Federica Cucinelli

Parcooking in vinegar water helps set the starches so the potatoes get crisp, rather than floury, when roasted.

Butterflying the pork loin isn't difficult, but many butchers will do it for you.

These biscotti-like cookies are extra delicious dipped in an after-dinner drink such as Vin Santo.

This salad can be made with raw fava beans, as long as they're especially fresh. But blanching them quickly makes them much easier to peel.

Named for Amatrice, a town northeast of Rome, this pasta is traditionally served with a long noodle like bucatini, but we like how shorter penne captures the spicy, meaty bits of sauce inside the tube.