That lady Anna

That lady Anna Fan page of my mother. Documenting her cooking. 1 dish at a time. Southern Italian inspired recipes

10/08/2026

Mortadella sandwich 🥪

As a kid I used to spend days in Bologna, and one of my absolute favorite things to eat was something so simple. fresh mortadella on fresh bread, with stracciatella and a little fresh pesto.

That’s it. Nothing fancy. Nothing complicated. Just incredible ingredients put together the right way.

And honestly, that’s what I love so much about Italian food. It doesn’t have to be complicated to be unforgettable.

Seeing mama make this has me craving Bologna all over again. 🇮🇹

There really is nothing better.



Ingredients:
• Fresh ciabatta bread, sliced
• Basil pesto
• Thinly sliced Italian mortadella
• Stracciatella cheese
• Crushed pistachios
Preparation Tip:
Grill the sandwich in a panini press until the ciabatta is golden brown and crisp, and the cheese is warm and creamy.

10/04/2026

Chocolate Éclairs 🍫

We wanted to make a dessert video, but since we’d never made éclairs before, Mama called in the best baker she knows… my sister Sonia! 😂❤️
Light, fluffy pastry filled with silky custard and topped with rich chocolate ganache. An absolute masterpiece! 🍫👩🏻‍🍳
let me tell you, these taste even better than they look! 😍❤

What do you think?



Choux Pastry

• 12 oz flour
• 12 oz water
• 4 oz oil
• 7 medium eggs

Bring water and oil to a boil. Pour over flour and mix on low until combined. Add eggs one at a time, mixing until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag and pipe éclairs onto a baking sheet. Bake at 350°F until golden. Cool completely.

Vanilla Custard

• 3 egg yolks
• 8 oz sugar
• 3 tbsp flour
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 12 oz milk
• 1 tbsp vanilla paste

Whisk all ingredients together in a saucepan over medium-low heat until thickened. Remove from heat, cool, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Whipped Cream

• 1½ cups heavy cream
• 2½ tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp vanilla paste

Whip all ingredients on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Ganache

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate
• 1 tsp vanilla paste

Warm the cream over the stovetop. Add chocolate and stir until smooth and glossy. Stir in vanilla.

Assembly

Gently fold the whipped cream into the chilled custard until smooth and creamy. Transfer to a piping bag and fill the cooled éclairs through small openings in the bottom. Dip the tops into warm chocolate ganache and allow to set.

Serve and enjoy! 🍫✨ One is never enough! ❤️

10/01/2026

Stopped by the farm the other day and made the mistake of telling Mama I wasn’t hungry… 😂

Obviously, that was NOT an option.

After about 20 minutes of playful arguing, negotiating, and Mama refusing to take “I’m not hungry” for an answer, we finally settled on a salad. From the garden. 🥗🌿

Fresh cherry tomatoes, bocconcini, creamy mozzarella, fresh herbs, a drizzle of our olive oil… and of course, Mama’s homemade bread for the most important part, scarpetta-ing every last drop of that olive oil. 😂🥖🫒

Because apparently, at the farm, you’re never “not hungry.” You’re just waiting to be fed. ❤️😂

09/27/2026

Shrimp & Ricotta Stuffed Shells

Some recipes don’t just fill your belly… they bring you right back home. ❤️🥹

This one took me straight back to being a kid, sitting on the kitchen counter watching Mama prepare these stuffed shells. I’d watch her mix the filling, stuff every shell, and somehow I always found a way to sneak a taste along the way 😂🦐🍝

Those little moments in the kitchen, laughing, making a mess, and doing it all together are the memories you don’t realize you’ll miss until years later. ❤️

Still cooking, still laughing, and still keeping me in charge of the taste testing department. 😂👨‍🍳

A little nostalgia, a lot of ricotta, and one VERY happy kitchen. 🇮🇹❤️



Ingredients

Shells & Filling

• 1½ lbs jumbo pasta shells
• 1 lb raw shrimp, peeled, deveined & finely chopped
• 15 oz fresh ricotta
• 5 sprigs parsley, chopped
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 3 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp shredded mozzarella
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 egg
• Salt & pepper, to taste

Creamy Sauce

• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 cups heavy cream
• ¼ cup marinara sauce
• ½ cup ricotta
• ¼ cup mozzarella
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan
• Salt & pepper, to taste

Instructions

1. Make the filling: Combine chopped shrimp, ricotta, parsley, lemon zest, breadcrumbs, mozzarella, garlic and egg. Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
2. Cook the shells: Boil pasta in salted water until just al dente. Drain and transfer to ice water to stop the cooking.
3. Stuff: Transfer the filling to a piping bag and fill each shell.
4. Make the sauce: Melt butter in a pan. Add heavy cream, marinara, ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan. Season and stir until smooth and creamy.
5. Bake: Spread a layer of sauce in a baking dish and arrange the stuffed shells on top. Cover with the remaining sauce and extra Parmesan. Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes, or until bubbling and golden.
6. Let cool slightly, then serve and enjoy!

09/26/2026

Making fresh hot chocolate from the cacao bean

09/24/2026

Cheese quesadillas and chicken tostadas

More core memories from our amazing trip to Mexico City! 🇲🇽❤️

We booked a food experience with and they set up the perfect day for us. exploring a local market, tasting our way through Mexico City, and finishing it off with an immersive cooking class with the amazing Ile!

From the second Mama met her, they clicked. 😂 Ile was full of energy, incredibly patient, and couldn’t have been sweeter with Mama. We sat around the table, laughed, shared stories, and got our hands dirty making everything from scratch. homemade tortillas, cheesy quesadillas, fresh salsa, and an incredible chicken tostada.

There’s something special about learning a culture through its food, especially when you get to cook alongside someone who loves sharing it as much as Ile does. Mama was in her element… although I think she was mostly trying to figure out what Mexican dish she could put an Italian spin on next. 😂🇮🇹🇲🇽

Mexico City, you just keep giving us more reasons to come back. ❤️

09/22/2026

Stuffed Mini Peppers

Mama called me and said, “Look at these cute little peppers I found!” 😂🌶️ And of course, she already knew exactly what she wanted to do with them.

She remembered seeing a recipe like this years ago, and apparently it’s been sitting in the back of her mind ever since. The second she spotted these little peppers, she knew it was finally time to recreate it Mama’s way. ❤️

Honestly, I think she nailed it. Simple, stuffed, and the perfect little bite.

What do you think, would you add anything, or leave them exactly as Mama made them? And more importantly… how many are you eating? 😂



Ingredients

* 2 lbs mini peppers
* 1 lb ground beef
* 2 eggs
* ¼ cup breadcrumbs
* 1 garlic clove, minced
* 4 sprigs parsley, chopped
* 6 basil leaves, chopped
* ¼ cup olive oil
* Salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Wash the peppers, cut off the tops, and remove the seeds, reserving the tops.

Combine the beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, basil, salt, and pepper. Mix well, adding 1–2 tablespoons of water if needed to soften the mixture.

Transfer the filling to a piping bag and stuff each pepper. Replace the tops.

Arrange in an oiled baking dish, drizzle with olive oil, and season lightly with salt. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, or until the peppers are tender and the filling is golden and cooked through.

Transfer to a platter and serve warm. Enjoy!

09/20/2026

Mussels in Tomato & Pepper Sauce

Nothing fancy, just Mama, a big pot of mussels, and enough toasted bread to make sure not one drop of that sauce goes to waste 😂🇮🇹

Garlic, peppers, tomatoes, fresh parsley and 5 pounds of mussels all bubbling together… and somehow the bread dipped in the bottom of the pot might be the best part. 🤌

Mama says you can’t serve mussels without bread. I say you better bring TWO loaves. 😂

Who’s coming over for a bowl? ❤️



Ingredients

* 5 lbs fresh mussels, cleaned
* 2 cloves garlic
* 2–3 sprigs parsley, chopped
* 2 peppers of choice, chopped
* 1 can plum tomatoes
* 2 tbsp olive oil
* Salt, to taste
* Toasted bread, for serving

Directions

Heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and peppers and sauté for 2 minutes.

Add plum tomatoes, season with salt, and simmer briefly. Remove the garlic and stir in half the parsley.

Add mussels, toss well, and cover. Steam for several minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mussels open.

Uncover, finish with the remaining parsley, and serve immediately with toasted bread. Discard any mussels that remain closed after cooking.

09/17/2026

Green tamales 🫔

Never in a thousand years did I think Mama and I would be in Mexico City learning to make traditional tamales! 🇲🇽❤️

We spent the day cooking green tamales with Chef Jim, who was absolutely made to teach Mama—patient, methodical, and somehow able to keep her on track through all the questions and stories. 😂

We learned the traditions behind tamales, laughed nonstop, and left with full hearts—and hopefully a recipe Mama won’t claim she invented. 😂

If you’re in Mexico City, spend an afternoon cooking with Chef Jim. Come hungry—you’re going to eat GOOD!

Took Mama and Dad to one of my favorite cities in the world, Mexico City! 🇲🇽❤️This city has a little bit of everything, ...
09/16/2026

Took Mama and Dad to one of my favorite cities in the world, Mexico City! 🇲🇽❤️

This city has a little bit of everything, and every time I visit, I fall in love with it all over again. The people, the energy, the neighborhoods, the culture… and of course, the food🤤 Mexico City might honestly be my favorite food city in the world.

We spent our days walking through beautiful neighborhoods and colorful food markets, making handmade tortillas, taking cooking classes, and floating through Xochimilco with mariachi playing alongside us. 🇲🇽🎶

Obviously, some of the best Mexican food you could ever ask for. incredible little taco shops, amazing seafood, coffee & desserts but Mexico City’s food scene goes way beyond that. We had dinner 56 stories above the city with the most incredible view, ate at some amazing restaurants, and even had some of the best sushi I’ve ever tasted.

Mexico City really does have it all.

This was Mama and Dad’s first time here, and watching them experience everything made the trip even more special. We ate, we laughed, we explored, and made some memories I know we’ll be talking about for a long time.

Their first trip to Mexico City… but definitely not their last. 🇲🇽❤️

Where should we visit next?

Address

San Diego, CA

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when That lady Anna posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category