Posts

Showing posts with the label Sicilian culture

Black Friday/Ettore's 5th Birthday

Image
Birthday Boy! By no means am I a "wait in line in the cold for three hours before the store opens" Black Friday shopper, but once that opened up for virtual buys, I was in. We have an advantage here, being seven hours ahead of the time in Minnesota. I'm mainly interested in travel deals and, if I can find the perfect thing, a Christmas gift or two. Skipping makeup or anything following my shower other than throwing on clothes, I went upstairs, where Ettore the Birthday Boy spied one of his gifts I was taking up to wrap.  "Happy Birthday!" He was eyeing the gift and running late for school. " Do you want to take that one now, and open the others later?" I asked, knowing the answer before he took it and ran. Now to do some online shopping. I booked a non-Black Friday deal excursion for Joe's family, for when we're all in Mexico in January: Tulum, cenotes snorkeling, zip lining through the jungle. Good to book now because a group our size is diffi...

Pre-Thanksgiving in Sicily

Image
Elena loves the American Thanksgiving holiday. She's already put in an order with the butcher for a turkey. Ovens here do not have the cavernous openings of US ovens, so turkey is not a popular dish. Maybe also because it's funny tasting and makes you sleepy and gassy? That's what I'd say. I've been commissioned to make pumpkin pie. Also here: - No canned pumpkin or fresh pie pumpkins - No sweetened condensed or evaporated milk - No pie pans I've combed the interwebs to discover there's a huge fan club for homemade butternut squash puree vs canned pumpkin, and people are choosing it over fresh pie pumpkin. Hmmm I'm skeptical. But I've been making a long slow go of it, with some in the oven as I write. There are recipes without sweetened condensed milk, and I've converted a round cake pan into a slanted pie pan ala aluminum foil. I'm also preparing a bread stuffing (which won't be stuffed), and a rice-mushroom-chestnut dressing that I'...

And then there's Monday

Image
I'll confess. I slept in a little. Hot shower, breakfast, and a walk to Le Griffe with Joe, to see if they had a Liu Jo sweatshirt for half price. Yes, but not in my size. No belt for Joe, either, as he's in search of one. A quick stop at the grocer for salad and juice, then we checked out the new panetteria on viale dei Fiore.  I fell for the pretty schiacciata -- pistacchio, burrata, prosciutto -- and a loaf of artisan bread. The schiacciata pieces were the size of half a Dominoes pizza, and twice as thick, but I still was shocked the total of that and the bread came to €10! Until I picked up the wrapped schiacciata. If they charge by weight, this one felt like the first time I picked up my newborn son John. Anyway; it's delicious. Platter of goodness Heavy tray of gift-wrapped schiacciata  New kid in town We really ought to try this pizza, as both Joe's namesake saint and mine have the giglio as their symbol. I made caffè after lunch, washed dishes, did the never-end...

Raccolta di Castagne, pranzo, teatro

Image
This morning, I woke up ready for a lazy day. Not gonna happen. An early email from our neighbor back home notified us that there are signs of a mouse in the house. There's never "a" mouse. This is one of my nightmares. When I think of my reaction, I see a hundred cartoon balloons surrounding my head, with EEK!!!! inside every one of them. What now? I got dressed, went upstairs, made coffee, and shortly afterward, the phone rang. (Joe's still in his bathrobe). "Want to go to the vigna ?" Elena asked, "We are at the front door". I love nothing more than lounging in my pj's, but I've learned my lesson over the years. There is no planning here; only action. Be ready. So Joe stayed home while the women, including Giovanna, and kids drove to the vineyard house. We collected the ripened chestnuts, which fall to the ground after they open, making them easy to harvest. We also gathered the caliceddi , which I just learned are friarielli , the wild,...