New recipes, habits to explore in 2015

During the past week, Tony, Gio and I have been talking about what we’d like to explore in the world of food for the new year, and we came up with a list of our top 15 food resolutions for 2015. Some are personal cooking goals, but most of them are just fun ways to expand our culinary horizons. 1. Try one new cheese each month. The new and improved Luna neighborhood café on South University Drive in Fargo has a fabulous cheese counter, and Peter Kelly, formerly of The Green Market, is the man behind it. Ryan Nitschke, the executive chef of the soon-to-be full-service restaurant, also knows his way around the cheese counter, and we can’t wait to taste their recommendations for 2015. 2. Eat together more often. As a restaurant family, dining together isn’t a nightly occurrence, but our son, Gio, loves it when we sit down to enjoy a home-cooked meal together. Once a week is a must for this one. 3. Use the good stuff. We have beautiful china that we rarely use, and our goal is to bring it out not just for special occasions, but anytime we dine together as a family. 4. Try different oils. Extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil are the staples in our house, but the world of oil is vast and we’d like to know it better. Tochi Products in north Fargo has a terrific assortment of oils to try, including grape seed, almond, sunflower, sesame and even white truffle oil.
5. Sharpen knives regularly. You would think that professionals in the food industry would have the sharpest knives on the block, but the knives in our drawer at home could not be duller. Creative Kitchen at West Acres offers knife-sharpening services for a nominal fee, and even hosts free events several times throughout the year. This is the year we’re going to get our knives sharpened. 6. Add more fish to our diet. Fish is so good for us, but is often left out of our regular diets. Thankfully, our local supermarkets and restaurants have an abundance of great seafood options to keep this challenge interesting and delicious. 7. Try new foods. This could be as simple as sweet pickles or those cute little red peppadew peppers in the olive bar, as interesting as adding exotic spices like saffron or turmeric, or as complex as boeuf bourguignon or foie gras, but the goal is to have fun tasting and making new foods. 8. Seek out new food experiences. Step outside your comfort zone and try a new restaurant, take a cooking class, check out a health food store, visit a bakery, order something different at your favorite restaurant, or visit a town for its famed local specialty. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_original","fid":"1436011","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","height":"350","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"750"}}]] 9. Master biscuits and gravy. Just because we love this specialty. 10. Bake once a week. Baking is like therapy for me, and I’m seeking some peace and calm in 2015. Baking once a week may be just what I need. 11. Make time to eat with friends. Food is a wonderful way to connect with others, but we rarely entertain in our home and often turn down dinner invitations, using our busy schedule as an excuse. It’s time for us to make more time to enjoy breaking bread with others. 12. Master a roast chicken. Gio was looking through a recent issue of Bon Appetit magazine earlier this month and was practically salivating as he showed me a picture of a gorgeous roast chicken. This comfort food definitely needs to be added to our repertoire. 13. Use location for inspiration. Last summer we were challenged to create almost a dozen different appetizers, each one inspired by a North Dakota crop, for the inaugural Banquet in a Field event. We live in an area that is abundant with agriculture, which should give us plenty of inspiration for 2015. 14. Drink better coffee. I’ve always wanted to try making coffee from a French press – this may be the year. 15. Use our cookbooks. We have a huge collection of cookbooks but tend to gravitate toward just a few favorites. We’re going to prepare a new recipe each month in 2015, using a different, and previously unused, cookbook each time. We’ll keep you posted on our progress throughout the year and hope you’ve enjoyed our list. Tony, Gio and I wish you a very happy, and delicious, new year! Home with the Lost Italian is a weekly column written by Sarah Nasello featuring recipes by her husband, Tony Nasello. The couple owns Sarello’s restaurant in Moorhead and lives in Fargo. Readers can reach them at dine@sarellos.com. All previous recipes can be found at http://thelostitalian.areavoices.com. Tweets by @DLNewspapersDuring the past week, Tony, Gio and I have been talking about what we’d like to explore in the world of food for the new year, and we came up with a list of our top 15 food resolutions for 2015. Some are personal cooking goals, but most of them are just fun ways to expand our culinary horizons. 1. Try one new cheese each month. The new and improved Luna neighborhood café on South University Drive in Fargo has a fabulous cheese counter, and Peter Kelly, formerly of The Green Market, is the man behind it. Ryan Nitschke, the executive chef of the soon-to-be full-service restaurant, also knows his way around the cheese counter, and we can’t wait to taste their recommendations for 2015. 2. Eat together more often. As a restaurant family, dining together isn’t a nightly occurrence, but our son, Gio, loves it when we sit down to enjoy a home-cooked meal together. Once a week is a must for this one. 3. Use the good stuff. We have beautiful china that we rarely use, and our goal is to bring it out not just for special occasions, but anytime we dine together as a family. 4. Try different oils. Extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil are the staples in our house, but the world of oil is vast and we’d like to know it better. Tochi Products in north Fargo has a terrific assortment of oils to try, including grape seed, almond, sunflower, sesame and even white truffle oil. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_original","fid":"1436010","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","height":"350","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"750"}}]] 5. Sharpen knives regularly. You would think that professionals in the food industry would have the sharpest knives on the block, but the knives in our drawer at home could not be duller. Creative Kitchen at West Acres offers knife-sharpening services for a nominal fee, and even hosts free events several times throughout the year. This is the year we’re going to get our knives sharpened. 6. Add more fish to our diet. Fish is so good for us, but is often left out of our regular diets. Thankfully, our local supermarkets and restaurants have an abundance of great seafood options to keep this challenge interesting and delicious. 7. Try new foods. This could be as simple as sweet pickles or those cute little red peppadew peppers in the olive bar, as interesting as adding exotic spices like saffron or turmeric, or as complex as boeuf bourguignon or foie gras, but the goal is to have fun tasting and making new foods. 8. Seek out new food experiences. Step outside your comfort zone and try a new restaurant, take a cooking class, check out a health food store, visit a bakery, order something different at your favorite restaurant, or visit a town for its famed local specialty.
9. Master biscuits and gravy. Just because we love this specialty. 10. Bake once a week. Baking is like therapy for me, and I’m seeking some peace and calm in 2015. Baking once a week may be just what I need. 11. Make time to eat with friends. Food is a wonderful way to connect with others, but we rarely entertain in our home and often turn down dinner invitations, using our busy schedule as an excuse. It’s time for us to make more time to enjoy breaking bread with others. 12. Master a roast chicken. Gio was looking through a recent issue of Bon Appetit magazine earlier this month and was practically salivating as he showed me a picture of a gorgeous roast chicken. This comfort food definitely needs to be added to our repertoire. 13. Use location for inspiration. Last summer we were challenged to create almost a dozen different appetizers, each one inspired by a North Dakota crop, for the inaugural Banquet in a Field event. We live in an area that is abundant with agriculture, which should give us plenty of inspiration for 2015. 14. Drink better coffee. I’ve always wanted to try making coffee from a French press – this may be the year. 15. Use our cookbooks. We have a huge collection of cookbooks but tend to gravitate toward just a few favorites. We’re going to prepare a new recipe each month in 2015, using a different, and previously unused, cookbook each time. We’ll keep you posted on our progress throughout the year and hope you’ve enjoyed our list. Tony, Gio and I wish you a very happy, and delicious, new year! Home with the Lost Italian is a weekly column written by Sarah Nasello featuring recipes by her husband, Tony Nasello. The couple owns Sarello’s restaurant in Moorhead and lives in Fargo. Readers can reach them at dine@sarellos.com. All previous recipes can be found at http://thelostitalian.areavoices.com. Tweets by @DLNewspapersDuring the past week, Tony, Gio and I have been talking about what we’d like to explore in the world of food for the new year, and we came up with a list of our top 15 food resolutions for 2015. Some are personal cooking goals, but most of them are just fun ways to expand our culinary horizons.1. Try one new cheese each month. The new and improved Luna neighborhood café on South University Drive in Fargo has a fabulous cheese counter, and Peter Kelly, formerly of The Green Market, is the man behind it. Ryan Nitschke, the executive chef of the soon-to-be full-service restaurant, also knows his way around the cheese counter, and we can’t wait to taste their recommendations for 2015.2. Eat together more often. As a restaurant family, dining together isn’t a nightly occurrence, but our son, Gio, loves it when we sit down to enjoy a home-cooked meal together. Once a week is a must for this one.3. Use the good stuff. We have beautiful china that we rarely use, and our goal is to bring it out not just for special occasions, but anytime we dine together as a family.4. Try different oils. Extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil are the staples in our house, but the world of oil is vast and we’d like to know it better. Tochi Products in north Fargo has a terrific assortment of oils to try, including grape seed, almond, sunflower, sesame and even white truffle oil.
5. Sharpen knives regularly. You would think that professionals in the food industry would have the sharpest knives on the block, but the knives in our drawer at home could not be duller. Creative Kitchen at West Acres offers knife-sharpening services for a nominal fee, and even hosts free events several times throughout the year. This is the year we’re going to get our knives sharpened.6. Add more fish to our diet. Fish is so good for us, but is often left out of our regular diets. Thankfully, our local supermarkets and restaurants have an abundance of great seafood options to keep this challenge interesting and delicious.7. Try new foods. This could be as simple as sweet pickles or those cute little red peppadew peppers in the olive bar, as interesting as adding exotic spices like saffron or turmeric, or as complex as boeuf bourguignon or foie gras, but the goal is to have fun tasting and making new foods.8. Seek out new food experiences. Step outside your comfort zone and try a new restaurant, take a cooking class, check out a health food store, visit a bakery, order something different at your favorite restaurant, or visit a town for its famed local specialty.[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_original","fid":"1436011","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","height":"350","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"750"}}]]9. Master biscuits and gravy. Just because we love this specialty.10. Bake once a week. Baking is like therapy for me, and I’m seeking some peace and calm in 2015. Baking once a week may be just what I need.11. Make time to eat with friends. Food is a wonderful way to connect with others, but we rarely entertain in our home and often turn down dinner invitations, using our busy schedule as an excuse. It’s time for us to make more time to enjoy breaking bread with others.12. Master a roast chicken. Gio was looking through a recent issue of Bon Appetit magazine earlier this month and was practically salivating as he showed me a picture of a gorgeous roast chicken. This comfort food definitely needs to be added to our repertoire.13. Use location for inspiration. Last summer we were challenged to create almost a dozen different appetizers, each one inspired by a North Dakota crop, for the inaugural Banquet in a Field event. We live in an area that is abundant with agriculture, which should give us plenty of inspiration for 2015.14. Drink better coffee. I’ve always wanted to try making coffee from a French press – this may be the year.15. Use our cookbooks. We have a huge collection of cookbooks but tend to gravitate toward just a few favorites. We’re going to prepare a new recipe each month in 2015, using a different, and previously unused, cookbook each time.We’ll keep you posted on our progress throughout the year and hope you’ve enjoyed our list. Tony, Gio and I wish you a very happy, and delicious, new year!Home with the Lost Italian is a weekly column written by Sarah Nasello featuring recipes by her husband, Tony Nasello. The couple owns Sarello’s restaurant in Moorhead and lives in Fargo. Readers can reach them at dine@sarellos.com. All previous recipes can be found at http://thelostitalian.areavoices.com.Tweets by @DLNewspapersDuring the past week, Tony, Gio and I have been talking about what we’d like to explore in the world of food for the new year, and we came up with a list of our top 15 food resolutions for 2015. Some are personal cooking goals, but most of them are just fun ways to expand our culinary horizons.1. Try one new cheese each month. The new and improved Luna neighborhood café on South University Drive in Fargo has a fabulous cheese counter, and Peter Kelly, formerly of The Green Market, is the man behind it. Ryan Nitschke, the executive chef of the soon-to-be full-service restaurant, also knows his way around the cheese counter, and we can’t wait to taste their recommendations for 2015.2. Eat together more often. As a restaurant family, dining together isn’t a nightly occurrence, but our son, Gio, loves it when we sit down to enjoy a home-cooked meal together. Once a week is a must for this one.3. Use the good stuff. We have beautiful china that we rarely use, and our goal is to bring it out not just for special occasions, but anytime we dine together as a family.4. Try different oils. Extra-virgin olive oil and canola oil are the staples in our house, but the world of oil is vast and we’d like to know it better. Tochi Products in north Fargo has a terrific assortment of oils to try, including grape seed, almond, sunflower, sesame and even white truffle oil.[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_original","fid":"1436010","attributes":{"alt":"","class":"media-image","height":"350","typeof":"foaf:Image","width":"750"}}]]5. Sharpen knives regularly. You would think that professionals in the food industry would have the sharpest knives on the block, but the knives in our drawer at home could not be duller. Creative Kitchen at West Acres offers knife-sharpening services for a nominal fee, and even hosts free events several times throughout the year. This is the year we’re going to get our knives sharpened.6. Add more fish to our diet. Fish is so good for us, but is often left out of our regular diets. Thankfully, our local supermarkets and restaurants have an abundance of great seafood options to keep this challenge interesting and delicious.7. Try new foods. This could be as simple as sweet pickles or those cute little red peppadew peppers in the olive bar, as interesting as adding exotic spices like saffron or turmeric, or as complex as boeuf bourguignon or foie gras, but the goal is to have fun tasting and making new foods.8. Seek out new food experiences. Step outside your comfort zone and try a new restaurant, take a cooking class, check out a health food store, visit a bakery, order something different at your favorite restaurant, or visit a town for its famed local specialty.
9. Master biscuits and gravy. Just because we love this specialty.10. Bake once a week. Baking is like therapy for me, and I’m seeking some peace and calm in 2015. Baking once a week may be just what I need.11. Make time to eat with friends. Food is a wonderful way to connect with others, but we rarely entertain in our home and often turn down dinner invitations, using our busy schedule as an excuse. It’s time for us to make more time to enjoy breaking bread with others.12. Master a roast chicken. Gio was looking through a recent issue of Bon Appetit magazine earlier this month and was practically salivating as he showed me a picture of a gorgeous roast chicken. This comfort food definitely needs to be added to our repertoire.13. Use location for inspiration. Last summer we were challenged to create almost a dozen different appetizers, each one inspired by a North Dakota crop, for the inaugural Banquet in a Field event. We live in an area that is abundant with agriculture, which should give us plenty of inspiration for 2015.14. Drink better coffee. I’ve always wanted to try making coffee from a French press – this may be the year.15. Use our cookbooks. We have a huge collection of cookbooks but tend to gravitate toward just a few favorites. We’re going to prepare a new recipe each month in 2015, using a different, and previously unused, cookbook each time.We’ll keep you posted on our progress throughout the year and hope you’ve enjoyed our list. Tony, Gio and I wish you a very happy, and delicious, new year!Home with the Lost Italian is a weekly column written by Sarah Nasello featuring recipes by her husband, Tony Nasello. The couple owns Sarello’s restaurant in Moorhead and lives in Fargo. Readers can reach them at dine@sarellos.com. All previous recipes can be found at http://thelostitalian.areavoices.com.Tweets by @DLNewspapers