Q: My husband and I would like to thank our neighbours for watering our plants while we were on vacation in Italy by cooking an Italian meal. Our guests will be a mom and dad, one 5-year old, one 2-year old and a baby, and the meal must be halal. Any recipe ideas for a family-friendly, pork-free, loosely Italian meal?

Hello! Erin from The Forest Feast here, bringing you the second recipe in my series of Farmers Market Feasts for the month of May. There is a fantastic little seasonal farmers market that recently began down the road from me in the mountains. I try to go every week, and I've been getting to know the farmers, which is fun! This week I picked up some green garlic and fresh basil to make a creamy avocado pesto.

Q: I live in NYC and regularly buy fresh pasta from specialty shops. I love bucatini but have never seen bucatini sold fresh. Is there a reason why bucatini cannot be sold fresh or is there a place I can go to buy some that I have not thought of?

Sent by Mike

If you feel like you've mastered Pasta 101: Make Pasta from Scratch, then it's time to graduate to Pasta 201: Tortellini Edition. In today's class, you will learn the fine art of rolling, stuffing, and shaping these fetching little dumplings, all for the eventual goal of serving them to your adoring fans. No matter how tricky these tortellini look right now, I guarantee you will feel like a serious pasta-making pro once you step up to the pasta roller and turn out your first tray.

Polpo is the Italian word for octopus, and it's also the name of a restaurant located in London's Soho district that serves rustic, simple Venetian bar food.  I have never been (to POLPO or to Venice), but after looking through this cookbook from POLPO's owner Russell Norman, I want to hop a plane right now and visit both.  Given that we're still under the shadow of tax season here in my household, I will have to content myself with cooking from this gorgeous book, which believe me, will be no hardship.  

I was always scared to attempt risotto, so it wasn't until culinary school that I realized how easy they actually are. Time consuming, yes. Hard? Not at all. But then I discovered baked risotto and I've never looked back. This version with peas, asparagus, and pancetta is a personal favorite, and the epitome of spring! 

Take a look at this cup of coffee. It looks like a good little cup of espresso, doesn't it? Looks are deceiving in this case; there isn't a bit of coffee in this photo. Want to know what it is? 

The word "perfect" is a one-size-fits-all label in the blogosphere, applied to everything from our lipstick du jour or the latest chocolate cookie to blow our minds. So when I use the word perfect to describe the dessert that I think has it all, the dessert that everyone should have memorized and ready to go, I do so with some trepidation. Does perfect go too far? No, it doesn't. Panna cotta can always be the right dessert — whether you're throwing a fancy party or a small one, have lots of time or no time, are gluten-free, dairy-free, allergy-prone, vegan, or simply craving a delicious and creamy sweet. It's perfect. Let me tell you why. 

I'll be honest with you: I don't care for focaccia that's topped with a lot of stuff. I like my focaccia to be a simple, herby bread with the emphasis on salt and olive oil. I may allow for one or two additions besides the sea salt, olive oil and herbs. But that's it. You may feel differently, and of course, that's just fine. You can use this recipe as a base for all your favorite focaccia toppings. But just for today, try it plain and simple with a glass of deep red wine and maybe a wedge of cheese on the side. It's really quite delicious! More

It was 'polenta party' time at Faith's house last week, and she served it with a delicious dish of beef braised in red wine. My mouth is watering already. So, the big question we pondered was, what wine or rather what wines to serve alongside this robust, meaty, yet creamy dish. Here are some thoughts on how to choose wines to go with this meal, and some specific budget picks.