copyright 2011 art of living,PrimaMedia,Inc/Maria Liberati

Scarpediem…has become one of my favorite new stores in the center of town here..okay,it has nothing to do with food or the kitchen but is a play on words for the Italian word for shoes-scarpe and the Latin Phrase Carpe Diem (Seize the Day)..all of the Italian designer shoes in one place makes you want to ‘seize the day’ and purchase all the shoes or better yet ‘seize the shoes’….

Italian have an artistic penchant for creating new words to express clearly an idea like

*Capri Diem-(instead of Carpe Diem) expressing love of enjoying the island of Capri

*Cinepanettone ( Combining cine for cinema or movie and panettone-the traditional Holiday bread at Christmas time) to describe films that are released for Christmas.

*Decembrini-to discuss things that are’ December-ish’..for instance a fruit that is not totally mature yet in December can be described as Decembrini or the weather that is typical for December,

*Settembrini-something that may come out in September or is ‘September-ish’. For instance fig trees bear fruit in August  and September..those figs of September  can be described as Settembrini or even the change of the weather or coolness that usually begins in the air to describe the weather as Settembrini.

and there are many others…

 Today I am preparing a chocolate-orange cake..my own version of a Sacher Torte for a dinner on Sunday. The Austrians combine apricot with chocolate in their traditional cake. But Italians love the combination of chocolate and orange..and if you taste them together you will quickly understand why..

Here’s the recipe

Torte di Cioccalata all’Arancia (Chocolate and Orange Cake)

from The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions-2nd edition 

*8 ounces baking chocolate with at least 60% cocoa content

*3 tblsps milk

*3/4 cup butter

*3/4 cup sugar

*5 eggs

*1 tsp baking powder

*grated zest of 1 orange

*1 cup flour

Filling:
*1 ½ cups orange marmelade

*1 tsp brandy

Topping:

*8 ounces baking chocolate (at least 60% cocoa)
* 1 cup powdered sugar

*1 cup whipping cream

In a double boiler, melt chocolate with milk, stirring with a wooden spoon. When melted remove from heat and cool. Place softened butter in a bowl and whip with electric beater till creamy mousse consistency. Add in sugar and beat it until you get a creamy blend. Add in cooled, melted chocolate, and flour and baking powder a spoonful at a time. Mix till well blended. Add in eggs, one at a time. Blend well after adding each one. Then add in orange peel. Butter and flour an 8 inch pan. Bake for 25 minutes in an oven preheated to350 degrees. Place toothpick in center to be sure cake is done. Remove from oven. Remove cake from pan and let cool. When cool, slice cake in center in half so as to get tow layers.

Warm orange marmelade with brandy. Remove from heat. Spread mixture on one half of cake. Top with other half., Spread orange mixture on top of cake. Let sit.

In double boiler melt chocolate for topping, add in powdered sugar and a few spoons of water. Mix with wooden spoon. Remove from heat. Let cool to warm. Spread on top of marmelade on top of cake and cover sides and entire cake with chocolate mixture. Let cool and chocolate harden. Whip whipping cream and serve each slice with a spoonful of whipped cream

 For more great recipes get your copy of The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions-2nd edition

The book was selected as Best Italian Cuisine Book in the USA by Gourmand World Cookbook Awards

 copyright 2010, Maria Liberati/artofliving,PrimaMedia,Inc

Those who travel have many a tale to tell …or something like that… as an old saying goes..not only stories of places and sights but of foods and new flavors experienced. Thomas Jefferson who not only served as President but also an international ambassador. He  had a knack for great food and wine… Just think of the stories he told of his journeys in Italy, and his love of Italian pasta so much that he is credited with bringing the first pasta or maccheroni machine to the US and  the first Italian winemakers to the US.

Oce can only imagine his tales of far off foods and wines from a far off land (Italy) and how fascinating those tales may have been back in the day or should I say his day..Thanks to the former Prez… pasta machines and Italian wines are very well known in the US.

But local regional specialties in many a small town  have still not made their way here. Make it a point to find them wherever you go and you will also have many a tale to tell and cook for friends and family.

Here’s one of my favorites..I think President T.J. would have loved it, don’t you? It’s from a region rich with culinary history-Emilia Romagna. It’s a perfect treat for this time of year-Pampepato and if you are fortunate to travel to Emilia Romagna and find a local bakery that makes this-be sure to savor the experience there! You can find this in some gourmet stores in the US-but just not the same as experiencing the flavor in it’s hometown..

This recipe serves 6

PAMPEPATO

1 cup flour

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup powdered unsweetened Dutch cocoa

1/3 cup candied fruit

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp chopped cloves

milk or water

Icing:

16 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl-except chocolate for icing. Add milk or water until the dough is smooth  and sticky with some substance to it. Place parchment paper on cookie sheet and place dough in shape of a round ‘cupola’. Or place in small cake pan covered with parchment paper. Place in oven preheated to 350 degrees. Bake for 90 minutes. Remove from oven. Place in a cool,humid place covered for 10-15 days. Then melt the dark baking chocolate in a double boiler and spread the chocolate on  tops and sides of the Pampepato  Serve when chocolate has hardened to form an icing.

Hope to see you at:

December 3rd-Copper Fish Restaurant- 6PM_ cape May NJ for a Feast of the Seven Fishes Dinner and book signing from The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions-2nd edition

December 4th-Borders, Mount Laurel NJ at 1 PM

Visit OpenSky

Peace, Love & Pasta!
Maria

.

copyright 2010, Maria Liberati

Apologies  for not gettting this out sooner but think that you still have time to make this for your Easter dinner. I have been scouring my recipes and looking for just the right one for our community of  ’foodies’..not too difficult-some of the Italian Spring Holiday breads can be so time consuming and something well a little unique.. So for a little bit of inspiration and no Easter egg shaped something… I decided to go with one of my favorite cakes. … a recipe I learned in Austria, the cake is named after a famous Austrian-Italian Prince-Prince Eugenio of the Royal Family of Savoia.
Although he doesn’t have anything to do with Easter..the cake is really a special one..it is made with lots of chocolate ..which always reminds me of Easter..and not too ordinary-as a Holiday dessert should be- and great to have with a glass of bubbly Brachetto d’Acqui or with some dessert coffee or .. alone.. And to make it even more interesting here is some info on Prince Eugenio
Buon Appetito and Buona Pasqua! Please write and let us know how your  torta turns out!

Prince Eugenio’s Cake

( This cake was created  in Austria and named after Prince Eugenio who was born in France to royalty related to the Royal Savoia Family . His mother was Italian. He became a high ranking soldier in the Austrian army and protected Italy from some of their military rivals in the early  1700′s. He was an aficionado of art and this ‘torta’ or cake was created many years ago in homage to this Prince)

16 ounces unsweetened dark chocolate (containing at least 60% cocoa)

1 1/2 cups crushed almonds

1 ¼ cups sugar

2 tablespoons butter

6 eggs

1 tablespoon rum

1 tablespoon brandy

butter for pan

Topping:

2 cups raspberries

1 tablespoon sugar

6 ounces milk chocolate

½ cup whipping cream

1 tsp vanilla

Beat softened butter,sugar and egg yolks until creamy. Melt chocolate in double boiler or microwave. Add the chocolate into the egg yolk mixture,then add in ground almonds,brandy and rum.

Beat egg whites till soft peaks form. Fold into the egg yolk mixture gently till well blended.. Butter and flour a low cake pan and bake for 35 minutes in oven at 350 degrees.

Remove from oven. Leaving a 1 /12 “ border around cake, cut out the interior cake , to make about ¼ cup of crumbs. Place crumbs in oven on cookie sheet for to dry and become crisp, set aside., to use as crumble on topping.

Cook raspberries and sugar over low heat for 2 minutes let sugar melt. Let cool. Place whipping cream and vanilla, sugar in bowl. Whip cream till peaks form, add in grated chocolate. Place cooled raspberry mixture in cavity of cake made from digging out crumbs. Top with whipped cream mixture in center of raspberries. Sprinkle with cake crumbs and top with whipped cream and serve.

If you are in the area,  stop by and say hi!
April 14th-Free Library of Philadelphia-Book signing

 May 8th-Borders, Warrington, Pa-Book Signing

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 Maria

at marialiberati.com

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copyright 2010  Maria Liberati

I love Holidays ..especially Spring Holidays..it’s like we are waking up after this long winter nap and all of a sudden..Bam!! there they are  the shining rays of  the sun..real flavors of strawberries and asparagus and mint..and lnoger days…. and if that isn’t enough to celebrate..along comes some Holidays that give us a reason to bring friends and family together with incredible dishes. At my house, we  celebrate Easter but I love some of the flavors  of Passover and like to ‘mix things up’.

Almonds are used a lot in Italian cooking and one of my favorite flavors..so if you’re a fan of the healthy almond you will want to make this cake part of your Spring Holiday meal

  Almond  Passover Cake

6 eggs

1 cup white sugar

1 cup finely chopped almonds

2 teaspoons of maraschino liqueur

juice of one fresh lemon

With an electric mixer, blend sugar with egg yolks till well blended,then add in first the chopped almonds and then liqueur and lemon juice.  In separate bowl,whip egg whites till firm with a pinch of salt. With a wooden spoon, blend in the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture,gently. When blended in, place batter  in pan lined with parchment paper. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven and let cool and serve. Happy Passover! Happy Easter! and let me know about any other Spring Holiday we should be celebrating!

For more great recipes get your copy of:

  The Basic Art of Italian Cooking: Holidays & Special Occasions  voted Best Italian Cuisine Book in America by Gourmand World Cookbook Awards.

Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene,

http://twitter.com/Marialiberati

Visit me at OpenSky

copyright, 2009, Maria Liberati

One of the most engaging holidays of the season, Halloween, has been carving out ghoulish jack-o-lanterns and the likes of trick-or-treaters for centuries. Highly recognizable are the spellbinding tales of campfires, midnight marshmallow roasts, and guising costume festivals… thus for many, October 31^st marks the modern-day events of the Eve of All Hallows. Originating from Irish immigrants, the traditions spread across Europe to North America in the 19^th century, as Halloween’s many rituals are now celebrated throughout world. Respectively, while some religious perspectives ascribe certain disbeliefs, the expansion of commerce chose to capitalize significant revenues based upon candy sales and billion-dollar costume industries. The evolution of haunting imagery, black cats, witches brew, religious ceremonies, and product commercialization, inevitably, remains the heart of the equinox. But more than ghost stories and prominent symbols, accounts of this spooktacular event date back as far as the first Pagan rituals, hailing ancient Celtic harvest festivals called, Samhain or Celtic New Year. Often paired with the Day of The Dead and All Saints’ Day, many cultures commemorate (the notional holiday) outside the Americanized standard of door-to-door candy solicitation, by marking November 1^st and 2^nd as calendar days of remembrance.

Carnevale Di Venezia, a long-established Italian tradition seems to parallel a combination of both Mardi gras and Halloween’s costume masquerading. However, its elaborate artistry, first recorded in 1268, is celebrated 40 days before Easter with restrictions of Lent and a grand festival just before Ash Wednesday. While gala dinners and extravagant costume balls of this winter festival trumpet throughout the various regions of Italy, some reports claim the urbanity of Halloween is literally beginning to mask those of Carnevale.

As food plays a significant role in the aspects of any celebration, the annual harvest of apples lend an air of entertainment to the many Halloween-themed activities performed. The friendly competition of apple bobbing or as the Scottish refer to as, dooking, remains a pastime favorite. Even holiday ‘begging’ has transformed throughout history, bringing phrases like ‘Do ye want guisers?’ to the simplicity of ‘Trick or Treat’. So, whether it’s pumpkin risotto to pumpkin carving or candied apples to brimming bags of candy cuisine… the sheer magic surrounding such mythical traditions can be enjoyed by all ages, young and old.

Have your own traditional Carnevale celebration for Halloween with these recipes

Frittelle

Ingredients (for 6 people):

1 lb flour

1 cup raisins

2 tblsps pine nuts

1 tablespoon sugar

2 eggs

1 cup milk

I/2 cup grappa

1 packet brewer’s yeast

a pinch of salt

peanut oil to fry

icing sugar to decorate

Melt the brewer’s yeast and sugar with a little bit of warm water; then add flour, the eggs, grappa and milk. Don’t forget the pinch of salt. Mix everything and knead it for a while until you see some kind of small ‘air bubbles’ forming on the surface. Cover then with a napkin and leave it in a warm place to rise. When the dough will have doubled its volume, add the raisins (and pinenuts). Make ‘balls’ with a teaspoon and let them ‘slide’ into peanut boiling oil (oil should be deep enough to cover all the small balls; and remember not to put too may of them at a time). When they rise to the surf, turn them over, so that they become brown all over. Dry on kitchen paper, sprinkle with icing sugar and enjoy your fritoe!

Crostoli (is another typical Carnival dessert).

Ingredients (4 people):

1 cup flour

½ cup sugar

¼ cup butter

2 eggs

½ cup grappa

1 lemon

icing sugar

a pinch of salt

1 tsp pure vanilla

peanut oil to fry

Mix flour, sugar, vanilla, grated lemon peel and salt on the pastry board. Then make a well and put the eggs, the soft butter cut into small cubes inside the hole. Work it till it is smooth. With the rolling pin roll the dough very thin. Cut rectangles (about 8×12 centimetres) with the pastry cutting wheel and make three cuttings on each of the rectangles. Fry two or three rectangles at a time in abundant boiling peanut oil. Drain, dry on kitchen paper, cover with icing sugar. You can eat them either hot or cold.

For  Holiday recipes and tips get your copy of the newly released The Basic Art of Italian Cooking : Holidays & Special Occasions

Follow Maria on Twitter : http://twitter.com/marialiberati 

Special Thx to everyone at teh Lower Southampton Libnrary in Festerville, Pa for hosting my book signing this week!
Other Apperances coming up:
November 2- Willngboro LIbrary-book singing and cooking demo 7PM

November 4th-6th- Christmas in Italy weekend at Harvest Moon Bed and Breakfast in Lancaster,Pa.. Cooking classes and wine pairings from The Basic Art of Italian Cooking : Holidays & Special Occasions. Call 888-824-3763 for reservations and info.

November 14th-Warren Twp Library, Warren NJ 2PM- Book signing and cooking demo

November 21-Kuhn’s Corner Books- Perkasie ,Pa 12 PM- book signing and sampling

December 12th- Franklin Twp Library, Franklinville, NJ 12 noon- Book signing and cooking demo

Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene,

Maria

The Basic Art of Italian Cooking kitchen here in Italy was busy with many recipes today, although still hot,hot, hot and no desire to use an oven or a stove but preparing for some end of summer picnics to take advantage of the summerl iek weather that will be ending soon (I think).

Of all the recipe swe worked on my favorite is a sort of cheesecake made with fresh ricotta..my faovrote part of making the cheesecake was taking a walk to the local place in town where they produce the fresh ricotta.. Here it is ..

Ricotta Raisin Cheesecake

1 1/4 lbs (fresh, if possible) ricotta

2 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

6 eggs

1/4 cup raisins

peel and juice of one fresh lemon

1 tsp of orange flower water

a pinch of salt

1 tsp baking powder

Place raisins in a small bowl of warm water for 15 minutes. Place ricotta in a bowl with sugar, blend with wooden spoon until you it is a smooth creamy mixture, add in egg yolks. Sift 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder and add into ricotta cream. Blend, then  and add in orange flower water and juice and peel of lemon. Blend

Beat egg whites till firm  with pinch of salt. Add t oricotta mixture blending in with wooden spoon. Drain raisins, dry with paper towel and dust with remaining flour. Add into ricotta cream. Blend in with wooden spoon.

Line a pie pan with baking paper. Place in battter, eve nout batter with wooden spoon. Cook in ove npreheated to 360 degrees for 55 minutes or unti ltop is golden in color.

Get your copy of The Basic Art of Italian Cooking:Holidays & Special Occasions before the holidays with 140+ recipes, menus, Holiday stories and more!

Mangia Bene, Viv Bene,

Maria

http://twitter.com/Marialiberati

I can hear the fireworks outside my office window as I am writing . Alfonso would like to think they are shooting fireworks for his birthday but I know it is for a feast they celebrate in this part of Italy (abruzzo) Saint Antonio. Bonfires are lit in the street and a small  town in the mountains has a week long fest of eating ,processions and more.

This morning into this afternoon we proceeded with assembling the Sacher Tortes into this beautiful creation. Thank goodness we did this in two days. Yeserday we baked the cake layers. Today was filling and frosting..

Luckily I had some apricot marmelade left over from this summer’s preserves that I maade from the farm here. Apricot marmelade is used to fill the cake that has been cut in two. Then the laborious process of making the chocolate glaze begins. First a syrup of water and sugar has to be boiled slowly, then the dark chocolate added and then the mixture has to thicken and cool.

While that is being done 2 tblsps of apricot marmelade and 1 tablespoon of water have to be heated to a boil on the stove. This mixture has to be put through a sieve and then spread on top of the cake before it is iced.

Now it was item for the icing. The chocolate mixture was ooh so creamy and thick. Spreading it took the longest, to get it smooth on top..you know just like in the photos..

More tomorrow, gotta go ..tonight we are tasting the Sacher tortes….

For more great recipes get your copy of the best selling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com

copyright, 2009, Maria Liberati, The Basic Art of Italian Cooking  

Today, (here in the mountains of Abruzzo, Italy) while I was enjoying my colazione (breakfast )with radio station centocinque (105) and listening to Betty give her gossip and advice I began to plan out the recipe for today..sacher torte…

While  the conversation on today’s radio program was about the new website in Japan that talks about places around the world that have memorable aromas (good and bad)  I began thinking of the great perfume of chocolate that will soon be filling The Basic Art of Italian Cooking Kitchen here (in Italy).

Yes that’s right..the famous Austrian  Sacher Torte.. I learned this scrumptious dessert while studying a bit of Austrian delights in Austria a few years back and have been promising to make this for Alfonso’s birthday for a few too many years.

 Now that The Basic Art of Italian Cooking kitchen is here in Italy also and I have some extra hands to assemble everything ..well I decided to begin this experience.. This morning we made and baked the cake, and tomorrow we willassembled the cake.. The smell from the ovens were heavenly…. if you love the odor of melted butter and rich dark chocolate. I am guessing that many people do since we had some locals come by and ask what was ‘in the oven’ today?

Sacher Torte was ‘born’ in Vienna, Austria but is loved all throughout Europe and why not.. it is just as beautiful as it is delicious a dessert and made primarily with dark European chocolate ,butter ,eggs and apricot marmelade and of  course some sugar and flour. No preservatives, chemicals just real ingredients..

It has been awhile since I had my culinary classes in Austria and have not made a Sacher Torte for awhile and almost forgot how laborious a dessert this is..but well worth it.

First to locate ‘farina di frumento’ the flour that will give the cake some substance. Not an easy flour to find, but after a trip to the local shop for professional baker’s in town…I found it..

 Next the measuring out of all ingredients with our scale, then the melting of the dark chocolate on the ‘bain-marie’ (double boiler). Then the creaming of the butter and melted chocolate, then half the sugar. Then beating the egg whites till peaks form.. gently folding in the egg whites and flour and …almost there…..butter and flour the spring form pans, place in batter and cook for about 1 hour at 180 degrees centigrade or 360 degrees fahrenheit.. Well in our oven here they took less than an hour to bake. But the whole process took up all morning into afternoon..

This more than filled our day and by 2 PM we were ready to sit down and eat ‘pranzo’ (lunch). Stay tuned for tomorrow and the assembling of the Sacher Tortes. … and my recipe for the Sacher Torte

For more great recipes get your copy of my best sellling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com

Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene,

Maria

 The day after Christmas was the feast of Santo Stefano. In Abruzzo, what is known as the traditonal cement of Santo Stefano- arrived and covered much of the region..the snow that is.

The eating feasts were still continuing. I had two ‘pranzi’ to get to and decided to eat the first and second course at the first pranzo (luncheon) and then ate desserts and fresh fruit at the second. The only way this could have worked out.

The evening was (brrrrrr) very cold and the traditional ‘mercato’ went off without a hitch since snow in this mountain town is a usual occurrence during the winter Holidays and always to be expected.

But the festa still continues and the eating feasts continue now till January 6^th.

But holidays are always very interesting since many of the residents of this town return for a day or two to visit family and friends during the Holidays. Although many residents, after graduation, leave to pursue their careers in Rome or Milan ,they still miss the quiet and the traditional things that still exist here..the central place that we all know as the piazza. A place where you can catch up with friends that you have not seen for years.

Last night, my better half ran into two of his friends from high school that he had not seen for many years. One has moved to Rome, but told us that he missed the piazza here..a place that you can come to relive memories with friends from the past. Not everyone understands this small town tradition, the piazza, the camaraderie it provides.

It is like a constant in your life..something comforting that you can always be sure of. Even if you move far away..you can be sure that if you go to the piazza at 6:30PM (before dinner) or 10 PM (after dinner) there is usuallly someone to catch up with..you may even find someone that wants to catch a movie or grab a cup of coffee or get a pizza..

Some former residents miss this so much that they drag their spouses back, even if just for Holidays , to experience this with them..and some don’t appreciate this or understand this tradition..as evidenced last night.

A man who had since moved and settled into big city life in Rome and Milan with his wife, had insisted on coming back to visit family and friends and going to the piazza for a few nights to catch up with old friends..However, he announced that his wife just left him without his car, house keys and returned to their house in Rome.

She had announced that if he was not back by 4 PM she was leaving for their house in Rome..alone… and alone he was also. They were staying with his family so he has a bed to sleep in but a way to get back to Rome was his only concern as he tried to make train reservations by cell phone while reminiscing with friends in the piazza.

Not everyone understands or appreciates this old world…. laid back…. style of life and camaraderie..still being able to lose yourself in the conversation of old friends and chatter about nothing important or maybe being able to philosophize about the state of the country or the world or rising gas prices or what your plans are for Capo D’anno (New Year’s).. nothing that will change the world or change your life for that matter..just something that you can always be certain of in this uncertain world..a meeting place filled with friends..

Anyway, here is a fun ,easy to make dessert. The apples are great this time of year and even though we have many desserts left over from holiday get togethers I usually try to make this for an informal get together with friends. Happy Holidays..

Torta Rovesciata alle Mele

(Upside Down Apple Cake)

• 1 ½ cups flour

• 4 ounces butter-softened

• ½ cup sugar

• 1 egg yolk

• 3 fresh apples (granny smith)

Place 2 ounces of softened butter in bowl with flour,1 tbsp sugar and egg yolk. Blend. Add in ½ cup cold water. Mix together with hands. When dough is smooth consistency, place in aluminum foil. Leave in refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 360 degrees. Peel apples and thinly slice. In small sauce pan, caramelize remaining butter with remaining sugar over low heat. Remove from heat just before butter turns golden brown. Pour butter mixture into pie pan, arrange apples on top.

Roll out dough to make pie crust. Place crust on top of apples. Bake in oven for 40 minutes. Remove from oven.

When cooled invert pie pan onto serving dish toll pie comes out. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or small scoop of vanilla gelato.

Mangia Bene, Vivi Bene

Maria

For more great recipes, get your copy of the best selling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking at http://www.marialiberati.com

 fritte miste              San Silvestro 

Weddings in Italy..you can only think of one thing when you hear those words-’never ending food’ or endless buffet, and this was no exception… 

This past weekend I had the ’uber’ pleasure of attending the wedding of a prominent person from our little town here. But the wedding was held in one of the 99 churches of the city of L’Aquila. Imagine, the center  of this city that dates back to the 800′s contains 99 churches. The church we went to was San Silvestro, it was constructed in 1350 and has many frescoes that decorate the walls as well as contains many famous works of art. The wedding ceremony was a long one, as usual. But I just kept thinking about the wonderful 8 hour meal we were going to partake of  once the ceremony was over.

And the meal was a long one- but well worth the wait. The reception was at an agriturismo in L’Aquila called Casa Signorile and they produce eveything in house . The event began with a huge buffet outside that contained everything one could imagine from fresh parmigiano-reggiano cheese to smoked salmon to bruschetta, to fritte miste being made right before your eyes. For wines,paired perfectly were the Trebbiano D’Abruzzo  and Prosecco- to  overflowing.

The buffet seemed never ending and as we all thought the dessert was ready to be served, we were told to go inside and sit at our assigned tables for the dinner. Dinner? what..I thought we just ate dinner. But no that was our appetizer we were told. The dinner was a five course one:

*Fagottini di porcini mushrooms served with a vellutato sauce made with the saffro nproduced locally in the nearby town of Navelli

*Fettucini with melanzane and vongole

*Oven baked rombo (type of fish) with fresh steamed cozze (mussels)

*lemon sorbetto (to clean the palate)

*Porchetta (a typical pork dish made with a lot of spices)

*Oven Baked Potatoes

*Salad

All served with a locally produced heirloom wine-Pecorino

Then it was outside to the dessert buffet tables. Fresh fruits, exotic fruits, sliced watermelon, tiramisu, Italian cream cake, apple pies, creme caramel, panna cotta, meringue and the torte nuziale (wedding cake).

Espresso to finish..

Oh, I think I am losing count… it is not 5 courses but 10 and counting.

I am too full for any more food talk but I will be posting the recipe for the wonderful fritte miste I had at the wedding reception  in the next few days and may I say it was  Buonissimo!!! Stay tuned..