Niches

 Back home now. Sigh. Upside? We live in a beautiful area, and we love it. Downside? We also love Panicale, and it's hard waiting to be back there again. I have lots of wonderful photos to cull through, lots to write about. It will certainly help ground me again. I look forward to sharing more posts  on food, gnomes, flora and fauna, art, day to day life, etc.. 

  There are so many sights and sounds that I find just too delicious to leave behind.....

  I fell in love with the little chapels and "niches" scattered along the roadsides and imbedded in the walls of all the hill towns around Panicale. They are everywhere. Sometimes just a tiny plaque, sometimes an entire freestanding small building. Most have candles in colored glass containers and flowers, either fresh or artificial.

  They are made out of all types of things... ceramic tile, terra cotta, wood, plastic, mosaic. Some are elaborate, some are the simplest expression of Mary and Child.

  

A real beauty.

A hard one to see, but the posture is so bittersweet.

  I like coming across them on the roadsides in the middle of nowhere. Maybe someone died on this spot? I don't know, but I like to stop and check them out.

This one had fresh orchids and a spotlight.

Close up of the one above.

This is so simple, and the color combo is gorgeous.

  We drive by lots of these every day while in Panicale. I've seen women sweeping and changing out the flowers. I must ask about them next year. Are they put there by the community? Are they just for the family? I don't know...yet.

We saw this one all the time. Below is a shot of the inside.

Often they have these battery operated fake candles.

  The odd ones are the biggest surprise. 

Alien Mary and Child?

Going all modern with the housing on this one. Pipes welded together.

Not really odd,  just lots of little guys flitting about. Sweet, really.

  We came across the one below on a really long walk that ended in a torrential rainstorm. Lightning, thunder and everything. I'm thinking that the only reason we made it home alive (but absolutely soaking wet), was because we straightened out the flower pot here before the storm hit. A very frightful event for both of us.

Johnny getting ready to put the flower pot right. Looks sunny, right?

Thank You, Mary... you got us home safe and sound.... a real beauty.

  There are cool brick structures many times. I like all the thoughtfulness that goes into these. They are built to last, I assume. Also, they age in a lovely way, getting more beautiful as the years go by.

I remember hopping a big ditch to get this shot. So pretty in the field.

Way up, just outside of Panicale.

  The tile pieces are most always so vibrant and painterly. I really enjoy them.

The iron work is nice on this one.

This one, close up below, we came across on another walk....

Artificial flowers don't take anything away from this loveliness.

We both loved the gold leaf here.

  On one of our last days in Panicale, we took a drive over to an area we really like. To our amazement,   we found this road we'd never driven down. What a treat. And here was yet another sweet niche, just letting us know that there are so many surprises yet to come for us on the next visit.

Such a simple line here.

What a sweet surprise.

Fontemanna, Farm Fresh In Umbria

  Last year while here in Panicale, Johnny and I were thrilled to stumble across Caseificio Fontemanna, a small family farm just over the next ridge. They sell small batches of the most amazing yogurt, cheese and ricotta we had ever tasted. Bar none. Honestly, this is one of those places I have been dreaming about coming back to all year. 

  Now as we are nearing the end of this trip, I am happy to report that we visited them several times, and have been treated so kindly by the whole family on each visit, we will again look forward to next year and more of the fine products they have to offer.

  We love having one of the yummy glass jarred yogurts for breakfast some mornings... We both love the one with cereal in it...wheat germ, seasoned with just enough sweetness from caramelized sugar and cinnamon, we think. It's delightful. The strawberry and "frutti di bosco", or forest fruits, are both really good, too. I think this is huckleberry....

BEST. YOGURT. EVER.

  The farm itself is located not too far from Tavernalle, in Colle San Paolo. We found it on one of our "strada bianca" adventures last year. There is a sandwich board on the road advertising the place. Once down the road, there is a small area to park, and the little store seems to always be open. At first you may think it isn't, but someone always comes along ready to help. The location is a beauty, too.

Johnny outside the little store on the property.

Beautiful views across the valley.

I believe this is the main family home, with the sheep and milking areas beyond. 

The sign in the window.

   Today, we went out to visit for the last time (this year.. we will be back!) I wanted one last look for pictures, and a few more yogurts to last us until the end. This time, I was able to get a few photos of the amazingly clean and tidy back room, where much of the magic happens.

A small operation, but a most mighty one. Ricotta happens here.

I've always loved milk cans....my Grandpa Pedrotti was a dairy man back in the day. 

The calling card with all info.

  I really appreciate that these good people are true to their aim of making an honest product, in small batches for super freshness. The cheeses and yogurts are made from raw sheep's milk, and I just don't think we can get this at home. We have been told that it is even a rare treat here, too. They only have a few cheeses, either an aged, semi-aged or fresh pecorino. All are fantastic. 

  The ricotta is almost always sold out to restaurants in the area, and we felt lucky to be offered some on one visit. It was incredible, with that slight barnyard flavor you only get from really fresh sheep's milk cheeses. They recommend it with local honey, but we went savory when we brought it home.

What better than local ricotta with local bread, olive oil and tomatoes from the south lands of Italy?

The products list.

 

Johnny chatting with one of the younger generation here. Art, politics, food and weather.

  We have tried all the different cheeses, but today were gifted some pecorino fresca, a younger, softer cheese. We have loads of fava beans ready to harvest in our garden here, so it was a perfect match. This is a Spring ritual here, eating the young fava beans raw with fresh pecorino. I understand it now.

Three stages of pecorino, fresh, semi-aged and aged.

Back home, amazing with the just picked fava beans. Oh, joy.

  We were invited to dinner last Friday and brought some munchies to have with wine before the main meal. I had some ricotta left, and mixed it with some fresh herbs from the garden...thyme and marjoram, salt and pepper. Great spread on crostini and topped with roasted tomatoes. Pretty, too.

Sadly, I forgot to take a final shot of this...it was so pretty! You get the idea...

Looks like something good to me. A proudly displayed certificate of goodness.

  These are the little joys of being here. Finding, by chance, a sweet place like this up a little road in the country. You just have to take the time to check it out, be brave about your lack of language skills, and go for it. You just don't know what you might miss, otherwise. This is a place we will come back to again and again, and look forward to doing so. 

  Grazie per tutti, Fontemanna! Ci vediamo prossimo anno!

  www.fontemanna.it

Strada Bianca (White Road)

  When we look at our trusty road map before a day trip, we always look for a good "strada bianca". The "white road" is almost always an adventure, one way or another.
  This can mean anything from finding the BEST YOGURT EVER, to a close encounter with near death. We are always game for whatever is in store when we venture onto one of these delights of the Italian driving experience.
  I have to thank my dear father for introducing us to the white road. My father loves to take a drive. Here, or in Italy (he is famous for getting a speeding ticket in Italy). The man enjoys being behind the wheel. He always has. As a kid, I have fond memories of driving "the long way" home from just about anywhere. The long way home from the store, winding along roads I didn't know existed in our very small town. Or once, the long way home from our family cabin.. which took us several hours through small towns along the Delta, showing me a whole new world. Just for the fun of it. To see something new. We don't get that many chances in our day to day life.
  When Johnny and I had the great good fortune of spending time in Italy with my folks in 2004, we gave up our car and let Dad drive. That is when he taught us about the wonders of the Strada Bianca. They are all over and well defined on good road maps. We like the Michelin maps. If you can't find the one you want here in the states, look for them in book stores in Italy. We went on some good adventures with Mom and Dad on that trip, and learned not to be afraid to go a little off road.
  The roads themselves are usually dirt with a cover of loose white gravel. It's driver beware, for sure.... they can turn to mud quickly. As long as you take care and have watched for weather, it's ok, most of the time. We once found ourselves way, way up a white road that kept getting steeper and narrower by the minute. At last I admitted I was getting a bit freaked out. Johnny let out a shaky sigh of relief. He had been freaked out, too. We thought the car would start sliding backwards at any moment, but were able to do a 10 point turn-around to head back down. Which was even scarier! Yikes...
  In Umbria we found some really great white roads. Nothing too frightful, and some with amazing vistas. Maybe we have learnt to be careful where and when to choose our white road adventures. Here are just a few...

  

Shot through the windshield.. near Porto, I believe.

 

This was cool, because we were up really high, and the
views were incredible. The building was abandoned, and fun to poke around.

If you EVER see a sign like this, consider it a gift, and take advantage of the opportunity.

Awesome farm fresh cheese, fresh and aged. This little gem of a place was a joy to visit.
We were there off season, and did not think it would be open. We were happy to be wrong.

The yogurt was amazingly good. We love European style yogurt, and this was the best.
They had it with  home made fruit compote, and also one with cereal. Sounds odd, but no.
 Really rich and creamy..every bite was like heaven. I wish I had some right now.

A real beauty, this one. It was near the end of the day and the light was perfect.
What I love, is the lack of "No Trespassing" signs in Italy. Always be respectful.