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  • Menus
    • Dinner
    • Lunch
  • Recipes
    • starters/first course
    • main courses
    • sides and salads
    • desserts
    • breakfast/brunch
    • drinks
  • Inspiration
    • The art of the table, and knowing which rules to break
    • how many and how much? how to estimate the right quantities for any meal
    • seating…or who sits where?
    • mindfulness…practice it everyday at the table
    • The challenge of timing or how to flawlessly get everything on the table
    • thoughts about manners, table and otherwise
  • About
  • Contact
  • Menus
    • Dinner
    • Lunch
  • Recipes
    • starters/first course
    • main courses
    • sides and salads
    • desserts
    • breakfast/brunch
    • drinks
  • Inspiration
    • The art of the table, and knowing which rules to break
    • how many and how much? how to estimate the right quantities for any meal
    • seating…or who sits where?
    • mindfulness…practice it everyday at the table
    • The challenge of timing or how to flawlessly get everything on the table
    • thoughts about manners, table and otherwise
  • About
  • Contact
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  • main courses

Main Courses

The main course recipes offer a variety of different cuisines that can serve as a starting point for you to create a perfect meal.

If you do not use one of my menus, and want to create your own, start with the main course and determine a first course and dessert that will complement it.

Grilled chicken with fresh spinach and cherry tomatoes

Grilled chicken tastes great and is super fast and easy to prepare. I prefer it in the summer months but that being said, anytime really...

Curried mango and ginger chicken salad

I first made this recipe for a bridal shower with an English tea party theme.  I wanted to keep the menu somewhat traditional with a few little twists, and thought...

Roast crispy chicken with fennel and onions

What I like about this recipe is the essence of the fennel and onion steam through the chicken while roasting, adding a deeper flavor.

Pasta Amatriciana

If you have ever been to Rome, Italy, you surely have seen Amatriciana pasta on the menu.  It is a staple in Roman cuisine but...

super flavorful chicken, broccoli, bacon pie

Savory pies are popular in the UK but not so much in the US.  What I love about this recipe is the interior is made with chicken broth and then...

salmon with fresh pesto

Fresh pesto can be delicious on a variety of different fishes but works especially well with a luscious piece of salmon fillet.  The spicy, bright flavor of pesto complements the...

Lemon parmesan baked chicken

What can make a chicken breast more interesting? This recipe takes chicken to a new level with the sharp flavor of parmesan cheese offset by...

Lemon risotto with a dab of pesto

Incredibly delicate with the perfume of lemons, a beautifully balanced dish that brings forth the essence of each ingredient.  This recipe is delicious and creates a dish that can be...

pasta with peas & fresh ricotta

Since some people find pesto rich or overpowering, I created this recipe to smooth the flavor of pesto in order to make it easier and sweeter on the palate.

pasta with pesto & mascarpone

Since some people find pesto rich or overpowering, I created this recipe to smooth the flavor of pesto in order to make it easier and...

Lamb with cilantro, mint and honey

This is my go-to, and I never liked lamb until I had a version of this recipe at a dinner party. Wow!

swordfish with tomatoes & olives

The key is to check the fish while in the oven, grill or pan, and remove just before you think it is done – looking for the fish to be...

Orecchiette pasta with broccoli rabe & romanesco

Orecchiette pasta translates to pasta with “little ears” due to its round, squidgy shape.  The pasta is one of my favorites and not often seen...

Spaghetti with creamy lemon sauce

Ahhh lemons, how I love them in almost anything. This is a very simple sauce that truly is all about the lemon flavor. 

Easy Cacio & Pepe Pasta

I have been making this pasta forever and am never disappointed.  With just a few ingredients – pasta, cheese, butter, olive oil, salt and ground pepper – you have a...

Chinese Hot Pot (Da Bin Low)

After looking through a few Asian cookbooks, I created my own version of the “Da Bin Low” or the Chinese hot pot tradition of cooking...

bright and striking centerpieces with lemons

Love, love lemons!  And in California when the Meyer lemons come out in markets, I cannot resist buying lots of them.  The bright, yellow and fragrant fruit brings color to...

one pan chicken with chorizo and potatoes

Anything I am able to put in the oven for a few hours and have a delicious meal without fuss is a winner.  This recipe in one of my favorites...

thinly sliced beef with arugula, tomatoes and pine nuts

I have a friend, Alexandra, from the Tyrolean area of Italy – a wonderful part of the world that blends the best of Italy and...

flavorful and fabulous brisket with lentils

Brisket is a cut of beef that requires long and slow cooking for its true wonders to be revealed.  You can make this a day in advance, without adding the...

heart-y grilled cheese

A combination of hot creamy tomato soup and heart-shaped grilled cheese is not only good for Valentine’s Day but anytime you want to have some whimsical fun. When we moved...

simple is beautiful, rose centerpiece

Creating a striking centerpiece does not have to be time-consuming or expensive.  Every once in a while, I love the beauty and simplicity (and tradition)...

veal with prosciutto and sage (saltimbocca alla romana)

Literally the name of this Roman recipe means “jump in the mouth” referring to how delicious the meal tastes. Some people feel uncomfortable serving veal, and a good substitute for...

my favorite rigatoni pasta with eggplant & ricotta sauce

In a perfect world, I would eat pasta at every meal…along with a crunchy, crispy salad…just pure happiness.  And rigatoni pasta is one of the best shapes of pasta! Rigatoni...

vietnamese chicken salad

Now this is a really good salad with its crunchy, salty, sweet and tart melange of flavors. The first time I made it was in...

deliciously good flank steak with cocoa-coffee rub

An easy seasoning made of cocoa, coffee and a bit of cayenne pepper for flank steak or any type of beef. Delicious!

minted lamb meatballs with fresh peas & asparagus

These lamb meatballs are light and delicious because of the blend of fresh mint and parsley.  It is best made in spring when fresh peas and asparagus are in full...

spiced up lamb Koofteh

I have made a lot of meatballs with beef, turkey, pork, and veal but Persian cuisine introduced me to the lamb meatball.  Each region has...

turkey meatballs with pesto

I usually but spinach in meatballs but one day, I had no spinach and thought that pesto would be a good flavor to add to the mixture.  The extra benefit...

herby chicken & spinach meatballs

Meatball, meatball, what's not to like about these mouthfuls of chicken, spinach and a few spices.  The recipe has been taken from many different sources, and my original version is...

super moist and juicy turkey meatballs

Turkey is not meat that is often thought about outside of a holiday or on the occasional sandwich.  And when not cooked properly, it tends...

slow cooked lamb with garlic and rosemary

Slow roasting lamb allows all the garlic and rosemary to work magic, plus the acidity of the malt vinegar and the sweetness of the brown sugar adds the perfect balance...

the classic grilled filet steak

Grilling steak may take a few tries to master but the key is not to overcook, if anything, undercook because you can always cook it more. A good meat thermometer...

roasted chicken with herbs, potatoes and fennel

Roast chicken always perplexes me because I find the cooking temperature of a juicy, well done interior compared to the crispy, golden skin on the...

fabulous fish cakes

Fish cakes are delicious for a light and flavorful lunch or a starter course.  Slightly unexpected and always appreciated, it is hard to go wrong with this recipe. The only...

perfect balance of flavors

making it slowly – cooked carnitas

Mexican food is ideal meal for casual, fun get-togethers, especially if any kids are involved.   Fresh Mexican food is a crowd pleaser and carnitas are...

It’s pesto

Fresh basil has such a strong, wonderful fragrance.  It fills a room with its aroma and just begs to be put into some amazing dish. Liguria is a region in...

rich and warm french onion soup

Having returned from a cooking class called ‘French Cooking at Home” at Sur La Table in San Francisco, I was reminded how delicious a hot, steamy dripping-with-cheese French onion soup...

crispy pork in lettuce cups with lime chili dressing

A recipe with lots of flavor and one that can be made well in advance- the flavors of the pork actually get better if made...

An easy Lasagne

Why is this lasagne easier?  Because Bechamel sauce is eliminated and only a meat sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheese is layered.  I prefer no Bechamel because the density of the...

Marcella Hazan’s classic Bolognese sauce

Marcella Hazan is the author of the most popular Italian cookbook in the US, called Essentials of Italian cooking.  Her bolognes sauce, or ragù, is from northern Italy and contains...

the perfect meat sauce (for filling)

There are hundreds of different Bolognese sauces, also known as ragù.   This one is my own recipe that has been adapted over the years.  The...

Pasta Bolognese sauce (Ragù)

There are hundreds of different Bolognese sauces, also known as ragù.   This one is my own recipe that has been adapted over the years.  The use of two different type...

fresh and easy tomato sauce

This sauce is quite simple and is made with fresh cherry or baby tomatoes. I like to mini San Marzano Plum tomatoes but buy what is the freshest or easiest.

honey soy roasted salmon

I don’t remember when I first started making this dish and it has been changed and adapted over the years. Salmon is such a hearty,...
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Barbara

Barbara

table&spoon is all about entertaining and bringing your friends and family around the table.

Born out of years in the hotel and restaurant industry, and love for entertaining, table&spoon brings you tricks, tips and the ‘art of the table’ to create more confident hosts.

And if you need advice with a party, from deciding a theme, to table settings and arrangements to menu selection, please contact me.

Buon appetito!
Barbara

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