Gourmet

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

Often overlooked, turkey cutlets are a great, inexpensive substitute for veal. Sandwiching a thin slice of prosciutto between two of them and frying the whole thing leaves you with a packet full of flavor and texture.

Tender and flavorful, sirloin needs little adornment. The olive sauce imparts just the right hint of spice and saltiness—and it's ready in about ten minutes.

This side dish is like the love child of a salad and a pickle. Make it ahead of time and serve it at room temperature with the Steak and Olives

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.

A favorite Barese recipe (often named for San Nicola, the guardian saint of sailors), these little packets seal in the fish and vegetable juices, with the potato slices insulating the fish from the heat of the oven and the olives and lemon slices emphasizing its bright flavors.

You can barely take a step in Puglia without encountering homemade orecchiette, which have an unusual hybrid flavor somewhere between dried and fresh pasta (they're made from semolina and contain no eggs). They happen to be the ideal shape to pair with chickpeas, since many orecchiette will naturally cradle a pea along with the perfect amount of sauce. Though homemade pasta is intensely gratifying (and delicious), this sauce also goes very well with fine-quality store-bought orecchiette (see cooks' note, below).

These wine-infused, ring-shaped biscuits, called taralli, are on every Pugliese table during the antipasto course, but good ones can be hard to find in the U.S. This homemade version replicates their crisp, crumbly texture, with occasional hits of black pepper.

In the States, we tend to be familiar only with the bready, crisp-topped version of focaccia­, but this Pugliese take on it—towering, savory, and so light it's almost cakelike—will surely become a new favorite. Food editor Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez learned the secret to a springy, rich variety—a potato mashed into the dough—from her husband's cousin Lucia Erriquez (yes, with two r's) Castellana, who comes from Bari. A salty top and tangy tomatoes that go almost buttery on the crust will have everyone reaching for a second piece.

If you like stuffed clams, you'll love this variation. The mussels are steamed open, then topped with garlicky herbed bread crumbs that truly complement the plump bites of briny flavor beneath.

Salads like this one are found all over Puglia, almost always with carrot, celery, and parsley (we suspect the locals like the combination as much for its gorgeous color contrast with the octopus as for its freshness and crunch) and lightly dressed with olive oil and lemon.

With its warm, comforting flavors of sausage, olives, and white wine, this rustic dish will transport your guests to a farmhouse in Umbria.

This cake was inspired by Devil Dogs, the bone-shaped chocolate cakes with irresistible white goo sandwiched between their layers. You'll want to dive headfirst into this version, a tall layer of moist, dark devil's food with fluffy marshmallow frosting.

An elegant meal for four that requires only 20 minutes active time? That's our kind of dinner. This creamy, comforting dish is just the type of thing you crave on a blustery March night. Because aged vin jaune can be hard to come by in the United States, we substituted a two-year-old Savagnin (with a flavor similar to a dry Sherry) and were very happy with the results.