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George Baroni loves to cook, it’s that simple.  The man loves to cook.  Maybe he even lives to cook. He also loves to share his home, his kitchen, his family – all that he has – with all of us who claim him as a friend.  Most every Sunday night, you might find 30 or more people in George’s kitchen, all bringing some small offering to make up a wonderful meal.  George usually has the entrée (and several other dishes) covered.  The wine flows, occasionally we all burst into song (That’s Amore), and we try to make sure that George and his wife Gail aren’t left with too many dirty dishes.  We discover new appetizers, a new dessert, we try a new wine, and we certainly enjoy a feast every Sunday night.

George takes his talent to the max—cooking for a friend who owns a local restaurant.  George is in charge of the Italian dishes, and that’s where you find his fabulous red sauce and homemade meatballs—there’s even a meatball served on a salad, the meatballs are that special.  So I’m especially tickled to learn his secrets and to try my hand at real Italian cooking. I love the fact that George is picky about his ingredients, very specifically using the same brand of, say, tomato products, the right kind of olive oil, the selection of cheeses, where he buys his pancetta.  And I love the fact he uses carrots to sweeten his red sauce, not adding heaps of sugar.

George works hard, and he plays hard, I’m just grateful he loves to cook the same way and share his expertise.  Can you believe he even gave up his weekend golf game one time and we cooked an exquisite eggplant appetizer!!??   Big Daddy and all the cronies kept checking in with us, “what are ya‘ll doing NOW??”  Well, we really enjoyed some wine, and we really enjoyed the eggplant appetizer, and we really enjoyed the afternoon.

I want to say thank you to George’s wife Gail, who shares him with EVERYONE, and who gives my family and me friendship and inspiration and unconditional love in the kitchen and everywhere else.  Salute!!

Recipes:
George’s Red Sauce
Italian Cream Cake
Meatballs
Meatballs Sandwich