Molto bene!

So here's the update on my Throwdown Showdown post of last month. To recap: I challenged my dad to an Italian cook off-style meal of epic magnitude. We are each choosing recipes from our arsenal of cookbooks, magazines, and trusty old standards and seeing whose is better. I told you that I was making the baked eggplant parmesan from Cook's Illustrated's Italian Favourites edition. Well, to that I have also added a tiramisu (translated as "pull me up" - an effect of the sugar, Marsala, and espresso used in the recipe), and if I still have time, some stracciatella soup using my mom's homemade chicken soup as the base.
As I predicted, my dad is planning some sort of veal dish. He claims he will try a veal chop, but I would bet on him going with his favourite veal scaloppini in Marsala wine sauce with mushrooms. It's so good and he might not want to chance a new recipe. Me, I am not afraid of trying the eggplant for the first time. I have tried other recipes in the past, with moderate success. This time, Cook's Illustrated has taken out all the guesswork. Dad is also musing over some sort of pasta; I would guess linguine with white wine, olive oil and garlic. He's also on the hook for all the wine, Italian of course, and red preferably.
This meal will be huge. I might think about inviting more than just my mom and sister over. Maybe some aunts and uncles should come too. It'll seem more like an Italian family dinner. As previously stated, though this is a competition, collaboration is allowed. I think I might suggest he use some of my truffle oil in the pasta. Last night he was mumbling something about pesto. When I asked him if he was planning on making it from scratch, he sort of scoffed. At that, I decided on another rule: Wherever possible, all items should be made from scratch. No jar pesto! Dad didn't like this too much. But I think he would be amazed by how good homemade pesto actually is. We already have everything but the basil. Hopefully he can be persuaded by Monday. That's when this night of mayhem goes down. I'll let you know how it all turns out. Stay tuned...