Not really a cooking entry, just a note about a local Sicilian family's restaurant, their desserts.

[pinto]

Before sundown I often walk downtown, wander a bit and stop in at Mama's Meatball.

Great Italian food, but the kicker, "Mama" makes all the bread, pastries and desserts -

I Dolci -

Cannoli alla Siciliana - Roll shell pasta filled with ricotta cheese, candied fruits, chocolate and pistachio.

Mimosa cake - Vanilla sponge cake filled with chantilly cream, pineapple and Malibu rum.

Profiterole - Puffs filled with vanilla custard, topped with chocolate ganache and whipped cream.

Ahh...

I don't know baking from nuclear physics but these make me want to learn. Sometimes I get them to go, with a fork and pick as I stroll. There's just *something* about it that really is a good slice of life.

[Lucinda]

1. I KNEW I shouldn't have opened this tonight.

Now I'm hungry. :P

I learned to bake great bread a winter or so ago...and I have "Learn to make great Italian food" on my agenda for this spring. Especially ravioli and other filled pastas. Best way to learn is to try and make something you really love and work at it until you master it. I like to go to websites like allrecipes.com - that have reviews, so I can read how those people making a recipe did with it. You get great tips on different techniques that way.

I love the name of the place!

[elleng]

3. Wanted to find a recipe for you, Luc, but found this instead:

A Hefty Guide to Eating Italian

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/02/dining/02italy.html?_r=1&ref=dining

Have fun!

:hi:

[Lucinda]

4. Looks interesting!

Thank you! :hi:

[tigereye]

5. that was my reaction as well!

we were at a birthday party tonight with great food, but for some odd reason I am still hungry...

[Lucinda]

6. I've been both extremes lately

either totally disinterested in food or super hungry and just not finding "it" - Things sound good...but nothing hits the spot.

[hippywife]

2. I love cannoli!

I'm just going to have to break down and make some since I'm not going to find good ones in Tulsa.

One business trip, a coworker and I went to the Italian district in Baltimore and had a delicious meal in a very pricey restaurant. Afterwards, we took a walk over to an Italian confectionery and bought a cannoli and an Italian Ice. We sat on a park bench and shared them both. Was a lovely evening, really, that was made so much better by that little treat.

If I were you, I'd be thankful that you have someone like Mama to make them for you and just enjoy taking that walk to get them. :D

:hi:

[old mark]

7. There is a small Sicillian restaurant near us. They first moved rom Sicilly

to NYC to work in restaurants there, then moved here to PA and bought their own.
Members of our family who visit us from NYC, Philly and Boston are amazed at the food and rave about the place. We were looking for really good local restaurants and stopped looking when we found this one. A real treasure.

mark

Reviews of Carini's Restaurant in local site:

http://www.berksweb.com/restaurants/review.php?val=28