With a little planning, you can turn a simple gathering of friends around a pan of lasagna into a memorable feast For those of us who didn't grow up in an Italian household, we tend to neglect the antipasti. An antipasto platter is also a great party starter. Provide a variety of Italian meats, nestled next to the cheeses and marinated veggies, along with some good bread.Szechuan cuisine: Get ready for your taste buds to be on fire. This is one of the spiciest of Chinese cuisines, and every dish seems to be topped with a mountain of hot peppers. Be wary of noodle soups they often have half an inch of floating slow cooker pork belly hot peppers and pepper oil.First, Sear your meat and veggies with liberal salt and pepper. some people like to coat their meat in flour. I don't suggest this because it can burn very easily. If you are using pork belly lollipops, leave the skin on. Throw in some carrots, celery and shallots. maybe apples if you want. Then sear the meat until it is more than golden brown. The best sears are the ones that are as close to burning as you can get with out actual burning or carbon development. Remember to salt heavily in this stage as salt brings out most flavors of your veggies.If you love Naples-style pizza, drive out to Glen Park to Gialina. The chef here, Sharon Ardiana, cooked in several hot restaurants in the Bay Area before deciding that pizza was her true vocation. Her pizzas are topped with fantastic toppings like all-natural, Niman Ranch slow cooked slow roast belly pork. The crust is surprisingly authentic considering that she doesn't use a wood-fired oven. Save room for the Nutella dessert pizza.Prosciutto is the Italian word for ham, but don't think hickory smoked. Prosciutto is aged, dry cured, uncooked, salted and spiced. The selected hams are rested for 24 hours to drain. They are trimmed of fat and skin, salted and spiced with flavors of the region, then set aside for another few months where they are gently, carefully pressed in order to exude as much of the liquid as possible. During that period, they are occasionally re-rubbed with salt and spices. After the curing process, the ham is washed over and over to remove the salt, then hung in a cool, dry, airy space for up to TWO YEARS! The pressing removes the juices, concentrating the slow cooked pork belly flavor and enhancing it with the spices and salt.At Marcel's (2401 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 202-296-1166), the $140 special menu is filled with delicious dishes: lobster egg with Osetra caviar, followed by diver scallops and braised slow cooked pork belly or English pea soup with veal meatballs. The third course is a baby arugula and fennel salad; then comes the main course of a New York strip steak or pan seared red snapper. Dessert is a choice between strawberry cheese cake and a chocolate mousse tower.In Fine Spirits is located in Chicago's Andersonville neighborhood. Stop in the shop Saturday between 11 a.m. and 9 p.m.; and Sunday or Monday, noon to 7 p.m. The adjoining bar is open Saturday, 3 p.m. to 2 a.m., and Sunday through Monday, 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. For more information about In Fine Spirits, or its Memorial Day menu, press here.