A few favorites from Parma

And the summer recipes keep coming!

It’s exactly this time in June when I start to get my summer panic. Where I ask: have I done enough this summer? And say: it’s going to be cold soon so I need to be outside all the time, BUT: I have to watch Love Island indoors??

And I will not lie, with my kitchen under renovation (something I’ve stayed quiet about - the newsletter always gets my secrets) this summer has felt particularly tough. While I am so grateful that I can even renovate a kitchen, it comes with all sorts of challenges. The first being that I can only really develop recipes on the weekends when the crew is out of our backyard, and the second being that I have to haul everything around an obstacle course of tools and doors before I can get my materials outside.

So my arms have never been stronger, but I feel like I’ve taken zero advantage of this beautiful stage of summer we are in. Which sucks because summer food is the best! Vibrant peach salads over tofu cutlets! Zippy charred tomato dressing (both of which you can find in my cookbook), cucumbers that actually taste amazing. EGGPLANT. Get ready for when the kitchen is finished, because I’m about to be a caponata devotee.

But until then, I’ve taken advantage of this unstable time to add a bit of travel to my calendar. Just for fun, DEFINITELY NOT TO AVOID THE WALLS BEING KNOCKED DOWN RIGHT NEXT TO MY DESK.

But my trips began with Parma, Italy, which was hosted by Barilla, and filled with some wonderful pockets that I want to share.

A few Parma favorites

I only had a few hours there to explore, so I tapped into my friend Elizabeth Minchilli, Umbria resident and Parma expert, who hosts food tours around Italy. She and I are hosting a tour in October which has sold out, but I’ll be doing another in October of 2026, so mark your calendars!

Elizabeth’s Parma recommendations, of which I can full endorse:

Ciacco Gelato - Touted as the best gelato in Italy (from Elizabeth, so I trust!), you will find a range of wild flavors. I had the ricotta+honey+tonka bean flavor and simply will not be the same. Plus it’ll get you to a gorgeous part of town.

Enoteca Tabarro - A little wine bar that we used as our night cap. Great if you love natural wines, chatty owners, and sitting outside.

La Forchetta - A pescatarian’s dream and a perfect dinner excuse to get to one of the most charming alleyways I’ve ever seen. Plus, an excellent eggplant parmesan.

When you’re on a brand trip your time is not really your own, so this is sparse compared to my other travel guides. But as a traveler I only want to know people’s whole-hearted recommendations (even if it’s just a few!) and that helps me build my trip from there.

So I’m going to Seoul in two weeks - let me know your everything-and-anything recs!

But what we’re really here for, the weekly round-up!

I will say, there is no cohesion to my recipe list this week. But everything is a pocket of something delicious, which I hope might make it to your kitchen.

Cacio e Pepe Egg Sandwich - I am not a big pecorino girl (I’m sorry!), so I make this with a flurry of parmesan. Make sure to freshly grate it and it will nearly melt into the perfect texture.

Grilled Corn with Sesame Hot Honey & Feta - Making these as ribs is fun, but it eats so much better if you just slice the kernels off the cob and serve it as big, piled-up side dish. The sesame hot honey is a sneaky crowd-pleaser.

Garlic scapes two ways! Every year I get asked how to use garlic scapes and I never give you a straightforward answer - but now here (grilled!) and here (pesto!) are my two favorites.

Tofu Spring Rolls with Spicy Coconut Butter Sauce - Forgive the sad photo, this was when I unpacked them after being stored for a few days. But if you are into coconut butter, these summer rolls use a coconut sauce that’s a twist on the classic peanut sauce. And wow do I love it very much.

---

And that’s it for this week! Cooking for Fun is still on hiatus as we rebuild my kitchen walls, but I cannot wait to have it back so we can make the newsletter weekly again.

Until then, enjoy your summer <3

Xoxo,

Summer_Snacks