European

Torta di Cioccolata al Forno con Vaniglia e Noccio For this sophisticated cake, which will thrill any fan of bittersweet chocolate, Ferrigno took inspiration from a favorite Perugian café called Bar Sandri—Perugia being, as she puts it, the "firm historical chocolate capital" of Italy. And inspiration was all she could take: She requested the recipe from the chef several times, but he wouldn't divulge it. Desperate, she played around with the ingredients until she came up with something that tasted right.

"What grows together, goes together" is a concept that often holds true, but disparate denizens of the garden sometimes need coaxing to harmonize. Ferrigno sets about the task with wise restraint—just a little butter, shallot, and fresh basil turns asparagus and peas into the best of friends.

Simmering a pork roast with milk and a generous handful of herbs results in very tender meat with rich, silky juices. Many Italians will leave the milk curds that form alongside the meat where they are, but Ferrigno strains them out for a more refined sauce.

This unorthodox panino—you work in reverse, griddling the bread first, then layering it with prosciutto, Fontina, and arugula before baking—results in a warm, gooey flatbread with a crunchy crust.

Olive oil is a perfect (and extra-flavorful) nondairy alternative to butter for these tuiles, which defy logic by being both gossamer (potato starch gives them a melt-in-your-mouth quality) and sublimely crisp.

Pasta made with matzo cake meal is extremely light in texture and is no fuss to prepare when it's rolled and cut by hand into thin strips. The vegetables, in shades of green, provide a range of spring color.

A bit more decadent, and dare we say subtle, than standard limoncello, this smooth, rich "cream" version (though made with only 1 % milk) will wow your guests every time.

The addition of the sweet vermouth here punctuates the natural sweetness of the canned tomatoes, making this quick sauce taste as if it's been simmered for hours.

Traditionally, this bouillabaisse-like stew is rich with tomatoes and chunks of wild-caught freshwater fish such as perch, tench, eel, trout, and pike. While wild-caught is best, fillets of farmed freshwater fish—including tilapia, catfish, trout, and arctic char—also work well.

You'll want to break out the red-checkered tablecloth when you make this spicy, briny, and superbly balanced version of the Italian-American staple at home.

Gooey Nutella has long been a guilty pleasure, and we can't think of a better way to enjoy it than as a sweet, creamy sauce spooned over the tender middle and crisp edges of this baked pancake.

The fennel bulb we've added to this Little Italy combo is a natural complement to the fennel seeds in the sausage.

The intense punch of Gorgonzola is right at home as it melts into soft, subtle polenta, while the almonds add a welcome crunch to this simple, seductive dish.

This classic Italian sauce, with its combination of balsamic vinegar and a touch of sugar, lends deep sweetness and a hit of acidity to the meaty sautéed fish.

These "hats" are a classic dish in Ferrara, where you'll find them filled with a range of different things, from meat to vegetables. In this version, the toasted flavor of the butter and the herbal quality of the sage in the sauce really bring out the nuttiness of the parmesan and butternut squash in the filling.

Even if anchovies aren't part of your culinary heritage, the way the sweetness of the onions and the saltiness of the fish interact, combined with the tactile pleasure of the crunchy bread crumbs, will have you missing your nonna no matter what your nationality.

A zingy lemon tart gains an Italian accent with a crisp, almond-perfumed crust.

Cicoria is a standard cooked green on menus all over Italy—it has a pleasing bitterness that's offset by the richness of the oil it's sautéed in. Sadly, it's hard to find that kind of chicory in America, but dandelion greens make a nice substitute.