Woodstove chugging away these days as November chill sets in….finalmente, after an inordinately warm fall. The wood stove top is perfect for simmering soups and the speckled beans, borlotti, joined farro (the…
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It’s always a joy to cook up Umbria with guests and delighted, Heidi, that you and your family and friends, cooked with me in our farmhouse kitchen. It made me smile to…
An abnormally warm November here this year but winter squash has arrived. I paired that orange goodness with leeks the other day to make my version of zucca vellutata con porri (literally,…
When in central Italy from spring to late fall, you can’t miss feasting with the “locals” at a sagra (village food festival of local specialties cooked and served up by local volunteers).…
We just picked our last fava beans for this year and some are now in the freezer. The other day, the fava beans highlighted a simple tasty, pasta dish, pasta con le…
In 1971, Alice Waters basically launched a California version of the Mediterranean diet when opening Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California, promoting farm-to-table fresh local ingredients. Although I’d studied at UCB in the…
Sharing Umbrian rural culinary lore tidbits is always part of my U.S. Umbrian rural cuisine events (and when cooking with guests in our Assisi farmhouse). Like “fare la scarpetta,” that (acceptable) Italian…
This May’s 10-day “Annesitaly Inside Umbria” Celebration had to include, of course, a rural feast with Giuseppa at her farmhouse near Deruta – and then, Deruta wonders (including a “hidden treasure”). This…
Simply a piece of fresh fruit usually drops the curtain on an Italian meal, for after all the good flavors and abundance of a pasta or risotto dish and savory main courses,…
It’s my mandra: to truly KNOW Umbria, meet our rural friends who taught us everything about life on the land. And not only: about LIFE. They are Umbria’s treasures. Come and meet…