage. Thanks.

Sincerely, Nathan

Well, this girl is ready to go! All the shopping is done, OK Dad let's get moving! :-) in this photo above, you can see there is a lot of stuff here! We can see why this is known as the $72.00 sauce in this family. Nathan said he had nothing in the house that was on the list. This was including all the spices. It can add up if you are starting from scratch on "all" the ingredients. But be encouraged, it's all worth it :-)

Oh, I just LOVE to see a Dad spending quality time with his children! These photos just warm my heart. Way to go Nathan! Children remember most, the "time" parents spent with them when they where younger.... The love shared and time spent with them is what remains deep down in the heart :-) Italian cooking is great for quality time like this. There is a lot involved and sometimes it can take all day, what a great opportunity to spend time with your children.

Nathan,
Hey, I just noticed from the photos that you tackled the sausage as well. Great stuff isn't it? I just love how your handling the sausage and stiring the sauce at the same time, lovely! :-) The meat and all the wonderful tasty grease that goes along with it really adds a lot to the overall flavor and depth of the sauce :-) Good to see you tackled more than just the meatballs. ~8-) Anthony

Anthony,
Yea I even did the chops. The Braciole seemed a bit much to tackle the first time around. I just got back from the store to do it again at my wife's request. Amazing 'cause she doesn't like spaghetti. I have to swap for linguine. By the way...The left overs made a great lasagna. I haven't looked at the lasagna recipe, but the $72 sauce with the sausage was awesome. With Much gratitude. ~ Nathan

P.S. The kids loved the bread too. Perhaps a finished product photo will make it your way after today.!

...Oh man! Would you just look at these meatballs frying in the pan. I can almost smell them! Yum!

These photos were sent in by Jeff,

...coming to you from New Jersey, USA!

~ Thanks for the photos Jeff! :-)

Anthony,
I live in Jersey but have a house in Vermont that has a wood burning stove. I've been thinking about doing a slow-cook on the wood stove with your recipe. Think it'll turn out well? I've got to try it just once. My mother told me that her grandmother (from Naples) used to slow-cook sauce in a large black pot placed out side and let the sun heat it up. She would leave it out side all day. Jeff

Well, you can definitely see by the photos that Jeff followed through and really did make the sauce over the wood burning stove and he said it came out just great :-) Looks wonderful!

Below, I have placed some tips from Jeff in regards to cooking over a wood burning stove and a tasty secret tip as well :-)

Thank Jeff!

Above we have the sauce slow cooking over a nice wood burning stove somewhere in Vermont :-) There was a slight problem with the temperature. Jeff said it was getting a little too hot, up to 500 degrees F. See the Alien looking thingie below? That is a simmer plate, it helps you control the temperature :-) Jeff calls this a "SimmerMat black heat diffuser" but I still say it's some kind of Alien device, use with caution ;-)

Anthony,

My first attempt at cooking sauce on my wood burning stove turned out better than I thought. My wife described the taste as "mellow", and I would agree. It was one of the best sauces I've made to date. First: Controlling the temperature on the surface of the stove proved more difficult than I thought. I tried to keep it at around 300 to 350 degrees---but it soon got up to 500 and the sauce began to boil. Plan B: I placed a simmer plate under the pot and brought the temperature down and the sauce began to simmer once again. A simmer plate is designed to be used on an electric stove to prevent scalding and it works equally as well on a wood stove. A simmer plate is an absolute must if attempting to cook sauce on a wood stove because of the temperature control problem. Not all simmer plates are created equal, some work very well and some not at all. Avoid those that have handles as it may prevent you from centering the pot. This is the one I used and it worked very well; IMCG SMOC1 SimmerMat black heat diffuser. After 4 hours of simmering and 1 hour to let it steep, the meatballs, sausages, pork & braciole were tender. The flavor was great. Next time I'm going to start out using the simmer plate and try for a 6 hour (or more) cooking time. The nice thing about cooking on a wood stove using a simmer plate is that if you really get it to simmer you don't have to worry about stirring every 15 minutes, just set it and forget it.

But wait... There's more! :-)

A tip in regards to the Olive Oil and Garlic bath... .What I do is run the garlic through a press put it in a cup or jar, add olive oil and let it sit over night before using it the next day. Really good. Also: A tip I received from my uncle about tomato sauce: he used RedPack whole plum tomato's and puts them in a blender to make his sauce. I used Tuttorosso brand but tried my uncle's method in Vermont on the wood stove. There was a noticeable difference in the flavor. Much better. My uncle's reputation as a great cook is well known in this area. So much so that Geraldo Rivera wanted to do a story about him a while back. One more tip... Concerning wine, have you ever tried 'Fortissimo'? If not try it just once. It's a great tasting red wine and if you don't like it you can always cook with it. The guy that owns that liquor store where I buy it told me that in the summer time when many Italians come up to NJ from Florida the sale of Fortissimo goes through the roof. Then in the Fall when they return to Florida the sales drop. That should tell you something. Jeff.

Jeff .. Here is a cool link I found to a kit for making your own Fortissimo wine and here are two places where you can buy Fortissimo Shop #1 - Shop #2 :-) Anthony

Please show me more Visitors photos,
this is fun! More! I want more more!!!

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