A few days ago I took my mom and her friend Randy up to the village of Ozein. It’s a paradise…there is no other word for it! Well, a paradise for people who love ancient picturesque villages immersed in a sea of wildflowers, with breathtaking views of the tallest mountains of Europe. It’s pretty spectacular. […]
Light as a Cloud Gnocchi
I love gnocchi. Not the hard, prepackaged, rock-like nuggets you can buy in a grocery store, but the real deal. Fluffy little pillows that melt on your tongue, so light that they could nearly levitate on a humid day. They have those little indentations that hold onto just the right amount of sauce. They are […]
Crazy Cow Party in my Backyard
I was in the middle of making some gnocchi (post to come soon on that!) for dinner, when my husband Gianluca runs into the kitchen shouting, “Go outside! Go now! The cows! They are being funny!” So of course I tossed down my potatoes, my hands still covered in dough, and I scampered outside. If […]
The Story of Genepy the Alpine Bunny
Because it is Easter, I think it is time everyone knows the story of Genepy the Alpine Bunny. She is our household Easter bunny, so this post is in honor of her. Within the first week or so of when I first moved to Italy in October 2009, I decided it was high time to […]
Raw Milk Vending Machine
I’ve mentioned the raw milk vending machine before, but it is so cool I think it deserves a post all to itself. Just to set the scene: I live in a small village across the river from Aosta, a 2000+ year old town nestled in the steepest part of the Alps. So, while I live […]
Weeds for Dinner
Spring has arrived! The first thing I look for when the Alpine snow melts and the grass starts to get green again is tender young cicoria growing out in the yard. Cicoria is what Italians call a common weed….dandelion leaves. Until I moved here, I only knew them for their puffball flowers, and I used […]
Homemade Tortellini!
I’m going to wait on writing more on bread, and instead I’m going to talk about something else…tortellini! When they are made from scratch, they are simply divine. I learned how to make them last year from my friend Stefano, a Michelin Star chef, when I helped him out at his restaurant, ‘Al Caminetto’. I […]
What makes bread good?
I’m a snob. A bread snob, that is. I won’t let bad bread enter my house. I feel as if it is a food only to be eaten if it is worthy of enraptured lovers falling at its crusty feet proclaiming heartfelt sonnets. I don’t often like to slather my bread in condiments, or dip […]
It’s been a while….
Wow, it sure has been a long time since I have posted! Sorry about that. You know when so much happens that you just can’t write about it? That is what has been going on. Just about every day I think, ‘I need to blog about this!’ but it doesn’t happen. Partially because I’ve had […]
Lessons from a Neighbor: Fried Zucchini Blossoms (Fiori di Zucca)
Let me preface this by saying that if I ever post a recipe that calls for frying something, it is because it is melt-in-your mouth, orgasmically good. As with any good recipe, this goes with a bit of a story. Zucchini blossoms are sold at vegetables markets in Italy all year round, but come in […]
