Most times I plan my day around eating.....what am I going to eat, what time am I going to eat, where am I going to eat....it's an event for me, not just nutrition. Welcome to the land of pleasant eating. Eating in Italy is an event....places shut down for riposo, right around the noon time meal, and stay closed for a couple of hours. Not just office buildings, retail stores. Can you imagine Lowes or Walmart closing for 2 1/2 hours at lunch time? It happens here!
Fast food is the exception here, definitely not the rule! And for that, I am eternally grateful! I have never been a huge fast food fan and I laugh at the McDonalds signs here. You can find a McDonalds and even an occasional Burger King, but they are not every 1000 yards (or even meters) like in the states.
When you have a 2 hour lunch break, there is no need for fast food. I can get a pizza with pretty much anything I want on it (including french fries and hot dogs - I know - kinda gross) from a wood fired oven in less than 10 minutes. Not a doughy mess like Dominos.....a real pizza with fresh ingredients.
Now that I have mentioned fresh.....fresh food is amazing! You do not find prepackaged, processed foods here like a US supermarket. You can find them, but the majority of food here is unadulterated. I am not a fan of shopping at the commissary, sometimes it is a necessity for our "American" items, but most often, I have adapted quite easily to the Italian Supermercato. In fact, there are quite a few American things that are banned here....No Easy Mac - food coloring.....American Breads - bromate....No BHA or BHT in meats, cereals & butter - its made from petroleum.....you get the gist. Fresh fruits and vegetable abound here.
I have explored with some foods and have a few items that I was unsure of or didn't know existed, but now....WOW!
Salad dressings - you won't find them here. Primarily they use oil and vinegar, but I have come up with a few conncoctions that I am pleased with...one is a vinagrette with an avocado base...delish!
Cheese - I could spend a whole year on cheese, but one has particularly surprised me. Smoked Ricotta - Ricotta Affumicato. Oh my, is this ever good! It is the consistency of a very crumbly feta, but it packs such a flavor punch, you can't even imagine. Mostly I have just topped a basic pomodoro sauce with it, but I will definitely be experimenting more!
Pasta - What's not to love! I have recently acquired a pasta maker and have tried my hand at some pasta recipes. It is quite easy once you get the hang of it. I have successfully attempted fettucine, tortelloni, ravioli and even pierogis. They turned out quite well, if I do say so myself. I even went a little healthy and made quinoa pasta. I made raviolis by hand, some stuffed with broccoli and ricotta and some with mushroom and brie. Delish! Don't tell Craig, but I snuck some cauliflower in with the mashed potatoes for the pierogi....he never noticed!!
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| Fettucine, tortelloni & pierogi |
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| All finished |
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| Making it one by one |
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| Quinoa Ravioli |
Ham - I know there are some shocked looks at the inclusion of this one. Some of you know my feelings about ham.....not only do I not care for it (as my mother taught me to say)....I HATE it (sorry Char) ! There is something unnatural about a pink spongy slab of meat on my plate or in a sandwich...ugh! Well, who knew the Italians could make me like the dreaded ham......now let me clarify that. They have a "ham" called speck. It is made from lean pork legs and then salt cured, dried and smoked. It is quite tasty!!
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| This ham...I like! |
Wine - Again, this could be a multi year discussion, but here's a few wonderful things about wine here. You can buy fresh wine and BYOB....you own bottle, doesn't matter the size, they will fill it. No preservatives.....no headaches... and it is cheaper than soda and even gasoline! And they let you taste it before you buy it. I'm trying to figure out a way to ship a whole cask of fresh wine back home!!
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| Dario - the wine guy...filler up! Notice the number of taps and the tasting glasses above! |
Dining out....we have had many wonderful experiences. I feel quite comfortable with my Italian in most restaurants. We had an enjoyable meal this past weekend in Posina, a small town on the mountain that we wandered to. We went to a restaurant....I was getting Hangry....and our waitress knew no English. I could make out some of what she was saying, but she decided to just bring us samples of everything. What a treat! We had gnocchi and bigoli (fat spaghetti) with six different sauces, including duck ragu and artichoke. Then came two different meats with 3 vegetables. We were stuffed, until she asked Cafe' e Dolce? Coffee and Dessert? She didn't wait for an answer, she just brought out 2 plates of tiramisu, torte di mele (apple cake) and gelato.....holy moly, unbuckle the belts! It was truly and event....and a great way to cap off a Sunday drive.
Some of the beautiful pictures we took on our Exploration Sunday Drive!
Next up....Paris for Thanksgiving!! A big bucket list item for moi!!
Ciao for now!!
