Meals with Sal’s family in Little Sicily (his childhood home) are something to behold. Whether it’s a weeknight dinner or a big to-do like the New Years Eve spread below, I’m consistently floored, humbled and honored to be around the table. These images never quite made it to prime time after our holiday visit, so I’m providing [...]

Like most people, I go through food phases. Right now, I’m kind of over the big salads that were making me happy for the past few months. Yet I know that I’ve got to get those all-important greens and I’m really trying to stay up on my Omega-3’s and healthy fats. Earlier this week, I had a [...]

Background Dan Sharp has been with us at the 8th Street Owl House now for a few weeks. He climbs uphill very fast and makes a mean steak. We love him. He also makes a pretty mind-blowing homemade energy bar. Upon tasting it, I held a kitchen knife to his gut and made him promise to show [...]

About a week after I arrived in Tucson, several friends forwarded me this New York Times article: “36  Hours in Tucson“. What luck! What timing! Our days here are mostly filled with work and riding and eating, a little culture never hurt anybody so I packed up my favorite only boyfriend and headed downtown for some [...]

Pearl barley and cheese collide in this decidedly healthy spin on a classic Italian comfort food. I’m not sure whether or not Sal’s mama would approve, but the pearl barley adds a springy, snappy texture that I find delightful. Besides, as Ryan Andrews explains at length in this super informative article over at the Precision [...]

This is a slightly sweet, intensely aromatic low-calorie soup packed with vitamins and general goodness. The orange of the carrots mixed with the yellow of the curry creates a shocking color that will light up any table.  I based this recipe off a standard carrot soup recipe, but added a few yellow squashes that were [...]