This ragù, in the tradition of Potenza (the capital of Basilicata), is a versatile sauce, equally delicious with cooked grains such as farro, wheat berries or barley, or as a dressing for almost any pasta you choose. This recipe gives a combination I particularly love, with cooked farro stirred into the pot of ragù just before serving. The nuttiness of the grain and the earthiness of the pork sauce are flavors that remind me of the bountiful Sunday and holiday dinners that are traditional in the lower part of the peninsula. And though it is a dish steeped in old traditions, it is healthful and economical, and will certainly shine on today’s table for any occasion.

Giving the gift of a new cookbook to the family chef — or to a good friend who loves to prepare meals for friends and family — is sure to evoke smiles all ’round during the upcoming season of holidays.

A Boston native with experience in some of America’s best kitchens is the newest member of the culinary team at Farm, the farm-to-table restaurant at Carneros Inn.

Two area restaurants were inadvertently left out of a recent story detailing recipients of Michelin Guide culinary star awards.

Primal Napa Valley, a celebration of fire cooking, meat and the art of butchering, will take place in St. Helena Saturday.

Whether we are celebrating Thanksgiving as a Native American or as a descendant of Spanish explorers, Pilgrims or other immigrant groups, we tend to take the traditional foods and give them our own cultural twist. This sensational and easy recipe reflects the influences of Southwestern cuisine, roasting sweet potatoes with chipotle powder, fresh lime juice and honey.

Work, work, work. Housekeeping requires constant labor. I feel like I am at it all the time, yet somehow my house is never clean. For all my efforts, I don’t see any progress.

While cleaning the fridge I found some artichokes, so I applied my new organizing process to an old Craig Claiborne recipe my sister sent me. By tracing it back to its first step — cleaning out the choke, a job I utterly detest — I realized that Craig was on the wrong path. (Or maybe baby artichokes weren’t available in the ’70s when he wrote his cookbook.) Anyway, by substituting the baby ones, this recipe became a snap.