Bumping into God in the Kitchen: Savory Stories of Food, Family, and Faith Book

Contents

Acknowledgments xi Introduction xiii

Antipasto

Quick Pickled Peppers 4
Mom’s Egg Balls 6
My Own Sausage and Peppers 8
My Own Tomato-and-Bread Salad 10
1 Sunday Pasta 13
2 Common Senses 19
3 Dandelion Wine 24
4 Comfort Food 29
5 Pizza Day 34
6 The Guest List 38
7 The “Ordeal of Food” 43
8 The Importance of Leftovers 48

First Course

Jerry’s “Award-Winning” Bread 56
My Own (Cheating) Tomato Sauce with Neck Bones 58
Mom’s Pizza Pie 61
9 Spirit Week 67
10 To Feed the Hungry 72
11 Table Manners 77
12 An Unforgettable Meal 82
13 The Truth about Eggplant 87
14 Adaptations 92

Second Plate

My Own Italian Stuffed Pork Chops 100
My Own Garlic Roasted Potatoes 102
Lola’s Chicken Vesuvio 104
My Own Veal Marsala 107
Mom’s Fava Beans 110
15 Graced by Gumbo 113
16 Thanksgiving Chickpeas 119
17 From the Old to the New 123
18 Cooks, Not Chefs 128
19 Occupational Hazards 133
20 Hot Dogs on the Stove 138

Dessert

My Own Lemon Ice Dessert 148
My Own Macedonia 150
My Own Mock Spumoni 152
You-Don’t-Have-to-Do-It-All Dessert 154
21 The Honor Guard 155
22 Seduced in Tuscany 161
23 A Village Celebration 167
24 The Art of Grocery Shopping 173
25 An Italian Kitchen 179
26 Reflections from the Eternal City 184

Afterword 189