One of the best things about mangia.tv is the interaction with a growing number of people that identify with The Mangia Way. Creating great food for friends and family is an ever evolving thing, and we here at mangia.tv take delight in seeing new recipes created by our followers.
When we received an order from the U.K. our first thought was, “what about the shipping cost?” The small print does say free shipping to the U.S.A. After some time, though, we decided %^&$ the small print and because our friend Tom from Guilford was our first overseas order we honored it.
Well, it was worth the shipping cost, because his chili recipe was like none I’ve ever seen before. He had me at dark chocolate honestly, but then two types of bacon this yank has never heard of…#forgetaboutit!!
(more…)
An open letter to all who identify with Virginia Heffernan’s "What if You Just Hate Making Dinner?"
To all who identify with Virginia Heffernan’s article in The New York Times “What if You Just Hate Making Dinner?”.
I was struck personally by Mrs. Heffernan’s article not because I identify with it, but because I didn’t. Not at all.
I grew up with 10 brothers and sisters and dinner was not only a nightly session of physical nourishment but human nourishment as well. It was a place to laugh, cry, vent, shut down, open up both lovingly and not so… lovingly. It was total chaos and symphonic sharing all at once. One family friend would always wait till after dinner to get a plate (as if 11 kids weren’t enough mouths to feed) and my mother would say,”Steven, you’re more than welcome to sit down with us”. He would respond’ “are you kidding, there is no time to get a fork to my mouth with all the please pass this, and can you put some of that on my plate”.
(more…)
The World's Most Epic Family Reunion?
Coming
up on August 9th is Heff-Fest 2014. As Bob refers to it: A mind and belt buckling party for the ages. Check out the reunion checklist and this video to get ideas for your family reunion. It doesn’t matter if it’s a small 2 person, or a 1000 person extravaganza, it’s about the togetherness and laughs.
(more…)
Be Mine!
Women’s equality has come a long way…it used to be said, “A woman’s place is barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen….” Well, now that comment is typically met with a well placed slap to the old money maker.
But as Valentines Day approaches let me be clear on my philosophy as it pertains to the fairer sex; “the way to a girls heart is through her stomach”. I know this saying is synonymous with those hairy beast like creatures: man, but great food simply is the greatest aphrodisiac.
(more…)
Super Bowl XLVIII – Flatbread Bar
With the Super Bowl approaching and the Bears not playing this year… Again, my Super Bowl party revolves around… Da Food. Unless you put some serious cash on the game who really cares who wins? Peyton this, and Russell that…the only thing for sure is I’ll be a ‘mile high’ for kickoff and in need of great chow.
This year the Mangia.tv Super Bowl Party will feature a ‘Flatbread Bar’. Super easy and great for all taste Buds. Think of a build your own taco, or fajita but instead you heap all that culinary greatness on a flatbread and bake HOT for 15 minutes and HELLO. Pappa John can eat it.
The top ten toppings (Tx4) at my super bowl party will be:
- Cheese… Fresh Mozzarella, Mexican blend, Parmesan
- Sauteed Onions and peppers in olive oil and Mangia Dry Rub
- Grilled chicken with Sweet Cajun Dry Rub
- Italian sausage
- Bacon – sprinkle with Sweet Mangia rub during last minutes of cooking for Candied Bacon
- Fresh Cilantro, basil, oregano
- Olive Oil, pizza sauce
- Tomatoes
- Raw onion, pepper
- Mushrooms
Throw in Mangia Wings (recipe here), some Sweet Cajun Homemade Chips (recipe here), veggie trays and copious amounts of hydrating beverages and you are all
set to watch the game and try to figure how in the hell Jay is going to earn all the bread…flat… on his back. Me thinks we need to get him Rubbed with Mangia Cajun Dry Rub before games…
1st Annual Thanksgiving Leftover Throwdown – The Results!
THE RESULTS ARE IN!!
Our 3 Winners For The Thanksgiving Leftover Throwdown Are:
The Family Reunion – How to make it Epic!
Want to know how to plan a family reunion for 300-400 of your friends and family? Well….. I’m sure there are some clans that approach this with a finely tuned “Corporate” structure with checks and balances etc., but that is not the Heffernan way. Heff-Fest comes off more like an Irish ant colony at work. Meaning from a distance it doesn’t look organized and no one individual looks to know exactly where they are going. It may appear like madness, but as in an ant colony everything gets done only with WAY more swearing and drinking. Everybody has responsibilities that have “evolved“ out of their individual strengths. Bring what you’re good at to the table and pitch in – in that way.
(more…)
The Origin Story
The Origin Story
So as Thanksgiving approaches I thought I’d vamp on one of my favorite things. That is the, ever more dangerous, playing of the annual “Turkey bowl” game on thanksgiving morning.
First a little history… the game was invented as a cure for the “Wednesday before thanksgiving” hangover as my returning college crew always met up to reconnect and over-achieve at the local pub.
(more…)
Breaking Bread – The Lost Art of Togetherness
Breaking Bread – The Lost Art of Togetherness
What’s the most loving thing you can do for another person: feed them. In this mile-a-minute culture of ours we have lost the art of breaking bread. People since before language have used food as a way to communicate love and friendship. We give our condemned one last meal, “The last supper” was a celebration of life enjoyed in the theater of food. Even the social dating scene is typically based around sharing food because it’s a familiar action amidst so much unknown.
Togetherness as a philosophy and as an action is important. While still a major factor of etiquette, it seems to have been lost in our everyday way of life. Mangia.tv wants to challenge you to find new ways to express this tradition in your own way. This is what Mangia.tv is all about. Good food, good drink, and above all good friends and family! Few things can impact our lives the way community can. It
embeds humor, entertainment and important life lessons into our everyday lives.
(more…)
Recipe Contest! Thanksgiving Leftover Throwdown & Black Friday Special
Hey Everybody,
We have two HUGE announcements.
First, prepare yourself, or an appropriate dish for…
The Official Mangia.tv Leftovers Throwdown
We are holding a leftovers recipe contest and we’ll be awarding three winners with a Mangia.tv Gift Basket. But that’s not all. We’ll also be presenting the three gift baskets for the three most charitable uses of leftovers as well.
(more…)