Analise Spacucello, Recipe Tester

A list of all the recipes Analise Spacucello has tested.

Analise S.

Analise was born and raised in the city of Chicago and has been living in LA for the past nine years. She’s half Mexican, half Italian, and credits her cultural background, family, the diversity of Chicago’s neighborhoods and its residents, PBS, and her intrinsic curiosity as the touchstones to her interests in all thing’s food, eating, and cooking.

Many stints at baking bread in her employer’s oven (it was more reliable than her home oven) landed her, a self-taught home cook, the opportunity to cook for a post-production sound studio for five years. She’s recently taken a step back from cooking professionally but can often be found replicating dishes and baked goods from around the world in her tiny apartment kitchen. She enjoys cooking for her boyfriend, Michael, alongside her sous chef, who is oftentimes covered in specks of flour and chasing after bits of dropped food, their dog, Steve. She’s been recipe testing for Leite’s Culinaria since January 2021 and enjoys all of the inspiration and knowledge she receives from being a recipe tester and part of the LC testing community.

Hands grabbing pieces of skillet pepperoni pizza with two glasses on the side and a bowl of parmesan and pepper flakes

Skillet Pepperoni Pizza

There’s no need for takeout when you can make this deep dish skillet pizza that’s laden with blistered tomatoes, pepperoni, and mozzarella.

A bowl of Ukrainian chicken dumpling soup with shredded chicken, dill, scallions, and carrots and a spoon on the side

Ukrainian Chicken Dumpling Soup ~ Galushki

Whether you’re under the weather, or it’s cold and drizzly outside, or you simply want to show your support and offer a prayer of hope for the Ukrainian people, make this soup. You won’t regret it.

A chocolate stout cake topped with brown butter cream cheese frosting on a green plate with a green mug in the background.

Chocolate Stout Cake

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day (or any day) with this Guinness-infused chocolate cake that’s smothered in swirls of browned butter cream cheese frosting.

Sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream on a white plate with a fork, beside a small bowl of extra toffee sauce.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Sweet, sticky, and classic. What else matters when you’re looking for a traditional dessert that tastes as good as this one does?

A large metal plate with a circle of tahdig, with a spoon and a serving missing.

Tahdig

Flipping out a perfectly golden, crisp, and intact tahdig is one of the greatest kitchen tricks you’ll ever perform. And just wait until you taste it.

A cast-iron pan filled with koftinka meatballs on a white background.

Koftinka ~ Bite-Size Meatballs

Our scientific theory is that bite-sized food just tastes better. Maybe it’s because you’re just happier when you eat it. These baby meatballs are proof.

2 halves of a hollowed out pineapple filled with pineapple fried rice and garnished with green onions

Pineapple Fried Rice

Vegan fried rice filled with so many healthy, tasty ingredients you’ll feel fantastic about eating it. And get a load of those groovy pineapple bowls!

A bowl of rice pudding with a spoon and a scoop of halved strawberries and juice

Rice Pudding with Strawberries

Rice pudding is everybody’s idea of a creamy, dreamy dessert. And this one is topped with the most luscious strawberry conserve we’ve ever had.

A blue bowl filled with chickpeas, diced tomatoes, ditalini pasta, and parmesan, flanked with a crueset of olive oil and a bowl of Parmesan.

Pasta with Chickpeas and Tomatoes

A simple, rustic, and flavorful vegetarian dinner that only takes a handful of ingredients and 45 minutes. Also, it tastes really fantastic. What’s not to love?

A large white plate on a white background, filled with halved, browned zucchini, sprinkled with mint.

Pan-Fried Zucchini with Mint

We know that you, like us, have piles and piles of zukes. Lush spices and a quick spell in the skillet make quick work of those gorg gourds.

A blue and white dish filled with sauced chicken and julienned ginger, topped with a red chile.

Ginger Chicken

This is an exceptionally easy way to sate those crave-worthy Vietnamese flavors at home. Not a lot of ingredients or special techniques, just sticky caramelized perfection.

A sliced rib eye on an oval platter with anchovy butter drizzled over the top and a fork resting on the side.

Rib Eye with Anchovy Butter

Summer is for steaks—big beefy steaks. Grill one to perfection then top with a lemony and salty pat of life-changing magic. Seriously. You’re going to slather it on everything.

A serving dish and bowl both filled with baked pasta with shrimp, feta, and tomatoes, with a fork on the side.

Baked Feta Pasta with Shrimp

That’s right—we made the famous TikTok tomato and feta pasta and adapted it to include shrimp because that’s how we roll. And it’s just as good as everyone says it is.