I got quite a few direct emails asking me where I got the fusilli I used in yesterday's Grilled Scallops with Fennel and Fresh Herb Fusilli.

Well, I got it at the Hollywood Farmers Market. We have an occasional vendor there that sells all sorts of handmade pastas both fresh and dried.

So for this weeks Market Matters I thought I would pass along a little bit about pasta.

Pasta was originally a Southern Italian dish. Particularly Sicilian. Eventually the cultivation of wheat moved into other areas of the country, and pasta became a common food item all over Italy.

Northern Italian pastas are generally pastas with fresh eggs and “soft” wheat. Soft wheat is lower in protein and gluten content. Bakers tend to like flour from soft wheat for batter-based foods like cakes and biscuits. Think cake flour. The soft wheat and egg produces pasta that has a silky texture. These pastas are often prepared as stuffed pastas (like ravioli) and in Italy they are called Pasta Fresca.

Finally. Finally. Finally!

Morels are here. I am not waiting even one more day. I am having morels for dinner tonight!

This weeks Market Matters choice of morels also combines with something I had been wanting to take part in anyway. It just took the inspiration that morels bring to get my mind in gear to solve this problem.

I call it a “problem” but really it’s more of an honor.

FoodBuzz sent me a sample of a new product from Buitoni. Wild Mushroom Agnolotti. My challenge is to create a recipe using this product and turn it in for consideration in a contest they are having.

Lots of really talented bloggers and cooks (probably even CHEFS!) were given this same challenge so I knew my entry needed to be special.

That is why I am so grateful to morels for making their appearance just when they did. Because suddenly it came to me all at once.

So it’s barely a week past thanksgiving, you'd think I’d want to turn off the stove, curl up with a good book and sit by the fire. But you’d be wrong, or at least part wrong.

Now I may live in Los Angeles, and you’ve probably bought into that ridiculous rumor…something about California having no distinct seasons. But you’d be wrong.

The holidays also make me want to see friends and family! That means more cooking. And I mean cooking December style!

It may not snow here (at least at sea level). But winter in Southern California can be bright and crisp and cool: and full of inspiration for a good meal.  I crave something warm and hearty, yet healthy and flavorful. 

What better time than now than to introduce what I am going to call Sippity Suppers!