Insalata Caprese (salad in the style of Capri) is a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania, made of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes and basil, seasoned with salt, and olive oil. In Italy, unlike most salads, it is usually served as an antipasto (starter), not a contorno (side dish).

I always ask people where they are from.  It is not always the most PC thing to do but when you ask, you get a chance to learn so much.  Christian is a guy from Spain that told me about this stew.  Wikipedia-Cocido madrileño ("Madrilenian stew", Spanish pronunciation: [koˈθiðo maðɾiˈleɲo]) is a traditional chickpea-based stew from Madrid, Spain. A substantial dish prepared with meat and vegetables, it is most popular during the winter but is served throughout the year in some restaurants.- Crystal Johnson, MCCN Editor

The name of the cookie comes from an Italian word meaning paste, maccarone. While origins are uncertain, some culinary historians claim that macaroons can be traced to an Italian monastery.

I have fond memories of hot cross buns.  My grandma would make them.  In many historically Christian countries, buns are traditionally eaten hot or toasted on Good Friday, with the cross standing as a symbol of the Crucifixion. (Read History)

Kotlet schabowy (schaboszczak) is a Polish variety of pork cutlet coated with breadcrumbs similar to Viennese schnitzel,[1] but made of pork tenderloin (with the bone or without), or with pork chop.

Wikipedia-Eastern and Central European babka, especially among Christians, is a spongy, brioche-like yeast cake that is traditionally baked for Easter Sunday. The cake is traditional in the lands of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, namely Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Belarus, Ukraine, and Western Russia , as well as among the Rusyns (Ruthenians) in northeastern Hungary and all over Romania, where it is called "colac". Darra Goldstein, professor of Russian at Williams College says "babka comes from baba, a very tall, delicate yet rich yeast-risen cake eaten in Western Russia and Eastern Poland."Traditional babka has some type of fruit filling, especially raisins, and is glazed with a fruit-flavored icing, sometimes with rum added. Modern babka may be chocolate or have a cheese filling.

Tastingpoland.com- This delicious soup comes from the traditional Hungarian recipes and for decades is also popular in the Polish cuisine. The following recipe describes 'Polish' goulash soup, which is less spicy than original, Hungarian equivalent. Expression 'goulash soup' ('zupa gulaszowa' in polish) corresponds to Hungarian 'goulash' ('gulyás' in Hungarian), while word 'goulash' describes in Poland a dense sauce made in the Hungarian style, not the soup.

A mince pie, also known as minced pie, is a small British sweet pie traditionally served during the Christmas season. Its ingredients are traceable to the 13th century, when returning European crusaders brought with them Middle Eastern recipes containing meats, fruits and spices.

The origin of the dish and its name is somewhat disputed. One claim is that the dish was created out of a mistake made by a fourteen-year-old assistant waiter Henri Charpentier in 1895 at the Maitre at Monte Carlo's Café de Paris. He was preparing a dessert for the Prince of Wales, the future King Edward VII of the United Kingdom, and his companion Princess Suzanne (daughter of Edward, Prince of Wales, who was the son of Queen Victoria). It was his favourite meal.

Ratatouille is usually served as a side dish, but also may be served as a meal on its own (accompanied by pasta, rice or bread). Tomatoes are a key ingredient, with garlic, onions, courgettes (zucchini), aubergine (eggplant), poivron (bell peppers), carrot, marjoram and basil, or bay leaf and thyme, or a mix of green herbs like herbes de Provence. There is much debate on how to make a traditional ratatouille. One method is to simply sauté all of the vegetables together. Some cooks, including Julia Child, insist on a layering approach, where the eggplant and the zucchini are sautéed separately, while the tomatoes, onion, garlic and bell peppers are made into a sauce.

There are many ways to serve pig's feet, including: boiled, pickled, jellied, or barbequed. MCCN is presenting you with two ways to pig-out with pig feet. First see the recipe for southern style pig's feet  to satisfy the spicy soul food yearning. It's a staple in many a southerner or African-American's New Year's Day dinner celebration. Secondly, we have an Irish recipe commonly called Crubeens. It's a braised pig's feet (trotters) dish generally eaten by our Irish friends right out of the hand. It's usually consumed after coming from a night at the pub.

Newsflash...it'sofficially getting colder. As the frigid temperatures settle in for the season, you may have to dress in layers and keep up with those runaway gloves, but the cold weather isn't all bad; it also brings delicious drinks that are great for warming the body and the spirit. One such beverage is Kinderpunsch, (also called "children's punch") and it is a Christmas tradition in Germany.