So It Begins...Again

 Jet-Lagged and happy, we are in Rome at the moment, but heading to Umbria in the morning. This is night two in Rome. We normally stay one night before heading to our Beloved Nut, but this time we decided to splurge time and spend an extra night in this city we love.

Our flight here was pretty darn perfect, despite being delayed an hour. It all turned out perfectly, and the weather here in Italy is about ten degrees warmer than in California, so....yay!

A lovely view on our way from Frankfurt to Rome yesterday...

As is our long running tradition, our first night in Italy was spent dining at our favorite Pizzeria Remo...

Happy Johnny!

Happy Janelle!

We sat next to these three young Italian men who were delightful. They enjoyed our silliness, and we enjoyed their youth. It was a great match. One of them was familiar with "Carmel-By-The- Sea", so we  hit it off right away. They talked us into ordering a dish we have never had....

No, these are not pancakes. These are pan fried pieces of scamorza, a mild cheese
that you can grill or fry until crispy. And yes, they were incredibly tasty!

The scamorza was so good, but very rich. Not sure I would order it again, but so glad we tried it at least once!

We moved on to the main event, which is always pizza...and always great.

Johnny had a mushroom pizza and I went for the traditional Margharita.
The best, as always.

Yep. We did that. We always do.

Another unusual move...dessert. We hardly ever order dessert, but we must have been feeling a bit wild, so we had a crostata with blueberries.

A perfect end to a very long day of travel.

We slept well and long, waking up only once at about three in the morning...but fell back to sleep, thank god. 

After showers and coffee, we set off today for a long day wandering about Rome. 

We started by stopping into the local mercato, or market place. This is a spot that has a whole bunch of stalls...everything from used clothing to fruit, veg, meat, cheese and prepared food to eat there or take home...

Wonderful looking hand made pasta...

Colorful veggies...

In season artichokes...and so much more!

Afterwards, we walked and walked, stopping here and there to enjoy this city we adore.

Some moments from today...

I like the "halo" effect on Johnny...

A much needed break!

Inside a church we'd never been into before. It was amazing!

You know you are in Rome when...

Yes, in the foreground you see a roof-top terrace I could only dream about!

 

Later this evening we had dinner at Da Enzo in Trastevere.

This is a place I've read about for years, but we've never been. I knew it would be crowded and very full of Americans, and it was both... But the food was really great, and it may be the best pasta cacio e pepe we've ever had.

The fried artichokes were fine, but we have had better...

The cacio e pepe, a pasta made with nothing but pecorino cheese, spaghetti and black pepper

 was the best yet, and there was almost too much of it.

Plenty of freshly cracked black pepper made this dish.

We also enjoyed some very spicy and garlicy grilled veggies.
They were really wonderful, too.

Now I'm in bed writing this and getting sleepy.

Tomorrow we'll take the train up to Umbria...and so it begins!

Stay tuned, and be sure to check my other blog, which is all about Johnny painting over here in Italy.

Thanks for staying with us!

Biding Our Time

  Well, it's getting to be that time. 

  Time to head over the pond to our our little piece of heaven in Umbria. 

  There is way too much to do in the meantime, as always, and I should buckle down and get to it...but I'd really rather look at photos and dream a bit.

  Is that so wrong?

  No, no, it isn't.

  That being in mind, I'm looking at our visits from last year. Spring and Autumn. Both were a blast.

  Upon arrival in late February, we were greeted with a blanket of snow...

Our 'first morning' view from the terrace.
Um, Brrrrrrrr!

  Fortunately, the snow only lasted a couple of days, and eventually the area warmed up and got green and pretty...

Now, this is what I dream about!
Lunch with a view.

 Unfortunately, the winter took it's toll on our marble table, and it broke! We had to borrow another table from our dear landlord, Carlo, for the rest of the year.

This temporary table worked just fine.
Thanks, Carlo!

Lunch at The Nut is always a dream come true for me.

  We are having a new marble piece cut to fit the old iron base, though, and I can't wait to see the new terrace table when we finally have it in place.

  Another new addition will be a much more efficient wood burning stove. I'll miss the fireplace, which has been knocked down and removed, but we really need a warm Nut to come home to, and the new stove is going to be great.

  We loved the romance of the old fireplace, and it was a blast to cook in, but if we weren't right in front of it, we were really cold. We'll be super cozy during those brisk days now.

  We ordered wood in October, so we'll be all ready when we arrive:

Johnny will still have his work cut out for him!
Good thing he likes to chop wood.

We have lots of good, green Umbrian oil waiting for us, too. We helped with the harvest, and the trade off for our hours of work was oil, oil and oil. Oh, boy, I can't wait!

Green Gold.

Watching the olives from the trees at The Nut being turned into oil.
That was a treat to see!

  

There are many things I'm looking forward to, but one of my very favorites is to spend time watching sunsets at Lago Trasimeno. With a glass of good Umbrian wine, of course.

  This never gets old, man...

Isola Polvese, one of three islands on the lake.

  I'm always up for a day trip, and if we go by train, even better!
  I love looking at the train schedule. It gives me wanderlust.

Let's go, Baby!

The train is perfect for catching up on reading.
Or sleeping, like the dudes over my shoulder...

  We love being able to relax with a little treat to sip and a little something to munch...

Mid-day Proseco enjoyed in a pal's garden...

Wine with a view in Spello...

...or with a view in Montepulciano.

  

  If you have spent any time at all on this blog, you know I love to eat.

  I'm holding back calories now so I can enjoy double doses in Italy. I enjoy eating out as much as cooking and eating in. It's all good, and to have the time to do either is pure luxury. When we are here, in California, I'm working full time, and on my days off, we do chores, etc. We do enjoy ourselves when we can, don't get me wrong, but it's usually work, home, sleep...repeat.

  I love being able to enjoy a leisurely lunch out, especially in Umbria...

  

Cheesy good pasta and grilled eggplant, why yes, please!

My favorite pizza in the world.

Spring veggie risotto for Johnny, simply wonderful
stuffed pasta with tomato sauce for me. Mmmmm.

  The thing I don't usually share?

  What my reality looks like after one of these meals:

Just find me a sunny, warm spot, and I'm good.

Real good.

  I don't know if I'll get another post done before we leave, but I'd like to.

  If not, just know that there will be many more once we get there, and this year we'll be stopping in Paris for a week, so that will be big fun to blog about.

  While we wait, I'll just think about stepping onto the terrace at The Nut at the crack of dawn to enjoy the sunrise....

Ahhhh...I can already hear the birds singing.

Dreaming Of Meals To Come...Soon!

  In just a few days, we'll be packing our bags and heading to Umbria. As usual, Mr. J and I have been  doing our pre-Italy dieting, getting ourselves ready to chow down with gusto after we arrive.

  I'm looking forward to the simple fare I'll fix at home...

Tomatoes with beans and pecorino.
Wonderful in front of the fire.

Typical lunch on the terrace.

Yolanda's market has the best little tomatoes!

Grilled veg for a potluck with our landlord, Carlo.

We eat lots, lots, lots of tomatoes with pecorino.
Here, paired with onion and sage 'pizza' from the town bakery.

Another tasty salad on the terrace.

I'm not kidding...it never gets old!

I can whip out a pretty damn good risotto, too.

Charred shishito peppers were great with parmesan in the summer.
And a surprise to find at the Chiusi weekly market!

  As nice as it is to fix meals at home, we always look for somewhere new to try at lunch time. In July, we heard about this place that we didn't get to until November. It's another of the 'working man' lunch spots that are often only open on weekdays, and are outstanding.
  Again, except for the staff, I was the only woman in the place. That's how these rough and ready places are. See lots of cars and working vehicles parked outside? That's a good sign.
  Fine with me...I can't wait to go back.

  I knew we were in for a treat when I took a peek at a side dining room, and saw tables covered in fresh pasta set out to dry a bit before cutting.

No kidding.

It was beautiful sight to behold, my friends.

Wine and water, of course...

  

The fellow who told us about this place said we had to try the 'pici alla briciole', a speciality of the house. Hand made pasta with breadcrumbs...wow. Not for the light eater, I'll tell you that. 

  But, damn...it was good.

Yes, those breadcrumbs were toasted in lots...LOTS..of olive oil and garlic.
Fantastic.

Really good grilled veg.

Perfectly fine ceci beans, but not for this meal.
We couldn't finish them. They would be great with grilled meat.

  Don't even try to ask me where this place is. It goes in our little black book of places we want to keep hidden away. 

  There are lots of tasty treats I'm dying to get back to....

Piadini at Bar Gallo....

Suppli at Supplizio in Rome....

Fried porcini at Dardano in Cortona....

Tagliatelle with truffles...here at Da Suaro on Isola Maggiore...

More truffles with ravioli... somewhere?
I can't remember, honest.

Pappa al pomodoro...a summer treat at Masolino's.
Tomato and bread soup. Yummy.

My favorite salad of buffalo mozzarella and zucchini.
Bar Gallo.

  Lastly, because you just can't get it like this anywhere else...
  Pizza at Remo, in Rome. We will actually stay over night, at any cost, to delight in this 4.50 euro pizza.

Yep, it's that good.

  Counting the days/hours.....