First stop on our return from the olive oil mill with our just-pressed oil? At Peppa’s to let her judge the goodness. She’d been out harvesting her own olives with her sons that morning as we could see on arrival: Up in Peppa’s kitchen, Pino proudly poured out our”green gold”… …..and then, time for Peppa’s…
They called us into the olive mill yesterday: it was our turn. Pressing time for our 300 k+ of olives which we’d hauled in the day prior. Delivery of our olives to the mill, the day before the pressing.. We headed there immediately: anyone consigning olives to the mills must absolutely be there…
November is the month for the squash appassionati (and I’m one). Our favorite fruit and vegetable stand near Assisi – that of Roberto Migliosi and family – tempts with a variety of squashes. Roberto’s wife, Emanuela, is happy to share a squash recipe with you as she slices up your choice. The bright…
“Ho trovato funghi ieri. Venite a mangiarli!” (“I found mushrooms yesterday. Come eat them!”) Peppa chortled over the phone. How to refuse? As I savored those mushrooms, what memories of my own mushroom-hunting days in our woods, in our fields Those alzaterra (“raise the earth”) mushrooms – sorry, have no idea of their botanical name – used…
We often eat at Peppa’s. Every meal is always an Umbrian rural feast, and although she’ll invite us over for “solo per un primo,” it’s never “just a first course.” Lunch the other day was to be just the pasta. Buonissima. Peppa had made the sauce with the last of her fresh garden tomatoes and…
The last eggplants, zucchini, peppers and tomatoes are in the vegetable gardens of Umbria now. When a mother-lode gift of these vegetables from our friends Mary and Renato arrived, how not to cook up a few of them? I decided to combine eggplants, tomatoes, peppers, zucchini with potatoes, garlic, onion and a trio of herbs.…
A delectable new cheese now tempts at our favorite local caseificio (literally, “cheeese-maker” or a place where cheeses are made and sold) : ‘blue di pecorino,” i.e.,their own sheep’s milk Roquefort: Pino loves that cheese. Not sure you’ll like it? Next time you’re in Assisi, come with me to the caseificio and taste it (as friend…
Bell peppers won’t be in the Umbria vegetable gardens for much longer. With a few we have now, I decided to make “meatless” stuffed peppers. Here’s an easy recipe for Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers: Umbria Goodness Ingredients (for four): 4 red and/or yellow bell peppers 1 eggplant 2 medium-sized ripe tomatoes (Piccadilly variety, if possible, as…
Pasta dell’Ortolana Umbra – showcased with garden vegetables – would be literally translated “pasta of the Umbrian-vegetable-grower” (a feminine gardener). Since our friend Renato gave us all the vegetables from his garden, I’ll call my sauce, “Pasta all’Orotolano Umbro.” Mille grazie, Renato for sharing your garden abundance. I used Renato’s vegetables in this pasta dish…
During every one of many Sicily sojourns over the years, more than one meal has featured la caponata. But what a tasty one we had recently in Tuscany, made by our Sicilian friend, Melina. Generally made stove-top, Melina’s caponata was a buonissimo oven-baked vegetable medley. I had to try it. Opportunity came along recently thanks to the gift of…