Dinner: Il Gallo Nel Pozzo...Again!

We don't eat out for a formal dinner as much as we did when we were first coming to Italy. Sure, we'll go for pizza or a quick lunch...but we enjoy cooking at home these days.

That being said, we really wanted to revisit a favorite spot in the village...Il Pozzo Nel Gallo. We've eaten here many times, but not recently, so we made it a priority to dine here as soon as possible on this trip. 

We really adore Simone and Lorena, the owners, and it's always a treat to be in their care. Simone is a perfect "front of the house" fellow, and Lorena does her own magic in the kitchen. We were not disappointed...They know we are vegetarians, and they take time to point out dished suited to us. In fact, they are willing to make changes to help us navigate the wonderful menu.

The first course on this evening was an interesting one...an artichoke that had been cooked fully and stuffed with a perfectly poached egg, served with a cream of Jerusalem artichoke and also super crispy chips of Jerusalem artichoke...This was a flavorful delight, and the mixed textures were just wonderful...The poached egg was done just right and the artichoke itself was cooked to a perfect point. It all came together beautifully...The choke was the edible 'bowl' for the egg! Fun and tasty!

The presentation was amazing!

Simone let us know that the gnocchetti dish of the evening was normally served with duck, but they were fine serving it without. Johnny was all in, as the gnocchetti were served in a 'cacio e pepe' sauce. Basically, a  cheese and black pepper sauce. Creamy and spicy, with little clouds of potato dumplings... I mean, come ON! It was a very good dish.

We kind of fought over bites...

My dish was a typical "umbrichelli", a regional hand rolled pasta made from just flour and water. The menu just said it would be served with a variation of tomato sauce. On this evening, the sauce was sweet and deep with flavor from oven roasted cherry tomatoes and what I would find out was "tomato dust". Dried and pulverized tomato wonderfulness! Honestly, it was one of the best pasta dishes I've ever eaten.

I have never come so close to licking a plate in public. That dust was everything. And the pasta was perfectly al dente.

I'm thinking my date was pretty happy!
A bit jet lagged still, but happy!

We asked about "contorni" or  vegetable side dishes, and Simone told us they had a mixed veg dish we might enjoy, so we each ordered one as our last course. I am so glad we did. 

This dish was a total surprise. We expected the usual grilled mixed veg, or something like that. What we had was so different and so good...

Four elements... Marinated purple cabbage, sauteed chickory, broccoli and porcini mushrooms.

Where do I start? The broccoli (far left)  was cooked to creaminess and melted in our mouths. I believe the chickory (far right) was pan braised, maybe with some garlic and lemon...typical and very good. The purple cabbage was marinated, I'm thinking. It was great...just perfectly crunchy and fresh. 

But those porcini...in the middle...I'm destined to recreate this for Johnny and myself. I must. Thinly sliced...maybe marinated in olive oil with a bit of salt and a bit of garlic...or not? They were almost like jerky...mushroom jerky. Not so chewy, but a texture I loved at first bite. For vegetarians, texture can be everything, and these mushrooms were everything.

I'm not sure if it's just that the products here are so fresh and good, or the kitchen is just so inventive, or it's the Italian vibe...Whatever. This was a perfect meal on a perfect evening.

We had to pop our heads into the kitchen to thank Lorena, and met the two new chefs, Karina and Matteo. It's always a joy to give thanks to those who have prepared your meal. Thanks, Again! You all rocked our world last night!

We also were happy to see a painting again that Johnny had given Simone's parents some time ago, now here in the restaurant. Johnny has always loved this piece, and we actually sat right under it! So fun to see this painting of the village in such a nice spot!

 

Thanks again to the folks here at Il Gallo Nel Pozzo.

If you find yourself in Panicale, Umbria, make a reservation! You won't regret it.

We look forward to another visit soon!

Getting Back Into The Food!

Those of you who have followed my blog for years know that Johnny & I are vegetarians (not vegans), and that I do love to cook, as well as eat at the many wonderful places available here in our area.

It's taken a little while to get into the groove, but I'm getting back to my little kitchen, with all it's quirks and size restrictions! I'm actually pretty proud of what I can produce in a small space, and I feel like a real Italian doing so. We've witnessed the sizes of many home kitchens here, and they are often like closets, tucked away in a corner!

Anyway...

While we were house sitting a couple of weeks ago, we were taking advantage of collecting fresh tomatoes from the garden there. I love roasting tomatoes with garlic, thyme and a good glug of Umbrian olive oil.

I brought some tomatoes home and did just that...Oh...salt, too!

After roasting the tomatoes, I cut them up into smaller pieces and warmed them in a pan to make a chunky sauce for some farfalle pasta...

 

I'm a big fan of ricotta salata, which is a dried, salted ricotta cheese that is wonderful and grates well. It's a nice change from parmesan. It's also snow white, so it's pretty.

We enjoyed this as dinner with a view from our terrace at The Nut. Like always, as long as the weather permits, we'll dine on the terrace! Small, but mighty!

Another day, for lunch, I did fresh ricotta and cherry tomatoes on grilled bread.

We are so lucky to have good sources for ricotta cheese here. It is nothing like what we get back home. Not even close. 

Often, I'll go for a sheep's milk ricotta, which has a bit of the barnyard taste. Really good with honey or fig jam (our housemate makes the best!), but I like ricotta used in savory ways most.

Fresh from the weekly farmer's market

Also a market score this week.

So, we toast our bread old school style, on this contraption that goes right on the gas burner. It gives the bread a nice char, and is way more fun than a toaster!

The bread is locally made and full of seeds and wholesome goodness. Thanks, Lia....

A simple toss of tomatoes, basil olive oil and salt...then I rub the warm bread with some fresh garlic...

Yum. 

Grilled toast with ricotta and tomatoes.

That's a lunch that will keep you going all day...after a nap, that is.

And speaking of the weekly market, what usually happens is that I buy way too much, and get myself into all sorts of trouble!

But...who can resist??

What am I going to do with all this?

Well, I've already used a bunch of tomatoes and the ricotta, grilled up the eggplant and zucchini, and am looking at roasting the potatoes with onions and bell peppers. The winter squash? Can't decide whether to roast it or braise it in a pan...

The giant garlic is called aglione, and it's used in pasta sauce with tomato puree. I also like to roast it. It gets soft and sweet.

I'm going to shuck the borlotti beans today and cook them up to make a bean 'stew' sometime soon.

Yeah, I'm getting pretty excited about being back. Finally.

It took some time to get over the stress of the past year, especially the past 4 months, but I think I'm getting my act together.

Thanks for sticking around.

Sunday Morning In The Kitchen

  Nothing like a grey and wet day to inspire me to stay put in the kitchen.

  Plus, it's Sunday, so that makes it even better. 

  Why? Because.

  Remember all those veggies I bought this week at various roadside stands?

  Well, some were gifts from our landlord, too...all the yellow peppers. 

  I cut those up in pieces, along with the veg stand potatoes, then tossed them with good olive oil, salt and pepper. 

  Also, I had a bunch of wild fennel seeds that I picked on our walk yesterday. I thought these would be perfect in this dish...

Out of focus, but those are the fennel seeds...

All ready to pop into the oven.

   I was so happy to find some local Japanese eggplant at the stand, too. I sliced these up, soaked them in heavily salted water for a good hour, then rinsed them and patted them dry with a clean kitchen towel. I brushed a little olive oil on them, and set them on my hot grill pan...

Slow and steady is the way to go.

All they need is a sprinkle of flaky salt.

  Since I had the grill pan out and hot, I decided we needed a slice of toast with lunch, and why not grill some figs? These were beauties from our pals, Jody & Bob.

 
I had held back a couple of the smaller peppers to roast, cut lengthwise in half.
  We had some like this at a cicchetti bar in Venice. OMG, So good! I smeared some soft cheese in them, and topped with bits of sun dried tomatoes...this was also the preparation in Venice. I used stracchino cheese, a mild soft cheese found all over here, in Umbria.

 All the components done, we enjoyed our crazy Sunday lunch!

Perfect lunch for two...I forgot to mention the whole roasted garlic heads.
I did these a couple of days ago when I roasted tomatoes.
Perfect to spread on the warm grilled bread.

Just add a glass of local white...

Best garlic bread ever.
Sweet and roasty.

  While all that went on, I was still roasting the peppers and potatoes with fennel seeds. The house smelled so good! These are for another time, in the next day or two. Maybe with a nice salad...

  I love a rainy Sunday morning. So does my tummy. And Johnny's, too.

Back Home At The Nut

  I can't keep up with all the posts I want to do! How can I be so busy here? It's not like back in California, where I work a solid five days a week, with tons of chores on my days off...

  I have very few real commitments here, other than a daily (and non-negotiable) sweeping of the house...there are morning walks, trips to the market, a little puttering in the garden. But where on earth do the hours go?

  Could it be all that time sitting sipping a glass or two of wine here and there? Hmmm...maybe...

  Anyway, it's clouds and rain this Sunday morning, so I'm staying in bed later than usual to write this post. Luxury!

  We got back from Venice Tuesday evening, and our landlord gave us this impressive bowl of delights, so we popped up to the local market for some black olives and feta to make a Greek style salad. 

  It wasn't bad...but I forgot the important cucumber component! Damn!

Those peppers will be roasted today.

  We've had a mellow week of morning and evening walks, lots of home meals, and some time with pals. The weather has been stellar, until the much needed rain we are getting now. Big lightning and thunder last night, too!

Morning walk earlier this week.

A couple of our next door neighbors...

I love the grasses around here.
Spotted this on a walk.

Beautiful in the morning light.

Traffic on our walk up the hill to The Nut.
This would be our landlord. 

  

  I've always loved clematis, a climbing vine, and I really enjoy seeing the massive wild ones here along side the road. I never see them bloom, though I know these are a variety which have clusters of small white flowers. I'm just entranced by the seed heads in the fall!

Wowza!

  We've been taking long walks alongside the canals down in the nearby fields. The views are lovely, and it's easier on our aging knees, etc.

  The landscape changes everyday, as fields get turned over and new crops are planted. 

There are still some little batches of sunflowers here and there,
Though most of the big ones are done.

 

 This time of year, there are a few roadside stands selling fruit and veg straight from the fields. They are all different, some have lots of this, and others have loads of that...we try to stop at them all.
  These stands aren't open when we are here in the springtime, so this is a treat we look forward to.

The potatoes are especially sweet and tasty.
Those peppers...gonna getcha today!

  With all the tomatoes we've been gifted and have bought, lunches are very tomato forward!

Caprese style salad with grilled bread.

I added some beans and topped with seeds.
I like the textures.

 I roasted up all the marzano tomatoes Carlo had given us. We've made a couple of meals out of them this week.

Slow roast with olive oil, salt and fresh thyme.
You will know when they are done.

Wonderful on grilled bread, smothered in olive oil and parmesan...

  Friday, we walked to the neighboring village to buy some bread from the 'forno' that we like there, and were delighted to see this charming 'installation' of colorful umbrellas.

  I'd seen some photos of this on social media posted by local pals, but assumed it would be gone by now.

  Really so much better in person!

What joy!

One of the half loaves of bread we bought on Friday.
Uh...yum.

  There were some roasted tomatoes left, so of course they became lunch with the above bread. I grilled it, rubbed it well with a clove of garlic, drizzled olive oil, a pinch of flakey salt....

Always best with an arugula salad on the side.
I always like to dress mine with lemon juice, a touch of oil,
salt and lots of parmesan.

I love our lunches here...

Some odds and ends have become our table decor.
Those are tiny solar lights that we brought over in the spring.
They are perfect for the terrace.

  What's next? Well, Johnny has started painting in his studio here, so I'll have more time to myself to cook, write, read, garden and do more language study!
  (And I'll sneak in some Netflix, too, ok?) (...and a glass of wine, ok?)