Letters from Emilia-Romagna I

I am spending a week in beautiful Bertinoro, a village in Emilia-Romagna, a northern region in Italy. This "state" is known for Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, and Maserati's but it is equally famous for its hams from Parma, its world renown cheese -parmigiano reggiano- and many other delicacies. And, who can forget the mortadella.

We go out every evening to one of the small local restaurants. A background: Bertinoro is small, really small, but it sits on a high hill, relative to its surrounding. Since it is close to the coast (the adriatic - Rimini- is 40 Km alway), it tends to be a bit stuffy down below, and at night

Bertinoro is busy with sun bathers coming up to cool off over pasta and Sangiovese wine.

The local food can be summarized with: PASTA, PASTA, and PASTA. There is also a local bread, (Piadona I believe) - unleavened flat bread that looks like thick flour tortilla. It is served usually with a soft raw cheese that is slightly similar in consistency to cottage, but creamier and more delicious. The food is simple, simple, simple. But, this is why it is delicious. No pretentious sauces, no fancy ovens, or preparations. Rather, hand made pastas, all kinds, with all kinds of different sauces, some successful (like the Ragu above - amazing) and others not as much (salmon based - perhaps meant for the beach goers).

After long evening meals with the students and our generous Italian host, we end the evening with the sweet Albana wine, made from local grapes - really local- from the hills below. And don't forget to "dip your biscotti in the wine" - tiny ones with hazelnuts, meant for dipping- my Italian host yells from across the table. Ah, certain things just make the whole experience that much better.

Comments

Coffee, Coffee, Coffee

I am not sure how you like yours, but I drink all kinds. The constant is that I never use any sugar and, I would ALWAYS rather have my coffee in a cafe, or a coffee shop. I guess growing up at our house, coffee was always a time to try and get whomever of your neighbors is around, assemble, eat pastries (some would smoke) and TALK. Invitations were yelled orally from balconies, except in the mornings where people take turns hosting the coffee hour (you can always go on Monday to so and so's house for coffee). Anyhow, things have changed a lot, some for the better (I think much better coffee) and some to the worse. Around here, we are blessed with amazing local roasters -like Metropolis and Intelligentsia- that supply the majority of our local coffee shops (See this for a brief description of the coffee scene here). The drink that I order more often than not is a double espresso with foam on top (or machiato - I find the descriptive name easier). Anyhow, on the right, you will find ...

Dishdash

I moved to Silicon Valley from Chicago about two months ago, and am on a continuous hunt for good food. Unfortunately, it’s somewhat hard to find amidst the high-tech corporate campuses and sprawling apartment complexes. I had all but lost hope when I stumbled upon Dishdash in Sunnyvale . My husband and I walked in for lunch on a weekday to a loud, but welcoming buzz of people. The fact that the restaurant was crowded was not necessarily telling, however, as most eateries in Silicon Valley are packed around lunch time with engineers hurrying to get a quick bite. Nevertheless, as I looked around, the diners seemed pleased and their food looked delicious. Dishdash is a welcoming space with bright colored walls, high ceilings, and modern Mediterranean décor. Despite the rush-hour, we were seated immediately at a small table by the kitchen. Whereas in some restaurants this could be a turn-off, I found it exciting. The kitchen was a machine. I sat wide-eyed as t...

Paris, O Paris...

This is a brief post about what we ate on our recent lovely trip to Paris. We have made it to unbelievable restaurants, sampled amazing chocolates, saw beautiful art, walked romantic streets, and just had a great time. The restaurants we ate at are all in the nouveau French cuisine where the emphasis is on fresh, local, healthy,... and amazing. Arriving to our hotel, we head immediately to lunch at Ze Kitchen Gallery ... a funky and hip restaurant in St. Germain right a block from the Seine. The appetizers we chose were a play on raw fish. These dishes to me are as good as the fish you get, and they were wonderful (with a unique presentation): Asian flavors, mixed with slightly sweet and crunchy peels of cucumber, some radishes marinated green papaya and mango. Dora had the (raw) sardines, tomato and a ginger like sauce. It is slightly challenging to eat raw sardines as the fish is a little tough. Trout from Banka.... Sardines Cod... Rabbit! Desert... Ch...

Happy Foods Blog

Search This Blog