A quick preface to this entry. This is something I had written and put aside a couple of years ago, but I was reminiscing about Italy, with all of the dire news we have been hearing from the region, so finished it off, so we can remember more pleasant times.
We recently returned from a trip to Tuscany and Umbria in Italy. This trip has been in our minds for quite a few years, but has been put off for various reasons. A few different circumstances came together to create a unique opportunity. A Tuscan farmhouse, a saltwater pool, good friends on a hill in the middle of nowhere…. Who could ask for more?
This was our home base for 2 weeks, our trio and good friends Chris and Rosemary. It literally took 15 minutes to weave down the driveway to the main road, past the donkeys. Our time away was about visiting some of the hill towns and exploring Italian history, culture and of course food. We even had an outdoor kitchen, with a wood burning oven.
Part of the fun for us, was to learn new ingredients, and new techniques and then try them, back at the farmhouse, with local produce. The first few days, we decompressed at the house, while our friends made forays out to the local stores, for supplies. It was kind of like a mystery box challenge on TV…. Here’s what you have to work with, now go! So much fun, but our judges were nicer. Some of the selections were caprese salad, grilled Caesar salad, grilled peppers and Italian eggplant, chicken roulade with prosciutto, and grilled stone fruit.
One of our first day trips was to the hill town of Gubbio. We saw that they had an outdoor market. I did not expect to see such a large market, with not only produce and meats, but almost anything you could think of. This is a little gem of a town, which will always be special to me, because it was my first…. With a backpack of fresh, local produce and a sack of local truffles, among other finds, we were inspired. We found a cute café, on a side street, for lunch, and were very impressed with the food and presentation. Shawn was particularly inspired by a pear salad, and no wonder, it was a revelation. I had a ravioli, with truffles. It was surprising the amount of truffle they used, and also that it used local honey.
Wednesday was a very moving day for me. We drove to Asissi, where St Francis received his calling, to “save His church”. Seeing pilgrims in homespun robes walking, as we drove through town, walking toward the shrines of this ancient city was inspiring. We spent the day wandering the city and shops, and visited the church of St Chiara (St Clair). The church of St Francis is just an amazing building, that needs to be seen to be described. I was just very moved at how close we could get to the actual reliquary of the saint. Then there is the main Piazza, just bustling with visitors. It being the hottest day, we were glad to get back to our pool and a lighter meal, well for us….
Caprese salad 
This also marked Shawn’s first attempt to replicate that beautiful pear and arugula salad. There is something special about using local ingredients, to make local dishes.
I cannot go into all of the places we visited and food we tried, then tried to replicate, but some highlights were our trips to Cortona, with the matins service and Santa Marguretta and the lovely Etruscan museum, and lunch by the Duomo, overlooking the valleys below. Our second trip here, was outr first try of the local pizza. No matter where you go, the pizza has a different style. There is no authentic Italian pizza. It is truly a regional dish. Now we need a serious moment…. The wine…. we had a wine tasting in a winery off the piazza, featuring the local Syrah, valpolecello, and super tuscans. What a treat to finally try some great local wines, in such a historic place…..
Being in Arezzo for the Feast of the Annunciation was special. The legend of the true cross frescoes were beautiful. The famous Piazza where we had lunch was lovely. This is were in the movie La vita e bella they rode on the bike and he said “buttare giù la chiave.” We even bought and completed the puzzle of the piazza. I’m not going to tell tales, but the wine tastings here were a highlight as well. I sense a theme starting.
We had a quick trip to Florence mid-trip, to pickup Trish from the airport and got to see the Pont de Vecchio, the Duomo and the Statue of David, among other things.
Montepulciano was a special trip. So much to see, but let’s face it, it’s really all about the wine here. The vino nobile and super tuscans were superb…. The vinsanto was quite the pleasant surprise.
Now to something more serious, that I hinted on earlier. … Pizza. We had a wood fired pizza oven, on the property. I definitely could not resist. So after a few youtube videos, I was ready. Or so I thought. I wish I had pictures of some of the failures… First we need to remember that for some reason in Italy, the labels are in Italian…. So buying yeast, for pizza is an adventure. The first yeast was not really yeast. The second try did not rise. Then we finally had a proper dough, thanks to Rosemary. We got the wood burning in the oven, waited until the roof of the oven turned white, banked the coals….. now time for real Italian pizza….. If the pizza will come off of the pizza spill and into the oven….. I swear that some of that first pizza is still in the oven to this day. Well we had to finish a couple on the BBQ, and it may not have been the best pizza I have had, but it was truly good and as traditional as we could get. Then the cinghiale came….. a big wild boar, right by the gate. I shooed him away, but he was beautiful.
Now I know this is a food blog.. so lets get a few more food pics in here…
pappa al pomodoro 
Grilled peppers and Italian eggpalnt 
AND most important Shawn perfected the pear salad!!! I might have helped with the cheese…
That’s a lot of cheese…. It’s kind of fun, while we are isolated to remember being able to travel, gather together, and be in crowds. I can hardly imagine what Italy is suffering through now. The towns that I think of as bustling with tourists, looking empty and lost. Then there is the tragic loss of life, and the suffering of those who remain. My heart goes out.
Such a good time to share memories of Italy. Mille grazie!
This post literally made me weep, remembering good old friends and good old times and the wonderful.meals you prepared for.us in that wonderful summer. Pray for Italy. Pray for us.
I’ve been thinking about our trip a lot lately too. So many incredible memories. The amazing food and wine. The many laughs and wonderful conversations. All of our adventures. And I can’t help thinking about the locals we interacted with. How many of the fabulous people we met might have been affected by all this. It breaks my heart.
Thanks for posting this Dave! It brings back wonderful memories of sunshine, wonderful food and time with good friends. Looking forward to another holiday with you in the future!