Pino’s way to season a Thankgiving – or Christmas – turkey is a far cry from those U.S. “butterball” birds, complete with inserted thermometer to tell you how long to cook it!…
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Ragazza/ragazzina (“girl/little girl) – chiesa/chiesina (“church/little church) – stella/stellina (“star/little star”) are logical pairings but zucca/zucchina (“squash/little squash”) doesn’t quite work out: La zucchina (“zucchini”) is not related at all to the…
Feeling itchy and sweaty, scratched arms and legs, and hands pricked by thorns can all herald bliss: When you scramble up out of the woods, scratched hands clutching a big bunch of…
With January 17th and the Feast of St. Anthony, Carnevale (Mardi Gras) took over here in Italy and will reign until martedì grasso (“fat Tuesday,” the day before the beginning of Lent…
Lost in time are the origins of Offida, medieval hilltown of Le Marche, certainly inhabited in the Bronze Age, later by a local Italic tribe, then finally by the Romans. The town’s…
I finally have my matera – or the traditional Umbrian bread cupboard. Many years ago, our farm neighbors, Peppe and Mandina, had decided to chop up Mandina’s old and well-used matera for…
Perugia is not just proud of its chocolate, Etruscan artifacts and the Umbria Jazz festival: this provincial capital of Umbria also boasts not just one but three patron saints! Legend tells us…
We’ll celebrate our Thanksgiving on the Sunday AFTER Thanksgiving, as we always do. Giulia and Keegan and friends are celebrating in Perugia on THE day – and have pre-dinner games planned on…
In early November, white truffles star at the 32nd edition of la Mostra-Mercato del Tartufo Bianco in Citta’ di Castello in the Upper Tiber Valley. But not only the prized white truffle,…
Throughout October, the picturesque Umbrian hilltown of Trevi celebrates its renowned sedano nero (“black celery”) in a month-long array of cultural events. Celery is justly celebrated in Trevi: after all, celery is…