Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!
It's that time of year again, to give thanks for the people and the things in our lives.  I am so thankful for my Mother because she has supported me in all my endeavors even though it means that I'm not with her again this Thanksgiving.  I'm thankful for my baby bro and his adventurous spirit. I hope he's having a good hot meal today and making friends somewhere in South America. I am thankful for the siblings who found me one year ago. It's so amazing to have older siblings in my life all of a sudden, and nieces and nephews!  It's crazy! And I'm thankful for my Uncle, Aunt and cousins. We don't talk much but I'm glad to have them in my life.
I am grateful for my friends stateside, especially my Jersey girls because they're always there for me even though they know I'm a little crazy. I'm so happy that you guys are there for me even though I'm not physically present in the Jersey and I hope you know that if you need me for anything, I'm an email, a skype call or a phone call away. I miss you all immensely!!
I'm so thankful I have Endira here in Rome because I have someone to talk to and show me around the city and just because she's awesome in general. And I'm very thankful for this teaching position and my fellow teachers because they are fantastic and hilarious. We make quite the team. What would I do without the suggestions and reminders to bundle up? What would I do without the camraderie? Probably go nuttier than I already am. :D
This year, I'm finally back in Italy and I'm so happy to be here. I'm so thankful to have been offered this opportunity. Teaching is difficult. It's a challenge. It makes me tired. But it's so rewarding and fun even if I don't have a lot of free time.
Actually, my lack of free time also means that I won't be celebrating Thanksgiving with all the fixings tonight.  I'm working till 8:30 and won't have time to cook so I'm having a delayed celebration on Saturday night. I'm cooking with Endira as my sous chef for about 10 or 11 of our friends. We're introducing Thanksgiving to some Brits and to some Italians and it's going to be an amazing.   We're having a pretty traditional feast and I'm really looking forward to cooking a couple of dishes that I've never made before.
For the most part I'm cooking and Endira is going to help. But a couple of friends will be bringing side dishes too. I love that sharing and coming together is part of this fantastic holiday. Honestly, Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday all year long.

So this years menu is mostly traditional with a couple of twists mostly because I don't like following recipes and because I can't find everything I would like to prepare here... Italy does not celebrate Thanksgiving so it can be hard to find things like Turkey and cranberries.

Appetizers:
Butternut Squash Soup
Stuffed Mushrooms
Salad

Main Course: 
Roasted Turkey with Apple Cider Gravy and Roasted Potatoes 
String bean salad
Berry Relish (sadly I haven't found cranberries)
Garlic Mashed Potatoes (made by friends
2 kinds of Stuffing (made by friends)
Grandma's Artichokes

Dessert: 
Apple Pie with a cookie crust 
Pumpkin Pie
Tiramisu (made by a friend)

I'm so excited by all of this food and so thankful to have people to share it with. I'll keep you all updated about recipes and post some pictures after the actual meal too!!

I hope you're all having a wonderful holiday season filled with family, friends, food and laughter!!

 

 

Recipe: Rigatoni alle melenzane, Eggplant Rigatoni

I really wanted to make eggplant parmesan the other day. Eggplant, mozzarella, sauce and parmesan cheese all baked together to the perfect consistency. You really can't go wrong.
I had the fresh eggplant from the market, pamesan cheese and a tomato base but I was missing mozzarella, egg and bread crumbs to make the perfect "parmigiana".  I wanted to go to the store right after work, but sadly by the time I got back to my area, it was already after 8 and sadly the supermarkets in my area (and in a lot of residential areas in Italy) close at 8pm on the dot. So with no supermarkets open I decided to improvise. I decided to make a dish similar to the sicilian "rigatoni alle melanzane" or eggplant rigatoni. I tried it once, a long time ago in Sicily and I really enjoyed it so I decided to finally try my hand... without looking up a recipe. I decided to work from memory and intuition and everything worked out really well actually.

Now, doesn't that look good?

Ingredients:
1 long thin eggplant
1/2 lb pasta (or enough for whoever you're serving... there were 2 of us)
1 jar of tomato puree (I believe the jar is about 500 grams)
1/2 onion
salt and pepper
1 dried red pepper
oregano and rosemary to taste

Thinly slice your onions and put to the side. Thinly slice your eggplant into rounds. Sprinkle each with a little salt and let sit for a few minutes. The salt should bring some of the water out of the eggplant making it easier to cook.
Put some oil into a pan and heat over a low heat. Sweat the onions and then add your eggplant. The eggplant will absorb a lot of oil so you may have to add some more. Let the eggplant cook slowly until just tender. Add your tomato puree and mix well. Put about a half a cup of water into the jar and swish to get remaining sauce of the sides of the jar. Pour into the sauce pan. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then add in about a half a teaspoon of both oregano and rosemaryand 1 dried red pepper sliced into very thin slivers. If you like a lot of heat don't remove the seeds.  Let simmer for about a half an hour, until the sauce has reduced down a bit and the eggplant is cooked through.  I would recommend covering your pan to avoid some of the mess from splatter.
When you've put your sauce to the side to reduce, boil water and prepare your pasta according to the packaging.
When everything is ready you can serve the pasta with a heaping portion of sauce and some parmesan cheese. You can also serve it all mixed together depending on your preference.  It tasted delicous.

Makeshifting my lunch

Everyday I try to bring lunch with me, that way I save some money (it definitely costs more to get pizza or a premade sandwich) and eat a little healthier.
On some days I make myself salad and on others I try fun variations of sandwiches.

Last week I brought a colorful and tasty salad with me. It had cherry tomatoes, some pesto chicken, lettuce, raddichio and roasted red peppers in it. The flavors were a good blend with a lot of different textures. I also made a little balsamic, olive oil and oregano mixture to drizzle over it. I went very very light though since the peppers and chicken already had a lot of flavor.

This week was a week of sandwiches for some reason. I made a couple of different varieties though so it was a lot of fun.

Pancetta, turkey, cheese, and cherry jam

I came to work on Monday with no lunch so I took a quick spin to the grocery store and found a
long baguette for €0.59 so I knew sandwiches for the week were going to happen. I found pancetta which is similar to bacon, except sliced super finely so it can be eaten raw. I also found turkey and a sliced cheese (similar to American cheese except white and more creamy). I decided to put it all together with a bit of cherry jam. It added moisture and a great flavor contrast to the salty pancetta.

Delicious lunch #2

Tuesday's lunch was vaguely similar with another pancetta and turkey sandwich. Except I used
fresh tomatoes for moisture instead of cherry jam and served it with pasta in my homemade tomato sauce. I had leftover sauce that I wanted to use before it went to waste. It had started out with eggplants but I ate them all, so this was just a spicy sauce to go with my pasta and grated cheese. It was absolutely delicious.
I had another similar sandwich yesterday but I didn't take a picture of it because it looked very much the same, but I ate it with a helping of chick peas which were nice and light.

Mozzarella, prosiutto and honey

Today I went back to the store and had to refresh my supply of bread and cold cuts. I got ciabatta which is a wider bread that's not as long. I also got prosciutto crudo and mozzarella.  Then I added a little drizzle of honey for a nice touch of sweetness.
I know, I'm a little strange, but I really enjoy the combination of salty and sweet. It doesn't work for everyone, so I recommend experimenting a bit with flavors until you find the right combinations for you.

So far this week, I've had some really good sandwiches and we'll just have to see what I cook up for tomorrow!

Recipe: Pesto Chicken fingers with Cauliflower Salad and Potatoes

Last week at the supermarket I found breadcrumbs and chicken breast and therefore the most logical thing to make was chicken fingers. Except, I am not remotely capable of making anything simply so I decided to make pesto chicken fingers with a side of cauliflower and potatoes. I probably should have made a salad, but the potatoes were so tempting.

Finished deliciousness!

Ingredients:

1 whole Chicken breast

½ - 1 cup breadcrumbs (unseasoned)

3 tbs pesto (or to taste)

Salt and pepper

Red pepper flakes to taste

Oil

At the store I bought an entire deboned chicken breast and then sliced it into cutlets. It was more cost efficient and I got to decide how thick to cut the chicken. That being said, you can absolutely purchase sliced chicken.

Once the chicken is sliced, coat with a thick layer of pesto sauce (at some point, I promise I’ll make some from scratch). Spend some time massaging the pesto into the chicken so then it really absorbs the flavors.

In a separate plate, mix the breadcrumbs with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes and then dredge the chicken in the mixture. Make sure to coat each piece well.

Pour oil into a large flat pan and heat over a medium flame. When the oil is hot, start carefully placing your chicken into the pan. Cook on each side until golden brown.  They should be cooking for a minimum of 2 minutes on each side if the pieces aren’t too thick. When you remove the chicken from the oil, set aside on a paper towel so the excess oil is absorbed.

Serve warm with a drizzle of pesto on top.

 

Beautiful with a drizzle of pesto on top!

We also ate our chicken with a potato salad made simply with olive oil, salt, pepper and red pepper

I wish there had been more color in our sides!

flakes. Then I also had cauliflower for the first time in ages. We boiled it lightly after cutting it into uneven pieces and then tossed it with olive oil, red garlic chunks (slightly different than normal garlic, so I’m going to have to post about it soon), salt and pepper.  It was light and delicious.

Both sides really went well with the pesto chicken fingers because they have such mild, yet delicious flavors.  

Adventures in Canada

All right, this is long, long overdue...

I went to Canada in August on a weekend road trip this year. It was a great trip filled with food and fun in Montreal and Ottawa. It was a really fantastic trip with my friend Endira.

We drove up to Montreal on a Friday morning and just ate lots of homemade treats and McDonald's for quick, cheap road trip food.  We made sandwiches with chicken, tomatoes, and this wonderful jalapeno cheese spread and then we got fries and ice cream from McDonald's for a snack. Yes, we are super healthy. :)

Once we got to Montreal, we were able to try lots of good food.
We settled into the hotel, took a quick nap (I was pooped after the long drive) and then went to downtown Montreal to begin our explorations.
It was gorgeous, somehow a mix of old world Europe and of new world New York City all at once. I really loved the general atmosphere but I think if I were there for more than a few days I would be completely lost since the main language spoken is French. I don't speak any French, although after my brief stint in Montreal, I was sorely tempted to learn. Maybe one day.
That first night we wandered around and saw numerous restaurants full of people. We chose at random and I don't even remember the name of the restaurant but it was quite good and very close to the contemporary art museum.  The fixed menu was simple but quite tasty with a refreshingly light salad with lettuce, walnuts and a hint of lemon and that was followed by a perfectly medium rare steak in a mustardy gravy with a healthy portion of french fries. We shared a small bottle of wine and had a really tasty meal. It was on the expensive side so we decided to skip dessert. Next time in Montreal, I'll try to find it again so I can say what it was called. It was really good, but I almost wish we had spent a little more time exploring before settling on a restaurant.
Afterwards, as we were wandering around we realized that there were literally hundreds of cool looking restaurants in the area.
Initially we thought that we would search for dessert but we were too full since the portions had been so large so instead we just walked through the city and saw some absolutely gorgeous sites and some of the night life in action. There was a street fair and concert blocking off an entire street and other streets were dedicated to bars and clubs. We didn't go inside any other locale but it was still a lot of fun wandering through the people. The city had such a high energy and I really enjoyed it.

The next morning we got up early and started our adventuring after some muffins from home. We
parked down by the water and then walked around. I literally wanted to try everything I saw but we decided to have poutine for lunch, a Canadian specialty. We did a little bit of research and found one restaurant that is famous in Montreal for its extensive list of Poutines.

What is Poutine? I had never heard of poutine until the first time I went to Canada last year but I didn't get to try it that trip. Poutine is fresh, crispy french fries served covered in gravy and cheese curds (yes, those miraculous bits of cheese that I talked about in my Wisconsin Blog). To me Poutine sounds a bit like NJ disco fries except with squeeky cheese curd bits. The restaurant we found had 30 kinds of Poutine. I would never have guessed that there were so many varieties!
So that's where we went once we rented our bikes.  The restaurant is called La Banquise and it was
by the big park in Montreal (I should really know the name of it, but I can't remember right now).
From the pier, it took us about an hour or so to bike there.  I'm really glad we decided to rent the bikes because it let us cover a lot more ground and see so much more of the city. Plus we had a blast peddling through the city.
We got to the restaurant a little before noon which

turned out to be a really good thing because by the time we were done eating there was a line out the door. When we got there, there was no wait and we got to sit outside in their couryard are. It was a great little area with natural light, fresh air and shade from the hot sun.
We decided to order one traditional poutine La Classique and then to also try one of their unique poutine dishes. We decided to try La Danse becaus it had chicken, onions and bacon plus the original components of a poutine. I will say it was a little challenging for us to decipher the menu since it was all in French but we managed, and our waitresses were really helpful as well.  I think next time, I would definitely try one of the spicy poutines that involved jalapenos.

There were two sizes of the Poutine dishes, regular and large. I am quite pleased that we decided to order the regular size since they turned out to be pretty large on their own. There was more than enough for the two of us to share. If we had gotten main courses (hot dogs, hamburgers) we probably could have shared one large helping or even a regular sized portion.
So how was poutine?
The traditional, classic here was delicious. The fries were crisp and perfectly cooked while the gravy was rich with a hint of sweetness that really balanced the salt of the fries and cheese.  I also really enjoyed the cheese curds which added some great flavor as well as a nice textural component. Crisp fries, some gravy soaked fries filled with delicious flavor and the chewiness of the cheese curds.  I really enjoyed the combination.
La Danse was also great. I loved the slightly different gravy because it was more like Thanksgiving gravy thanks to the chicken and onions. The chicken itself wasa great addition

because it felt more like a complete meal with a feeling protein. I also really loved the flavor the bacon added... I mean, you can't ever go wrong with bacon... I liked the onion as well but at a certain point I started picking them out because the flavor was becoming overwhelming.
I also decided to try both of the poutinges with tobasco because I absolutely love my spice. It added just enough kick. Next time jalapenos are on the menu for me.  If I ever get back to Montreal I'm going to La Banquise again, especially since it's open 24 hrs.

Here I am enjoying my poutine and tobasco too!

Afterwards, we took a nice long walk through the park nearby and we relaxed in the sun digesting our yummy lunch.
Eventually we continued on our bicycle adventure (I highly recommend renting the bikes because, it's a cheap way to see the entire city) until we happened upon a street decorated with hundreds of pink balloons. I think we had just missed a walk/run for breast cancer.
We discovered that the area was kind of the Grenwich village of Montreal. It was a really fun area with lots of fun shops and bars.
Eventually we sat down and relaxed with a delicious pitcher of Sangria. It was a wonderful refreshing red sangria filled with fruits and berries. It was really light and crisp and honestly Endira and I just enjoed sitting at the outdoor patio starring at our waiter who happened to be pretty gorgeous (probably gay) and very friendly.
After that we slowly made our way back to my car on bike and stopped for some more sites but sadly no more food.  That poutine kept us fill till around 8 something when we were already in the car on the way to Ottawa.
I had so much fun in Montreal and I would love to go back again for more exploration with more French knowledge and also with more general knowledge of the city.  Before going to Montreal, I literally knew nothing about the city except that French is one of its main languages.

That evening we headed over to Ottawa where we stayed with my brother's girlfriend's family. They were so wonderful and I was so excited to get to see them again.  They are absolutely amazing and when we arrived at around 11pm Rebekah's father made us wonderful wraps with all sorts of healthy ingredients like fresh tomatoes from the garden. Then after munching on our snack it was time for bed so we could prepare for another day of adventure.

The next morning after a light breakfast we drove off to downtown Ottawa for a walking marathon. We saw all the main attractions and then finally sat down for lunch at a cute Mexican place on the main food and bar drag. We probably should have chosen a more typical Canadian food, but we were in the mood for something spicy so we got the special. We each got small steak burritos (which weren't that small and baby coronitas for £10 each. Although the burritos were “small” they were still pretty large. The steak was cooked well and the other ingredients, rice, sour cream, guacamole, beans and cheese were balanced very nicely. Also the restaurant had a nice, quiet atmosphere at lunch and our waitress was really nice and friendly.

Then we took another walk and watched some street performers before heading off to find another Canadian specialty: Beaver Tails.

No, they are not actually BEAVER.

Beaver tails are a Canadian dessert made of batter fried into a long column that is reminiscent of a beaver’s tail. It is tried and then sprinkled with a layer of sugar and served with a fresh wedge of lemon. That is the traditional kind but there are lots of different variations that have chocolate, nutella and maple butter as toppings.

I tried the classic because I wanted something a little “lighter”.  It’s fried dough so, it’s never going to be super light, however, it was utterly delicious. It was crisp with a nice amount of sweetness. It wasn’t cloyingly sweet and I loved that little bit of lemon juice because it really added a wonderful tang and sense of light, freshness.

Endira ordered a beaver tail with maple butter and it came drizzled with chocolate sauce as well. I tried a bite and it was amazing. The maple butter was rich and creamy. It was so amazing that I then had to go and buy a jar of maple butter from a nearby open air artisan market. I also loved the combination of maple butter with that hint of chocolate. The flavors really melded together well and still somehow managed to avoid being overtly sweet.

Maple butter and Maple syrup at a local market

Afterwards we went back to the house for a relaxing dinner with amazing company. I really enjoyed the homemade cooking . It was so healthy and fresh with lots of different options.  Sadly, I didn’t think to take any pictures so I can’t remember exactly what I ate after all this time has passed. But I know that it was superb.

Sadly, the next morning called an end to our adventures and we had to head back to the tri-state area. I can't wait to explore more of Canada. It would be amazing to try more specialties and fun restaurants! 

Endira and I in Ottawa :D

Shopping at the Open Air Market

I seriously love going to the open air market in Acilia by work. It really does have the most fantastic collection of fresh fruits and vegetables at the best prices.
I got all of that fruit and vegetables for €4.00! It's crazy.
I bought 5 tomatoes on a vine, 5 plums, 2 bananas, 1 gigantic eggplant and a very large bushel of chicory (which I still need to write a separate post about).
For lunch, I had some of the tomatoes and they were really delicious. I cooked the eggplant in a red sauce and it was filled with flavor as well. I also prepared some of the chicory last night and that was delicious too.
Nothing is bland here!
Now, as I run to my next lesson, I'm going to eat one of the bananas and I'm sure it's going to be delicious as well!!

Such beautiful colors!!

My Lunch and a productive morning...

This morning I woke up early thinking that I had a lesson but right as I was getting ready to leave it got cancelled.  My next lesson won't be until 3 this afternoon, so what to do? I guess I could have just gone back to sleep but that seemed like a waste of time since I had already spent time trying to be awake.
So instead, I went into the kitchen and started making my lunch and what will also most likely become my dinner.
At the supermarket a couple of days ago I had bought chicken thighs, so I got busy deboning them and let the creative juices flow.  I decided to make Truffled chicken with a creamy truffle sauce that I'd also bought at the store. It was really simple to make and quick as well. In fact I think I'll have to post up the recipe at some point.  All I needed was chicken thighs, flour, spices, oil for frying and this creamy truffle sauce.
When it was all done, I put a piece into my plastic container with my leftover roasted red peppers, a creamy soft cheese and a couple of pieces of prosciutto for a nice, well-rounded lunch time meal.

I was very pleased with my lunch. The chicken was tender and full of flavor and worked really well with everything else too.  The only thing I forgot was my kiwi, but I guess I'll have that after dinner tonight as dessert!!
Overall, I'm really glad that I stayed up this morning. I got to cook and relax in the kitchen and as a result I had a very appealing lunch. I'll also have dinner already ready for me when I get home at 9:30 or so. Which means, I'll be a very happy camper indeed. Food will be ready and I will be able to dig in right away. No waiting necessary.
I got to work early this morning feeling calm after cooking and I got to take my time and not rush for once. Normally I run around like a crazy person in the morning so this was definitely a nice change of pace!
Yay for productive mornings!

Food Pictures...

Alright, so just in case you haven't noticed I have a couple of obsessions.  I'm obviously obsessed with food, hence why I write this blog, but I also have an obsession with photos.  I love taking pictures of everything; people, places, things, and obviously food.
There's something relaxing about the creative process, of choosing your subject and angles. You try different angles, different lighting, different subject matter. I really enjoy it and picture taking, for me, also serves as a kind of memory service. What will I remember of this moment in the future?  By taking a picture I am often refining a memory. I am ingraining it on my mind. I don't remember small details easily. In fact if you ask anyone, I'm scatterbrained. I forget things quickly. Unless we're talking events. I can remember events and taking pictures, taking the time to focus and choose really helps me hone in on the details.
Honestly, that's why I have so many pictures of food. Otherwise I wouldn't remember all of the great restaurants and dishes that I've tried.
Recently I've even started using my phone to compile montages of pictures. So I'll be sharing those on my blog now too I think.

Ristorante Antico Carlone: where I went a couple of Saturday's ago with Endira and her father

Cul De Sac: My first restaurant review in Rome

Restaurant Review: Ristorante Antico Carlone

Two Saturdays ago for lunch, I got to try a wonderful little restaurant called Ristorante Antico Carlone.  It’s in Trastevere which is a lovely part of Rome on the other side of the river. The restaurant is a little out of the way and a little hard to find but it is authentically Roman.  My friend’s father treated us and it was a really great afternoon of food and conversation.

The restaurant was small and quaint and once lunch got rolling it was quite bustling with sounds and smells.  Our waiter (and quite possibly the owner) was very friendly and I thought quite funny… but also quite slow. It’s a good thing that we weren’t in a hurry (honestly when eating in Italy, it’s best never to be in a hurry, because inevitably the waiters will take their time).

When we sat down we only one menu so I asked for another. Our waiter brought exactly one another menu…  I was amused and a little perplexed. Next time I’ll just have to be more specific with my Italian. Honestly, I’m not sure if it was a linguistic issue on my part or a logic issue on his part. Either way I thought it was kind of funny. 

In any case, on to the food!!

Endira ordered “carciofi alla giudea” for us to share. They are a specialty in Rome that originally

Sorry, not the best picture. It was prettier in person.

stemmed from the Jewish Ghettos hence the name alla giudea. I love artichokes prepared most ways and these were no different. They were quite delicious. These artichokes were on the smaller side and fried whole, stem and all. The looked beautiful on the plate, like roses just in bloom.  The nice thing about these artichokes is that you can literally eat the whole of it. It’s not as time consuming as the artichokes that I’ve always made where you can only eat part of each leaf and then have a plate full of the remaining carcasses. I ate every last bit, stem and all.  The leaves were crisp with a hint of salt while the heart was soft with a bit of the artichoke’s natural sweetness.  I could eat ten of them… In fact, I may very well do that at some point, if I ever learn how to make them at home. 

I also tried cicoria or chicory for the first (I’m writing up a blog about it as we speak!). It was delicious. Cicoria is a wonderful Roman specialty that I had never seen before even when living in Italy. It’s similar to spinach but with a greater depth of flavor and a hint of bitterness. In Rome it is usually boiled briefly and then sautéed in oil with garlic, salt and occasionally red pepper flakes.  This particular chicory was pretty bitter but I liked it, even though it didn’t include red pepper flakes. Since then, I’ve tried more chicory where the bitterness has been less present. 

mmm Cacio e Pepe

For my main course, I tried the Cacio e Pepe, another Roman specialty. It used Tonnarelli  which is a thicker noodle similar to spaghetti found in Rome. Cacio e Pepe itself is a super simple dish but amazingly tasty dish.  It is pasta with lots of pepper and Cacio a type of pecorino cheese.  The cheese melts down and coats the noodle entirely. I had tried it once before in NYC at a restaurant called Cacio e Pepe down near the village.  At this restaurant I really enjoyed the hardiness of the tonnarelli  and the bold flavor of the cacio. The flavors were really well balanced with just the right amount of bite.

Endira and her father both got meat seconds and those als looked delicious. I took a bite of Endira’s veal scaloppini and it was quite tender in a lovely lemon sauce.  Our only complaint was how long it took to arrive. The veal arrived at least 15 minutes after everything else hit the table. In theory, this was because it takes a while to cook, but I’m more inclined to think that our waiter forgot to put the order in.

Overall I liked the restaurant  and I think I’ll definitely go again to try some of the house specialties which seemed really interesting and unique.

Recipe: Pork Marsala

Let me start by saying that I don’t know how to make marsala… or better, I didn’t know I could make marsala. 

When I started cooking the other night I simply thought I was going to make a crispy pork served with sautéed mushrooms.  Endira was going to make her salad and I was going to make a simple (mayoless) potato salad. 

Somehow or other I made a Pork marsala, or at the very least something that tasted very similar.  Endira loved it and said that it was “restaurant quality”. I don’t know if I would go that far, but the sauce was creamy without being heavy with a nice, crisp, refreshing bite from the wine.

And it was also surprisingly simple to make.

Pork Marsala

Ingredients:

4 thinly cut slices of fresh pork (you can use a thicker cut, just sauté on each side for a few minutes longer)*

½ cup flour

Red pepper flakes

Basil

Salt and black pepper

Olive oil

500- 1000 grams of sliced mushrooms

1-2 cups  white wine (marsala if you want authenticity)

Coat your pork with a light drizzling of olive oil. This will help the breading stay on the pork but won’t be as heavy as an egg wash. Then pour your flour into a small bowl and mix in salt, pepper, basil and red pepper flakes to taste. I tend to be a little heavy handed with this because I like a lot of flavor but you can use less and still wind up with delicious pork.  My general rule of thumb is

Just a hint of golden brown

that you should be able to see bits of spices evenly dispersed in your flour when it’s mixed. 

Dredge the pork in the flour mixture. Make sure each piece is completely and evenly covered. 

Coat your pan** with a layer of oil and heat over a medium flame. When the oil is hot, place your pork carefully in the pan. If the oil is hot enough there will be some sizzle. Depending on how thick your pork is, you should cook for a minute or 2 on each side. I was cooking thin pieces so they didn’t need much time at all. The edges should be golden by the time cooking is done (a thicker piece will be golden brown all over). The flour should really help hold in the moisture. 

When cooked through, place on a paper towel to cool and collect any excel oil.

At this point, you’ll notice that the oil is cloudy from excess flour. It’s supposed to be, so add in your mushrooms. Sauté for a minute or so. If you see that the oil is almost gone, add in another drizzle of olive oil.  In another minute, pour in the wine, a half cup at a time. I only used about a cup of wine and 500 grams of mushrooms because I was using a small pan. It was the perfect

Just starting to cook down the sauce

amount for 2 people.  If you’re cooking for more people use another cup of wine and at least 500 more grams of mushrooms. 

Stir continuously and add in about a ½ tsp of the remaining flour mixture if the sauce is looking thin.

When the mushrooms have rooked down some and the sauce has thickened (it should easily coat the back of a spoon) remove from the heat.

Serve on top of your pork with a generous heaping of mushrooms. We also served ours with a light potato side and a scrumptious salad with chick peas, tomatoes and cheese. 

This was so delicious. The pork practically melted in your mouth with the creaminess of the sauce. I was very pleased with how this little experiment turned out. 

It was a great meal to end a particularly long day of work.

*Note: This could easily be made with chicken or veal instead.

**Note: I would recommend making this in a deeper pan or a pot. It will stop the oil from splattering onto the stovetop. I used a small regular pan and made a bit of a mess. Also if you’re using a larger pan you can make all of your pork at once instead of in rounds like I had to.  

Vegetables and Markets

I mentioned open air markets a couple of weeks ago. They’re a great source of fresh produce across Italy.

In Acilia, where I work, the market is on Tuesday and Friday which works pretty well for my schedule. However’ there are dozens of markets that crop up across Rome (well, in most Italian cities) that are similar.

But what happens when you want fresh vegetables on days without an outdoor market in your area?

Well, there are 2 solutions.

1. Go to a regular supermarket. It’s not quite as fresh as the open air markets but it’s still really good. It can also be a little more expensive but sometimes there are more options because they have things that have been imported.
2. Otherwise there are small fixed vegetable/fruit markets. They specialize in fruits and vegetables. Everything is still very fresh and generally speaking, very cheap.

When I was staying with Endira, I went to a closed vegetable market and I bought a lb of green beans and 2 red peppers for €0.50 total.  Yeah… Vegetables can be that cheap.

I turned the green beans into a steamed side dish for two one evening and then sautéed the peppers to eat on salads and sandwiches. 

Such a good use of fifty cents!