Top Italian Cheeses Loved and Used By Many

A bunch of cheese on display at an outdoor market

Italian cheeses are considered the best in the world. These cheeses are very famous and widely used in Italy and even other parts of the world. Italy has the highest varieties of cheeses and they are known to have over 2500 traditional varieties. Five hundred of them are commercially recognized and 300 already have a Protected Designation…

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A Jagged Path to Refuge

A plate of food with meat and vegetables on it.

Cultivating farm-to-table country Italian cuisine at Refugio’s with chef Richard Balogh Written by Annabelle Stefanoff During a family trip to Europe at 16 years old, Richard Balogh, head chef, and owner of Rifugio’s, experienced his first calling to food. I remember eating my first fresh fig from the tree. The only experience I had was Fig…

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Lasagna The Journey and Exploration

A skillet with some food in it on top of a table.

The Journey and the Exploration of Lasagna Began many years ago when I opened the Caffe then called Il Caffe Rifugio. Being a Sicilian, American-born in Cleveland, Ohio, and moving to the Great Northwest I always wanted to have a space to craft food and art. Being an Alumni of the University of Cincinnati DAAP…

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