Tag Archives: Italy

Rome

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Roma was the final chapter in our Italian odessey.

Despite the soaring temperatures, train loads of tourists, wild traffic, brutal car exhaust and sore feet, under the watchful eye of Julius Caesar and countless other famous Romans, we were still game to hunt for the best food that we could find.

I ordered artichokes every chance I got…

Not kidding!

Jewish style artichokes are deep fried until they are totally crispy. I have never had anything but exceptional food in Trastevere which was the old jewish community of Rome from the end of the Roman Republic to the end of the 15th century.

There is nothing that does not taste delicious on crostini!

Unless ofcourse you don’t like liver – I love it!

Stuffed zucchini blossoms were on every menu…

This pasta was dressed heavier than most but it was delicious.

I loved the use of arugula and pecorino as a garnish. It is just the right taste of salt and pepper.

It was hard to walk by the shop windows with these gorgeous sandwiches stacked and ready to go.

The four of us have shared this dream for a long time. We had as much fun planning our holiday as we had actually being there. I feel a tremendous sense of gratitude that we acheived what we had hoped for. A once in a life time magical Italian holiday with dear friends.

I am once again completely inspired – time to get cooking!

Thanks for reading.

Tuscany was magical

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So many wonderful things were happening that by the time we left Venice for Florence, it was clear to us that we had a guardian angel. We named her, Meg: Patron Saint of Prosecco. We paid homage to her/it as often as we could!

After three days of Michelangelo, da Vinci, the Medici clan, Ponte Vecchio and haggling over prices for hand made leather goods, we traveled deeper into the Tuscan countryside. I have been telling the girls stories about Cortona for so long, I hoped that I had not embellished.

They were enchanted.

They loved the artisans, shops, trattorias and the steep ancient roads but most of all they loved the tall shuttered windows!

The food in Tuscany is superb but if you are unfamiliar with the language you could run into disappointment because the menus are not always well translated. Happily, I was given carte blanche on restaurant selection. We had a ball!

The key to success during a gastronomic marathon is moderation. We shared our dishes to ensure that we were able to taste as much as possible without needing a wheel barrow to get around. OK – I might not have always shared…

Pici is a thick hand rolled pasta typically served with a wild boar or duck sauce. Ristorante Degli Archi in Montepulciano serves a killer pici carbonara.

Etruscans apparently cooked en papillote… it was a stunning presentation of pici with truffles.

Nothing makes me smile more than a breathtaking plate of fresh pasta waiting to be devoured! I had fresh tagliatelle with a sauce of cherry tomatoes, basil and pecorino all wrapped up in Tuscan prosciutto. This was one of my non-sharing moments!

 The drive from Cortona to Monteulciano is stunning. There is eye candy as far as you can see.

 We stopped at my favorite vineyard, Avignonesi and lucked into a tour and tasting.

 After lunching in Montepulciano, we carried on to Pienza, home of Pecorino cheese.

After four culinary magical days, we left for Roma.

Thanks for reading.

Thanks to Christie for the great photos

we began in Venice

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Spending an Italian holiday with three of my closest friends is a bucket list scratch.

Each of us has experienced life changing on a dime. Knowing that this opportunity may never happen again inspired us to live in the moment. The chances of four women spending eleven days together without a hiccup only happens when you collectively commit to not stress about anything.

That is exactly what we did.

From being whisked to Hotel Carlton Capri via water taxi to sipping Aperol Spritz beside the Grand Canal, we felt like we were all sharing the same beautiful dream.

Our gondola ride, Walks of Italy tour guide, Andrea D’Alpaos, lazy long lunches, Rossinis on a rooftop terrace, aimlessly wandering through the Venetian nights, and pizza made Venice an absolutely perfect way to begin our holiday.

Thanks for reading.

bliss…

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what’s the likelihood that four women could holiday together and find bliss…

we landed in Venice – whisked to the pier, ferried to our hotel via water taxi, two prosecco veiled days of canaled streets, gondola rides, spectacular food and deep restful nights

first class to Florence – Michelangelo and company, steamy sidewalks and star filled nights

private car to Cortona – perfection…

talk soon

ciao, ciao

off to Italy

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I can’t believe we are leaving Tuesday.

Eleven glorious days touring Italy with the ‘witches’. Ralph lovingly nicknamed us years ago… We’ve been planning and saving for this holiday for years and boom – we’re four days away from take-off. Over the winter we met with travel agent extraordinaire Helena Millar to fine tune our wish lists.

Christie suggested that we each make a list of our heart’s desires while in Italy. We would then compare lists and create our itinerary. Helena was amazing. No matter what hair brained idea we came up with – there were lots! – she came back to us with options.

From being water-taxied to our Venetian Hotel to ensuring beautiful accommodations throughout our tour, Helena took away any possible trip planning stress.

All four of us love Italian food. It’s a prerequisite to being my friend! We have booked a few tables already to eliminate any frustration on our first evening in each destination. After that we’ll explore…

I plucked these beautiful plump radishes from my garden, then washed and served them with extra virgin olive oil and pink sea salt. It’s lovely to nibble off the root, dip the bitten end in a little EVOO and then crush the coarse sea salt with the radish. It’s fantastic! Simple and absolutely Italian…

Thanks for reading.

Cooking Vacation in the south of Italy

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To celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary, Ralph and I fulfilled a promise, to each other, of taking a holiday in Italy. We started in Tuscany and finished on the Amalfi coast. Our time in Tuscany was magical. We had rented a small villa in Bucine which is a 25 minutes drive south from Florence. Our first time in Italy saw us up at the crack of dawn every day driving, our little rented car, all over the hills of Chianti. It was fantastic! However, by the time we were heading south to Sorrento, we were pooped.

It took us the better part of a day to travel from Tuscany to Sant’Agata Sui Due Golfi . Driving the Amalfi coastline is exactly like every description that you have ever read – white knuckle terror!

By the time that we pulled into Oasis Olimpia Relais, Ralph was completely wasted. He looked like he had been run over by a transport truck and drug for several miles. As we were building up the energy to get out of the car and check in to what looked like a lovely hotel, we heard, ‘Mr. Hooton!’ in the sexiest Italian female voice that you could imagine.

We looked up and there standing outside of our car was the warmest, most vivacious perfectly Italian young woman that we had ever seen. I wanted to put a bag over Ralph’s head. Her name was Carmen.

Carmen is the most remarkable hotel general manager that we have ever had the pleasure of meeting. She ran the hotel with grace and complete efficiency. No detail was too small for her attention.

We arrived at the end of the tourist season so the hotel was not very busy. In the evenings, Ralph and I would finish our day by sitting in front of the hotel’s huge fire-place sipping wine with Carmen and the owner of the hotel, Salvatore. As Salvatore could not speak English, Carmen acted as translator. We spoke about the differences between life in Canada and Italy, family, business and food.

The hotel had a brand new state-of-the-art kitchen which I lusted over every day. One evening as we were enjoying our daily constitutional, Carmen asked if I would like to cook in their kitchen. I just about jumped out of my skin!

I gave her my grocery list. The next day I cooked dinner for Ralph, Carmen, Salvatore, Antonio [the chef], Tonino [the waiter] and several of the maids. While I was cooking, Carmen and I chatted about how much North Americans love Italian cuisine. I told her about Sister’s and how I taught Italian cooking classes.

During dinner Salvatore suggested that I come back to his hotel for the following season and cook. I loved the idea – Ralph not so much…

I haven’t thought about Carmen and our perfect holiday in a long time. Last Friday, as I was spending time on ‘Pinterest’, I was scrolling through images of Sorrento on Google when my cursor landed on a photo of an Italian female cook. The caption said ‘Chef Carmen’. I enlarged the photo and sure enough there she was – a chef!

Carmen and Salvatore now offer cooking holidays for tourists interested in Italian cooking.

If you are interested in this type of holiday, with all of my heart, I would encourage you to go…

Thanks for reading.

Roma – la dolce vita

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Before we left our beloved Italy, we thought it would be fun to prowl around Roma for a couple of days. We took the train from Florence to Termini Station then hauled our luggage by hand to Bellesuites on Via Modena – about a six-minute walk if you know where you are going – took us about 10 minutes which was not too bad!

Going from the wide open spaces of the Tuscan countryside to the congestion of Rome was major culture shock. It took us several hours to adjust to the noise, cars, litter, and the tourists!

I still can’t explain what happened to Ralph and I while we were in Rome but we were lost the entire time. We never got our bearings. Usually, I am bang on with directions and if I can’t figure it out, Ralph always come to the rescue. It did not happen in Rome. A ten minute walked morphed easily into 45 frustrating minutes. Finally, we stopped the anxiety by realizing that even while we were lost everything we were looking at was spectacular! The architecture, the people, the food –  ooohhh the food… Romans put a whole new spin on fast food!

With our limited time, we opted to do ‘street stuff’ as opposed to tours of the Vatican and other Roman treasures. We have done a lot of the major sites before but have never gotten to Campo di Fiore – the famous flower, vegetable and fruit market. This time we made it our mission!

Our time in Rome was fast, furious and wonderful! I did not scope out any restaurants before we arrived so it was luck of the draw. All of our meals were delicious but lunch on our last day was absolutely the ‘find’ of our holiday.

Once again, we found ourselves wandering aimlessly. We were near Piazza Navona looking for the perfect spot to have our last lunch. It’s important to understand how traumatic the thoughts of leaving Italy can be to us…

Ralph poked his head in a small doorway and then called me to have a look. It was delightful! –  almost as if we were stepping back in time – maybe to the 1920′s?? In we went to be greeted by a most gentle woman. She took us to a lovely table adorned with all the majesty of a private home. After enjoying a lunch of fresh artichokes braised in white wine, garlic and mint followed by fresh egg pasta tossed with green tomatoes and shaved truffles, we asked our delightful hostess, Daniella, about the restaurant. It has been in her family for 80 years. Her grandfather, Giovanni, for whom the ‘osteria’ was named opened the establishment. Today the restaurant is run by Daniella and her parents. If ever you find yourself in Roma, this osteria is worth the whole journey!

Roma was a perfect way to end a wonderful holiday – la dolce vita!

Thanks for reading

Siena – the quintessential Italian town

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I felt like Audrey Hepbun in “A Roman Holiday” the first time that I sat in Piazza del Campo even though she was in Roma and I was in Siena!

It was 2002 and we were celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary. It was mid-morning, we were sipping hot drinks at one of the lovely cafes surrounding the ‘campo‘ and I had the perfect quintessential Italian moment… Since then I have always wanted to spend a couple of days there.

Stunning Siena complete with fabulous restaurants and cafes, glamorous architecture, beautiful shops and 20 minutes from the Chianti region was a lovely place to finish our time in Tuscany.

Walking by a gelato shop in Siena was not going to happen.

Truth be known – I did not even make a feeble attempt…

The displays of gelato were gastronomic works of art.

The Cathadrale di Santa Marie, better known as the Duomo, is one of the prettiest cathedrals in Tuscany.

The intricate detailing is stunning.

The hills of Chianti are breath-taking. Every clearing along the switch-back roads, exposes beauty worthy of precariously parking your car so that you can take a photo…

The food shops were incredibly inspiring. I never take for granted that I am married to a man who understands my obsession with food and all things related!

puts a whole new spin on ‘pizza by the slice’

check out the proscuitto on the hoof!

Many butchers proudly display the head of a prized wild boar at the entrance to their shops.

Sitting with Ralph in the Piazza del Campo at dusk, waiting for the stars to appear, was a gift that I will cherish forever.

Thanks for reading.

Tuscany…ti amo

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After getting lost trying to leave the car rental in Florence and a 45 minute white knuckle drive south on the Autostrada, we eased into the stunningly beautiful Valdichiana.

Ralph and I have combed over every inch of Tuscany falling in love with one town after another. We enjoy the larger cities for a couple of days but, then we crave the beauty of the Italian country side. Cortona is our favorite.

You can feel a gentle rhythm. There is a kindness that is omnipresent.

The streets are worn smooth from a thousand years of shoes trodding upon them. The stone buildings stand together creating a streetscape of protection and strength. Then there is the light…

We discovered La Grotta ten years ago. This has become “our” table.

The beef from the Valdichiana is world renowned. I chose a delicate veal scaloppine in lemon. In a very unladylike fashion, I sopped up the last of the sauce with some bread!

Ralph could not wait to enjoy his favorite pici with wild boar sauce. Tuscans take their pig very seriously and we are the better for it.

Every evening, our hotel, Villa Marsili, offered Vin Santo and contucci to their guests to enjoy before heading to bed.

Each day, Ralph and I drove to a neighboring Etruscan town to experience the local seasonings and wine. This waiter was preparing our glasses for a beautiful Vino Nobile di Montepulciano.

I rarely order a cream sauce but this gnocchi in porcini and black truffle sauce was the house special so…

Every morning Ralph and I would walk up Via Nazionale to Piazza Signorelli. He read the day old London newspaper and I savoured my morning cappuccino.

Eye candy everywhere…

The butcher’s wife…

The local salamis are incredible.

You can see how thin the pizza crust is if you look at the edge of the pizza in the background.

The fields are being prepared for the winter.

Stunning…

This crostini with wild boar and balsamic reduction was compliments of the chef.

After reading the menu at Ristorante Ambrosia, I realized that we had happened upon something very special. Each dish started with a local base but was lifted to another level by the fearless imagination of chef Matteo Sciarri. This sheep’s milk ricotta gnocchi – I just drooled onto my keyboard! – was as light as a cloud. They were floating in a mint infused pea reduction and garnished with oven baked cherry tomatoes.

The slow roasted pork had a cinnamon and star of anise crust – with the apple marmalatta, it was sublime. This kid could cook!!!!!

I could not resist the Vin Santo semifreddo with caramel crunches – sigh

It did not matter where I pointed my camera.

This beautiful plate of on-the-house nibblies are offered, at our favorite bar, to every table that stops in for a cocktail. Every time we happened in, the selection of treats was unique and different.

This dish was so clever. Warm potato gnocchi in a light tomato sauce sprinkled with cold crisp arugula and shards of young pecorino. It is kind of embarrassing to remember how many times I licked my plate!

So simple – pork chop fried in a skillet with a white wine reduction and green peppercorns.

Apparently, I resisted dessert less than I thought!

Pane di Toscano

Every time we leave Cortona, a little more of my heart is left behind.

Thanks for reading.