For the secondi (entree course), Sara had decided to challenge her guests with a Degustazione di Frattaglie. Degustazione means “tasting” or “sampler”. Frattaglie are… innards. (I believe in English they are sometimes called euphemistically “sweetbreads”.) This used to be considered peasant food: the parts of the animal left over after the nobles had taken the… Continue reading San Lorenzo Dinner at the Symposium Quattro Stagioni – Secondi
Category: Italian food
San Lorenzo Dinner at the Symposium Quattro Stagioni – Primi
The starter was panzanella di pomodoro con scampi di Fano – tomato and bread with local scampi on a bed of arugula. As chef Lucio explained, this is a recipe inspired by the “fishermen of the hills” – those who, while owning a fishing boat down on the coast, live up in the hills, where… Continue reading San Lorenzo Dinner at the Symposium Quattro Stagioni – Primi
San Lorenzo Dinner at the Symposium Quattro Stagioni: Aperitivi
Much of the action at Symposium takes place behind the large, curved bar in the dining room, where patrons are welcome to lean over, watch, and ask questions. From the time we arrived, Danilo was busy preparing five different nibbles for the aperitivi di benvenuto. The spoonfuls shown above, designed to be reminiscent of “an… Continue reading San Lorenzo Dinner at the Symposium Quattro Stagioni: Aperitivi
Italian Restaurant: La Quercia di Rosa
On our way down to Abruzzo for my mother-in-law’s 80th birthday, we stopped for lunch near Modena, the home of balsamic vinegar. Quite by accident (although this kind of accident is not unusual in Italy), we found an excellent restaurant, La Quercia di Rosa (the Rose Oak – ?). They make their own balsamic vinegar,… Continue reading Italian Restaurant: La Quercia di Rosa
Italian Garden 2007: July
Unintended Consequences Here’s what happens when I leave my garden unattended: I get beautiful wild grains like the above – otherwise known as weeds. A weed I had been assiduously removing (but, obviously, missed one) turns out to have charming puffy purple blossoms. The insalata riccia (curly lettuce) bolted into meter-high stalks with delicate blossoms.… Continue reading Italian Garden 2007: July