Wanna Get Hungry?

  I'm warning you...this post has WAY too many photos of food.  I mean lots. From various years.

  Just so you know.

  So... those of you who pay attention to this erratically attended to blog know one thing for sure:

  I like my food and drink.

  So does my favorite companion/travel buddy/love of my life/ etc.

  Yeah, the husband/artist, Johnny. Often referred to as: Mr./Mr. J/Baby/Old What's His Name.

  I have now gotten my need for slashes out of my system/blood/brain.

  Where was I?

  Food and drink. Ah, yes...The good stuff.

  Close friends go nuts as we put the brakes on eating and such, so we can drop pounds before we leave for Italy every year. We (sort of) stop going out for wine and treats, and avoid any social situations that may tempt us to eat or drink too much...which is pretty much ALL social situations. 

  This period of self-sacrifice begins after Christmas. We become miserable, hungry hermits. 

  All we do is watch cooking shows every night as our tummies growl in protest.

  In all seriousness, we just try to lose the few pounds we know we'll gain while we are over there. We like to stay ahead of the game, you know? It's a given that, even with all the walking, hiking and climbing up stairs, we'll still end up piling on some poundage.

  Because, Dear Readers...We want, nay, we need to be able to enjoy all the edible (vegetarian) delights that Italy has to offer. And we want to drink wine every day...with potato chips, please.

  Oh, and don't you just know... we do it with gusto.

  Let's start with the wine and treats...I love Italy. They always serve something crunchy and salty with beverages. It's just so damn civilized.

  

Wine and treats with a view of Lago Trasimeno.
On a sunny day, it's heaven.

Happy hour in Bologna.

'Festa Della Donna'- Women's day...always with the yellow mimosa flowers.
We popped into a favorite spot in Montichiello.

 Of course, our favorite watering hole is right at home...Bar Gallo. Everything you need, and just a two minute stroll to the apartment. Sweet.

Grazie, Aldo & Daniele
Vediamo a presto, eh?

  Mr. J has never met a piece of bread he didn't love, and there's a lot to love in Umbria when it comes to bread topped with goodies....

A small place we stumbled on in Deruta..
This was Johnny's lunch. Various toppings on various types of bread.
Me thinks he liked it.

They call it vegatable pizza....It's divine.

Another day, another vegatable pizza, plus extra yummy
puff pastry goodies. Why not?

  My favorite bruschetta are both found in Panicale...

From Ristorante Masolino...chickpea bruschetta is to die for.
I order it at least once every year.

But...our favorite traditional tomato bruschetta
is from Bar Gallo. Oh, yum.

  Though we don't eat much cheese here in the States, we do love to have some in the Italian fridge at all times. 

  One of the first places we visit after the jet-lag has warn off, is our the sweetest ever little cheese shop, Caseficio Fontemanna. It's a family run, small batch producer of Pecorino cheeses and yougurts. We discovered it a few years back, and have come to adore the family. We really look forward to visiting, especially that very first visit of the trip... I like to stock up on yogurts every week or so, and they have the best fresh, semi-soft and aged pecorino cheeses ever...aoh, and sheep's milk ricotta...so good.

A typical score from Fontemanna!

  We love to pair their young pecorino with fave beans. The classic springtime combo-

Simply sublime.

  I've said it often, and I'll say it again...We are not getting the 'good stuff' here in the States. They keep it in Italy, and I don't blame them.

  The parmesan cheese we buy locally is so nutty, fatty, salty, sweet...it's unreal. And...it's down right cheap, compared to what we would pay in California. 

  And this is just so good...

Mmmm-mmm-mmm.

  We sometimes go for something a bit more 'barnyard', like this goat cheese we bought from a farm near Pienza, in nearby Tuscany. Our pals Ruth & Tonino took us for a visit a couple of years ago, for a tour of the place. After lunch, we bought some cheeses and wine to bring back to the apartment.

Just perfect with fresh pears and honey.

  Besides bread, Johnny has never met a cheese plate he didn't want to dive face first into.
  They do a pretty good job of it at some of our favorite eateries. Generally, a nice combination of cheeses with local honey and marmalades.
  Yes, I think we will, thank you.

Sometimes a little fancy,
with a variety of choices...

...sometimes not fancy at all.
Three ages of pecorino. 

But always good.

Yep. Real good.

  I have a soft spot in my little old heart for pizza. What can I say? Mom never liked it when we growing up, so I figure I'm making up for lost time.
  In a big way,

  I admit, I don't like all pizza. I like thin crust, slightly charred, with the simplest of toppings.
  Either a classic margherita, with red sauce and really good buffalo mozzarella, or red sauce with peppers and onions.
  Basta.

  The simplest pizza ever, though, is what they call 'Pizza Bianco'...or white pizza.
  It's not focaccia. It's a thinner crust, maybe a little burnt on the edges, with good olive oil and course salt. We look for it in Rome, where it is a specialty. It's sold by weight, and wrapped in paper.

Oily, salty goodness.

  Below, three photos you have most likely seen here before (many times), as I often find myself dreaming of these pizzas.

This one...from Pizzaria da Remo in Rome...
The best Margherita, hands down.

...both of these, from a secret spot...
vegetarian for Johnny in front, pepper & onion for me.

Just another beautiful Margherita...why not?

  Yeah, pizza is great. Really great.
  I could go for some pizza right now.


   Salads are often a bit of an after thought, served either as 'contorni' (a side dish), or at the end of a meal sometimes. They can be super basic, with lettuce, cubed tomato, grated carrot, and even corn, of all things..served with vinegar and oil on the side.
  We have found a couple of local spots that go the extra mile to make an interesting salad as a main course. As vegetarians, this is huge. We aren't always in the mood for a heavy meal at lunchtime. When we do eat out, it's almost always lunch. Rarely dinner.
  I like to make salads at the apartment, too. My 'go to' salad is thin sliced fennel with blood orange and arugula. I'll add small cubes of pecorino, too, if we have it.


  Anyway, we have found some interesting main dish salads...

At a favorite spot in Citta delle Pieve,
Caffè degli Artisti.

Michele & Co.
Near Castiglione del Lago.

Another one from Caffè delle Artisti.
See? CORN. Odd, eh?
Tasty, though.

The salad we wait all year for...
From Bar Gallo, of course!

  Whether it's lunch or dinner, the menus will usually have a few courses to choose from. There are antipasti, primi, secondi and contorni...Starters, a pasta dish, meat, and vegetable side dishes. Meat, fish and chicken are often in different catagories, but not always.

  We used to think we had to order everything, and felt funny about not eating a meat course. Now, we know it's not a big deal to just get pasta and a vegetable side dish, if we want. Maybe in real formal places it's different, but we don't often do formal.

  

  I enjoy it when there are interesting antipasti, which is happening more and more, with new younger chefs at the helm.

 I'll look for anything thats vegetarian and unusual. 

A wild asparagus 'sformata' with almond crumble.
Sort of like a souffle.

Sometimes served as an entree, egg dishes can be special.
Here, an omelette is served with pecorino and truffles.

Little puffy spinach and onion things.
Puffy!

My favorite...onion tart with pecorino cream.
Sweet caramelized onions pair so well with
the sharpness of the pecorino.

  Contorni, the side vegetable dishes, are almost always either spinach, braised bitter greens, roasted potatoes or grilled vegetables.

  We'll get spinach every once in a while, but I especially love the grilled veg.

This is an unusual spinach dish. It's almost creamed and served with pine nuts.
Normally, the spinach is just sauteed and served with olive oil and lemon.

  

  Three restaurants, three different versions of grilled veggies. Pretty standard, all in all- But it's the little things that make the difference. More garlic, or different herbs. A good drizzle of fine olive oil..

  Most always the plate will include eggplant, zucchini and peppers. Onions or mushrooms are a treat.

  Then there's pasta.

  Sigh. What would we do without pasta? 

  As I've mentioned here before, there are regional specialties throughout Italy, and menus will reflect this. You may think it's déjà vu each time you open a menu. You will se the same dishes over and over, but until you taste, you won't realize how a sauce can make a difference. It's red, sure, but it's all in the details. Just how much garlic? Or what type of tomato? What herbs...and are they dried or fresh?

  There are all shapes and sizes of pasta, of course, and I'll try just about anything, as long as it's vegetarian. I love stuffed pastas, like ravioli-

Very typical, with ricotta and spinach in a tomato sauce.

Wild asparagus tops these beauties which are filled with a pecorino and ricotta blend

  In Umbria, there is a typical hand made pasta called umbricelli. It's thicker than spaghetti, rolled by hand. No egg, just durham wheat and water. A good tough pasta that stands up well to most sauces. I like it...with just about anything.

  I like a good cream sauce....

I remember this one so well.
The sauce was with pureed onion, from the region. Sweet and salty from the pecorino.

Creamy mushroom sauce.
This pasta would be tagliatelle.

Asparagus is always a good choice.
Tagliatelle.

And who doesn't want some shaved truffle?
Local favorite, Masolino's does it well.

  I'll try and order a pasta with a 'white' sauce and one with a red sauce, if possible. Then Mr. and I can share, so we both can compare.

Oh, my...I love it when you can see the olive oil floating on top.
This is like my grandma Bea used to make.
And you know that's hand made pasta. In a plastic bowl. A workman's lunch place.

A tad fancier, and also very tasty.
Lakeside view, too. La Capannina

  My last look at pasta, for this post, anyhow. We made a trip up to Bologna for a couple of nights, and had an amazing dinner one night. Though it was a few years ago, I still remember ordering this sweet red pepper pasta, served with fava beans. It was so pretty, and super yummy, too.

As always, I'll try to find something different to try.

  As for desserts, well, sometimes we do and sometimes we don't. Mostly we don't. But Johnny is a sucker for biscotti with vin santo, a sweet dessert wine.
  Me? I'm usually happy to have a small chunk of good chocolate back at the apartment. The one splurge every year, though...Cannoli from Simone and Lorena's Osteria il Gallo nel Pozzo, in Panicale.
  Lorena is a first rate baker, and her desserts are so good.

A perfect end to any meal...right?

  So, now that I've finally finished this post (it took me at least three days, I kept getting hungry.) I can relax knowing that soon we will be enjoying many of these tasty dishes, as we sip something wonderful and cozy up to a fire.
  But first..there is so much work to do!