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Tortelli Caramelle for Columbus Day

Posted October 9, 2011 By Adri

Christopher Columbus del Piombo 1519

The second Monday in October? Hint – the children’s ditty:

“In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue… “

Bravo! You got it. It’s Columbus Day. On this day Cristoforo Colombo or as we know him Christopher Columbus, intrepid explorer and navigator, arrived in the New World, and the Whole World changed forever. There were other momentous goings on that year – the demise of Lorenzo the Magnificent (Lorenzo de Medici, 1449-1492) for one, but today the subject is the gentleman from Genoa, not the nobleman from Florence. The historic arrival date is October 12, 1492, and Columbus Day is a very big deal in the Italian-American community. They stage living tableaux, parties and parades. Schools are closed. Italian flags are flown with pride as Italian-Americans joyously claim their heritage. Read more… »

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L’Americana – a Cocktail for Amanda Knox

Posted October 3, 2011 By Adri

Amanda Knox L'Americana Cocktail
Oh, how I waited on this one.  Don’t confuse this with the classic cocktail, The Americano.  No, I did not misspell anything.  For four years I have followed the saga of Amanda Knox, the young American student jailed in Perugia, Italy for the November 2007 murder of her roommate, Meredith Kercher.  I followed Amanda through her original trial, her incarceration and appeal, and finally through this last most excruciating weekend.  I emailed with friends halfway across the globe.  We agonized for Amanda, her co-defendant Rafaelle Sollecito and especially for the Kercher family.  Lady Justice, as they say, grinds slowly, but she grinds finely, and she freed Amanda Knox.  Even now, Amanda is most likely on her way back home.  Amanda’s home now. Read more… »

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La Rosalia – A Happy Marriage of Watermelon, Aperol and Basil

Posted August 29, 2011 By Adri

Aperol Drink

Call it a cooler.  Call it refreshing.  And call our weather hot, hot, hot.  For the last few days I have been looking for cool, but not too sweet drinks, and I came up with this one.  In our house watermelon defines summertime, and since it’s still watermelon season, I thought I would use it in a beverage. Read more… »

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Stracenate, Stracnar and a Cavarola Board

Posted July 18, 2011 By Adri


“…This is another of those great old pastas that must be made manually and is disappearing, but let us revive it…”
– Giuliano Bugialli, in Bugialli on Pasta


Cavarola18


Everything old is new again. No jive. Question: What’s a cavarola? Answer: a small rectangular wooden board with a herringbone surface used to make some of the traditional pastas of Italy’s Mezzogiorno. These household boards are relatively small, usually about 12 inches long and 8 inches wide. They can be made from any wood – fruit woods and beech being very commonly used. The herringbone pattern is carved into one side of the board, and is transferred to the pasta with a rolling pin. The resulting pasta is unique, lovely to look at and the irregular surface holds condimenti better than any smooth pasta ever could. Read more… »

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Il Festino di Santa Rosalia and The Black Plague

Posted July 15, 2011 By Adri
Santa Rosalia

Courtesy: Raymond Giamona, giamona.com

Yersinia pestis. The Plague, the Black Death, the Work of the Devil and God’s Retribution, the people of Palermo called it all that and more in 1624 when they were struck by a microbe whose name man did not yet know. As they prayed, built fires and collected the dead, they waited for the only help they knew, Salvation from Above. Salvation came in the form of a citizen’s fever dream, and Santa Rosalia was her name. Though dead for 400 years, “la Santuzza” appeared to one Sig. Bonello and directed him to retrieve her bones and carry them in a Grand Procession to all corners of the city. This he did, and the Plague abated. The Palermitani were saved, and a patron saint was born to Palermo. Read more… »

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Happy Birthday! Buon Compleanno Pizza Margherita!

Posted June 10, 2011 By Adri

Created 122 years ago – June 11,1889 – Napoli, Italia

Get your pizza on. Pizza Margherita to be specific. It’s what’s for dinner.

Queen Margharitha di SavoiaYes, 122 years ago – June 11, 1889 Queen Margherita of Savoy’s coach rolled into Napoli, and in her honor pizzaiolo Raffaele Esposito of Pizzeria di Pietro e Basta Cosi (translation: “Peter’s Pizzeria and That is Enough”, now called Pizzeria Brandi) baked three pies for her. Read more… »

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