From Libellula's Kitchen & Land

It was the summer of 1487. Lucrezia Borgia was about to get married. For the third time. You see, her dearest father,  Pope Alexander VI and mother (who happened to be one of his favorite mistresses), had decided that they would marry their daughter as many times as they could to advance their political standing.  As soon as one husband didn’t quite give them as many political or financial benefits as they had hoped, they moved onto a new conquest for their daughter. And they weren’t too subtle about it either. Her father ordered the execution of her first husband....

In the final weeks of this dry, hot summer, we’ve kept a close watch on our olive trees. Many of you know the story of our harvest last year; Buran winds blew in from Siberia, killing all of our tree’s blossoms. In a single night, our harvest was almost entirely destroyed. So you can imagine our hopeful monitoring of the weather each night as the summer grew to a close… We are elated to share that our olive buds survived and have grown into a truly spectacular harvest! The town’s olive mill, which has been closed since February, has reopened...

Cooked on a garden BBQ or over campfire coals, it’s hard to beat the earthy, robust flavor of smoked vegetables. Unfortunately, an open cooking fire isn’t always readily available. So for this recipe, we’re recreating that smokey-campfire magic from within your own kitchen. These oven-roasted peppers pair wonderfully with fresh burrata and a splash of Riserva extra virgin. Watch the video of our chef creating the full recipe on our instagram or facebook. – Julia & Camillo  

If you’ve read our recipes before, you know that in Libellula’s kitchen we often focus on dishes or ingredients that were popular with Italian peasants. These recipes were often created out of necessity; peasants would take items that Italian nobles would throw out and instead turn them into dishes that have now become hallmarks of Italian cuisine. Ricotta is no different! Technically not a cheese, but a creamy curd, Ricotta means “twice cooked.” Ricotta is made from the whey that is leftover from making other cheeses (often mozzarella or provolone). While Ricotta’s exact origins are fuzzy, it’s believed to have...