There is nothing like a hearty bowl of pasta with tomato sauce or bruschetta topped with melted cheese and pesto.  With the flavors of Italy at the ready, cooking is a breeze.  Here a selection of some deliciously flavorful ingredients you'll want to have eon hand to make easy Italian dishes any night of the week.

TOMATOES:

FRESH:  you can find tomatoes year around, but late summer is their peak time.  Look for vine ripened tomatoes for the best flavor.  When out of season, choose canned tomatoes since they're just as flavorful.

SUN-DRIED TOMATOES:  For a richer taste, sun-dried tomatoes are a great choice.  They're vine-ripened tomatoes that are naturally dried to remove all of their water, leaving them chewy and full of concentrated flavor.

PESTO:  This delightful sauce is unusually mad with a mix of basil, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts, garlic and olive oil.  You can also find other types of "pesto" made from sun-dried tomatoes or red bell peppers.

FOOD FACTS:  If you grow your own basil or purchase it fresh, you can make your own pesto.  This sauce adds rich flavor to soups, chicken, fish dishes and of course pasta.

THREE ITALIAN CHEESES:

MOZZARELLA:  this ever popular, mild tasting cheese is great for cooking and popular for pizza because of it's great melting qualities.

PARMESAN:  Known for it's sharp flavor, this firm cheese is excellent for grating and enhances the flavor of your favorite Italian dishes, from pasta to veggies.

ROMANO:  A firm cheese with a tangy, robust flavor.  Romano cheese makes a great topping for veggies.  You can substitute Romano for Parmesan when you want a bolder taste.

GARLIC:

This cousin of the onion enhances the taste of many foods.  When cooking, break apart the head of garlic and remove the skin from individual cloves before chopping.

FOOD FACTS:

The smaller you chop garlic, the stronger the flavor.  Chopping or pressing releases more of it's essential oils, giving the strong garlic aroma.

MEMBERS COMMENTS VIEWING 1 - 2 OUT OF 2 COMMENTS From: SusieJane 09/11/2007 20:16:24 Thanks for the information.  It is very good suggestions. From: RonDouglas 09/07/2007 09:39:30 Good post Belle.  I learned a few new things.