briciole

zucca "delicata" con sardine / delicata squash with sardines

[cliccare il link per andare alla versione in italiano] Rule 7: Don’t overlook the oily little fishes. If there’s one food you should be eating (and probably are not) it is the humble sardine. Sardines (Pacific, wild-caught) are one of the healthiest foods we can consume, according to health and environmental experts. These nutritional powerhouses are one of the best sources of omega-3 fats, with a whopping 1,950 mg/per 3 oz. (that’s more per serving than salmon, tuna or just about any other food) and they’re packed with vitamin D. [source] The paragraph above was clearly written for me: while rationally... Read more →

regalo di Natale e crostata delle Feste / Christmas gift and a Holiday tart

Che cosa ti ha portato Babbo Natale? (what did Santa bring you?) is the question often asked this time of the year. In the past, I had expressed the wish to have a magic wand. This year, Santa brought me one: Babbo Natale mi ha portato una bacchetta magica. Here it is, resting next to some of the cards (biglietti) I received as part of the North Redwoods Book Arts Guild Holiday card exchange (this photo album shows them all). They are all beautiful and they make up this year Holiday decor at our house. On Christmas Eve (vigilia di Natale)... Read more →

menu

Same spelling, same meaning, a slightly different pronunciation. The real difference is in the way it is organized. The typical Italian ristorante (restaurant) menu lists dishes divided into sections that include: antipasti (appetizers) primi (first courses) secondi (second courses) contorni (side dishes) dolci (desserts) The middle three items describe the way we approach the main part of a meal. Primi are pasta or rice dishes, or soups (minestre). Polenta and gnocchi are also primi. Secondi are meat or fish dishes. Nowadays, vegetarian options are also usually available. Side dishes (contorni) are listed separately. As a customer, you may order an item... Read more →

fare la spesa (seconda puntata) / to shop for groceries (part 2)

Some time ago, I wrote a post about shopping at a supermercato (grocery store). I hope you are ready for a few more tidbits. In the earlier post, I explained how you, the customer (cliente), need to weigh and label fruit and vegetables by yourself. Before you start choosing any fruit or vegetable, you need not only to get a plastic bag, but also to don plastic gloves (guanti). Bags and gloves are usually located close to each other and also close to a bin where you can deposit the used gloves. The only tricky thing here is that the adhesive... Read more →

mangiare a quattro palmenti / to eat a lot and greedily, to eat like a horse

A little while ago Peter of Detectives Beyond Borders asked me about the original expressions in a passage at the beginning of chapter 7 of "The Smell of the Night," one of Camilleri's Montalbano novels. I promised him I would write about them, e ora mantengo la mia promessa (now I keep my promise). Peter expressed a desire: to see the original versions of the sayings that in English became "count your chickens before they hatch," "eat like a horse" and "sow your wild oats" in the scene. Here they are, in the same order: vendere la pelle dell'orso prima di... Read more →

bere un caffè al bar / to drink an espresso at the coffee shop

The store where Italians drink coffee is called a bar. The sign outside one of those establishments may carry additional specifications characterizing it. For example, it could be a bar tabacchi, meaning that it sells cigarettes and stamps. Or a bar pasticceria, meaning that it sells fresh pastries. Or a bar gelateria, which sells gelato. In a bar you can drink coffee beverages, fruit juice, alcoholic beverages and also eat pastries, panini, gelato, etc. (with many possible variations). Andare al bar a bere un caffè is to go to a coffee shop to drink an espresso. We also say andare al... Read more →

fare la spesa / to shop for groceries

Although the Italian sentence does not include any reference to food, it is used to indicate the purchase of food items. To go grocery shopping is: andare a fare la spesa. One of the first things I do after arriving in Italy is to find a supermercato (grocery store) and shop for specific food items, most importantly: prosciutto crudo (for my husband) ricotta di mucca (ricotta made with cow milk whey, for myself). I will not bore you with more details regarding my shopping list (la lista della spesa). Instead, I will describe a few characteristics of the way Italians, at... Read more →

friggere / to fry

Every now and then I have visions of some fried food my mother used to make. However, here I will focus on some words that may be useful when navigating Italian menus and also on some funny expressions. If you fry something (nell'olio o nel burro, in oil or butter), it becomes fritto or fritta, depending on whether it is masculine or feminine, or fritti or fritte, if that something is plural. Here are some tasty examples: pesce fritto (fried fish) fritto misto (a combination of various fried items) salvia fritta (fried sage) fiori di zucca fritti (fried zucchini blossoms) patatine... Read more →

far venire l'acquolina in bocca / to make someone's mouth water

If the sight, smell of thought of a certain food mi fa venire l'acquolina in bocca then, as a result ho l'acquolina in bocca (my mouth is watering). Both expressions are of widespread use in Italy. I have always found the word acquolina (which literally is is a diminutive of acqua, water) particularly charming: it dances in my mouth like a tasty morsel. Avere l'acquolina in bocca should not be confused with acqua in bocca!, which is an injunction to keep something a secret. The idea is that if your mouth is full of water, you cannot talk. I taught my... Read more →

pollo arrosto / roast chicken

Talking about Sunday lunch (pranzo) in my previous post made me think of another dish that was only featured in that meal: pollo arrosto. We would buy it at a store, una rosticceria, actually 'the' store, because we had one favorite place. I am not sure whether it is still in business, but I hope it is. As a child, I loved going with my father to the rotisserie to get the roast chicken: I loved the smell of the place and the look of the food that was made and sold there. I usually got to carry the warm bag... Read more →