Sunday Forward — Italian American · Week 4
Week 4 Grocery List
5 dinners · 3 desserts · pesto · bruschetta — 10 recipes total
✓ You've got everything — happy cooking!
TipTap any item to check it off as you shop. Lemons do a lot of heavy lifting this week — grab 10–12 and you'll be covered across all the recipes.
Produce
Lemons
Posset shells + juice (6), piccata sauce, fish cavity + beurre blanc, pesto chicken finishing squeeze, plus a finishing squeeze (or a few thin slices) for the pesto shrimp pasta
Posset · Piccata · Branzino · Pesto Chicken · Pesto Shrimp Pasta
10–12
Garlic
Pesto (4 cloves), stew (4–6 cloves), bruschetta (smear on toast)
Pesto · Stew · Bruschetta
2 heads
Fresh Sweet Basil
4 cups loosely packed for pesto; extra leaves for bruschetta platter
Pesto · Bruschetta
large bunch (2 if small)
Cherry Tomatoes
1 pint for pesto chicken caprese; extra for bruschetta topping
Pesto Chicken · Bruschetta
2 pints
Strawberries
Sliced and macerated for the panna cotta topping
Panna Cotta
2 cups (1 lb)
Large Orange
Zest + ½ cup juice to bloom the gelatin for panna cotta
Panna Cotta
1
Yellow Onions
Diced for the stew base
Beef Stew
2
Celery
Diced for the stew aromatic base
Beef Stew
3–4 stalks
Carrots
Peeled, cut in 1-inch pieces; added in the second oven phase
Beef Stew
4–6
Yukon Gold Potatoes
Peeled, cut in 1-inch pieces; hold their shape in the braise
Beef Stew
1½ lb
Cremini or Button Mushrooms
Quartered; sautéed separately before adding to stew
Beef Stew
8 oz
Shallot
Minced fine for the fish beurre blanc reduction
Branzino
1
Spinach & Arugula Mix (or Just Spinach)
One 5 oz package — the 365 arugula-spinach blend from Whole Foods is the one Colin uses; the arugula brings a peppery kick. Plain spinach works fine too.
Pesto Shrimp Pasta
5 oz (1 package)
Fresh Herbs: Thyme, Rosemary, Oregano
Thyme + rosemary for stew; all three tucked in fish cavity
Beef Stew · Branzino
small bunches
Fresh Tarragon
Stirred into the beurre blanc at the very end, off heat
Branzino
small bunch
Flat-Leaf Parsley
½ cup for piccata sauce; garnish for stew
Piccata · Beef Stew
1 bunch
Fresh Mint
Garnish for lemon posset
Lemon Posset
small bunch
Proteins & Seafood
Beef Chuck Roast
Cut into 1½-inch pieces for braising; buy the day before
Beef Stew
3–3½ lb
Whole Branzino
Fins trimmed, scaled, gutted — ask your fishmonger. Buy day-of.
Herb Lemon Fish
~1.5 lb
Chicken Breasts
2 for piccata, 2 for pesto chicken caprese — all get pounded. Colin buys bone-in, skin-on (cheaper) and butchers them down himself; boneless-skinless works if you’d rather skip the knife work
Piccata · Pesto Chicken
4 breasts
Large Shrimp
Peeled, deveined; Colin poaches off-heat in seasoned water
Pesto Shrimp Pasta
1 lb
Dairy & Cheese
Unsalted Butter
Fish beurre blanc (1 stick), piccata sauce (5–9 tbsp), pesto chicken sear (1 tbsp)
Branzino · Piccata · Pesto Chicken
3 sticks
Heavy Cream
2 cups for posset, 1 cup for panna cotta, 1 tbsp (optional) for fish beurre blanc
Lemon Posset · Panna Cotta · Branzino
1 quart
Whole Milk
½ cup for panna cotta crema
Panna Cotta
small carton
Parmesan, block
1 cup for pesto; freshly grated is best
Pesto
4–5 oz block
Pecorino Romano
¼ cup stirred into pesto
Pesto
small wedge
Ciliegine (Fresh Mozzarella Balls)
Cherry-tomato-sized; drain from brine before using. Whole Foods carries them.
Pesto Chicken
1 container (~8 oz)
Fresh Mozzarella, pre-sliced
For the bruschetta + caprese bar setup
Bruschetta
8 oz
Pantry & Dry Goods
Good Olive Oil
1 cup for pesto; also used for stew, piccata, fish, and pesto chicken — buy a large bottle
All savory recipes
large bottle
San Marzano Tomatoes (28 oz, DOP)
Crushed by hand directly into the stew
Beef Stew
1 can
No-Salt Chicken Broth
Colin’s stew base — fortified with the Better Than Bouillon below
Beef Stew
3 cups (1 carton)
Better Than Bouillon, Beef
About 1 teaspoon per cup of broth, whisked in — the beefy depth without boxed beef stock
Beef Stew
1 jar
Tomato Paste
Caramelized in the pot before the wine is added
Beef Stew
1 small can or tube
Capers
Drained; the brine and pop that makes piccata, piccata
Piccata
2 Tbsp (1 small jar)
Frozen Green Peas
Stirred in at the very end of the stew — just need to warm through
Beef Stew
1–1½ cups
Rummo Linguine
2 servings; or your preferred pasta brand
Pesto Shrimp Pasta
1 box
Orzo (optional)
Piccata sauce soaks in beautifully; crusty bread also works
Piccata
as desired
Knox Unflavored Gelatin
3 packets into the stew broth, plus 1 Tbsp bloomed in OJ for the panna cotta — one 4-packet box covers the week
Beef Stew · Panna Cotta
1 box (4 packets)
Granulated Sugar
Posset (⅔ cup), panna cotta (⅓ cup), strawberry maceration (3 tbsp)
Lemon Posset · Panna Cotta
1 bag
Bay Leaves
Added to stew; remove before serving
Beef Stew
2 (pantry check)
Kosher Salt
½ tbsp in pasta water is key; also used throughout
All savory recipes
pantry check
Specialty & Wine
Red Wine (Chianti or Barbera)
1½ cups for stew; the rest is yours
Beef Stew
1 bottle
Dry White Wine (Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay)
¼ cup for the fish beurre blanc reduction
Branzino
¼ cup (1 bottle)
Lucini Balsamic Vinegar
½ cup simmered with honey makes Lorianne's glaze — used for bruschetta and panna cotta strawberries
Bruschetta · Panna Cotta
1 bottle
Honey
1–1½ tbsp stirred into the balsamic while simmering for the glaze
Bruschetta · Panna Cotta
pantry check
Good Crusty Bread or Baguette
For bruschetta; also great alongside the stew
Bruschetta · Beef Stew
1–2 loaves
Nuts & Dried Fruit
Marcona Almonds (or regular slivered)
½–¾ cup for pesto (Colin's tree nut allergy means no pine nuts); ½ cup slivered for bark — buy 1½ cups total
Pesto · Chocolate Bark
1½ cups
Dried Cranberries (Craisins)
Tossed into the bark with the almonds
Chocolate Bark
½ cup
Chocolate (Candy Aisle)
Lindt Intense Orange Dark Chocolate
Lindt Excellence bars — in the candy aisle, not baking
Chocolate Bark
2 bars (100g each)
Lindt 85% Cocoa Dark Chocolate
Also in the candy aisle; deepens the flavor of the orange bars
Chocolate Bark
1 bar (100g)
Finishing
Maldon Sea Salt Flakes
Sprinkled on the bark while still warm; can add more at serving
Chocolate Bark
1 box (pantry check)