Lunch At Il Casale

  Having arrived back home a few days ago, we are still dreaming in Umbria...and our dreams (mine, anyway....) feature delightful Umbrian dishes. 

  Though I must say, I am craving a good cheese enchilada like you can't believe. Guacamole, too. I see lunch at a local taqueria in my very near future.

  The thing about eating in Umbria, or any region of Italy, I suppose, is that the menus in almost every restaurant are the same. There may be some slight deviation, but it's always whatever is in season, and whatever the local specialties are. Each place will have it's own "spin" on a regional dish, of course. Family recipes and all that. My mom's meatloaf wouldn't be like our neighbors...that sort of difference.

  It's funny. Here we have so many cuisines, from all around the world. Near my folks house close to Sonoma, there is a place that features Himalayan sherpa cuisine. Not going to find that in Umbria, no way.

  Setting that little tangent aside... Back to my dreams of Umbrian dishes.

  

  Very near Panicale, just outside of Paciano, is the wonderful Il Casale, "The Country House". Up a short stretch of white road, Il Casale has a few sweet rooms for rent, as well as a fine restaurant that is a favorite of locals and visitors. We know that Italians will drive from all over to enjoy Sunday lunch here. The views are spectacular, the food divine.

  We had tried to have Sunday lunch here last year, but struck out for lack of a reservation. This year we had better luck, and went on a Friday. We were the only diners that day, as it was March and very quiet. 

  Signora Giuseppina popped her head out the window, big smile on her face and invited us right in. She was in the kitchen prepping lunch for 70 Belgians the next day, and was more than happy to fix us a little something along the way...Oh, and she was all by herself. She took time to chat with us and made us feel right at home. No problemo. Vegetarians-there is plenty to choose from here. 

  After Giuseppina made some suggestions, we ordered and sat back to enjoy our surroundings.

One of two dining rooms. There is also an outside terrace with
beautiful views of the valley and Lago Trasimeno, which is open in warmer weather.

I knew we were in for something special as soon as this bread basket came out.
Baked in a wood fired oven.
Everything from bread to pasta is made in house.

  We ordered two appetizers, as well as a carafe of the "vino della case", house wine. In Italy, a house wine is most often very good, and a point of pride for the establishment. The wine we chose was no exception.

  I had to try the farro croquettes, a house specialty that was created by Giuseppina. Not sure exactly what is in them, but I did ask... parmesan, but no egg. Hmmm. 

  Must try to recreate at home.

Some Umbrian magic going on here.

Mr. Apodaca will never pass up an opportunity to savor polenta.
 Here, Giuseppina grills the polenta with olive oil and rosemary.

  We rarely order the same pasta dish, but we did on this occasion. Our hostess/chef  highly recommended this dish. 

  Pici pasta is a style of fresh pasta that is also called stringozzi in Umbria. I've made it at home a few times. Very easy. It's made from flour and water, and rolled between your palms like you're making clay worms, if you know what I mean. I like the semi tough texture of it. At Il Casale, the pasta is served with a walnut sauce, very traditional in Umbria. 

Nothing wrong with this picture.

Walnut-y goodness.

And one more shot to give you an idea of the walnut sauce.

  This was a big meal. We couldn't resist ordering more than usual, because there were just so many veggie options to try, like the farro croquettes and all.

  Giuseppina had told us that her daughter is vegetarian, so maybe that's an influence at Il Casale. Whatever the reason, we know we will be back next year..especially for the wood-fire roasted mushrooms......

Seriously good.
Slices of raw garlic were a perfect accent.

  The wood-fire oven gets a good work out here. We were informed that it gets cranked up at the crack of dawn, and the veggies are all roasted early in the day. We loved that there were several vegetable side dishes, or "contorni", prepared this way. Simple, simple, simple. A little olive oil, some herbs maybe, but mostly it's all about the fire.

  Onions, whole with skins still on, are roasted hard, drenched in very good olive oil, and remarkable. We do see these on other menus here. I order them whenever I see them....

Onions elevated to new heights of tastiness.

  And just because...we ordered the grilled eggplant. It was a veggie extravaganza, I'm telling you.

The best eggplant....EVER.

Now, doesn't this look good?

Only the toughest onion skins left on my plate. 

Job well done, kids.

  I know what you're saying...."Dessert? Really? After all that?" Yes. Dessert. Really. After all that. Come on....why stop now???

Me: Something chocolaty and warm with semi-freddo and cream.
What? Is that wrong?

Johnny: Something lemony and cold with an umbrella.
 Yes. An umbrella.
What? Is that wrong?

  After lingering over the last bits and bites and sips of goodness, we wandered back to the kitchen area...remember, it's only us and Giuseppini in the house, and she's such a sweetheart. Sadly, the photo I took of her in her kitchen came out very poorly. But there is a great shot of her on the website. 

Where all the magic happens.

  We finally said our arrivederci, hugs all around, promises to return. 

  And return we most certainly will, my friends. 

  Il Casale is definitely on our list of favorites now, too.

Il Casale, you are in my dreams.