A Life, Lived

Wandering Florence

It was wonderful to wake up after a deep night's sleep and realize that I was in Florence again. Paul was still snoring so I gathered my lap top and camera and went to the terrace so I cold update my blog. I enjoyed sitting there, listening to the swallows dive through the air as they hunted mosquitoes, the church bells ringing . . . a peaceful way to get started.

Breakfast at the B and B was as plentiful as I remembered. Of course we ate far more than we should . . . this would be a pattern for the day.

After breakfast we headed out to find the meeting point for our walking tour. We had done the Original Florence Walking Tour when we were first in Florence in 2006 and thought it was a great introduction to the city. We were a bit nervous when we arrived because there was a huge crowd - not being a fan of crowded tours I was wandering about skipping out on it. However, there were three guides and we were split into  smaller, more manageable groups. Most of our group were Americans with a few Brits and Aussies thrown in.

For the next three hours we wandered the city centre learning about the history of Florence, the people who lived there, and the cultural wealth of the city. Our guide, a Native Florentine (the first time we have every had a tour guide in Italy who was actually Italian), was clearly passionate about art.

The walk finished up at 12:30. We were checking the details of our Uffizi reservation when I realized that it was booked for the 31st. Opps This presented a problem as our visit to the Academia gallery was for about the same time. Somehow we'll figure out the dilemma of too much art out today.

We had planned on spending the afternoon at the Uffizi but since we weren't doing that today we suddenly had the gift of free time. Nancy and Joanne decided to go shopping (still no sign of Nancy's luggage), Paul and I went back to the B and B for a nap (stopping en route for pranzo).

We woke up at 4:00 and decided to head out into the world.

I wanted to go up to Piazalle Michaelangelo for the amazing views of the city. We had been advised to cab up and walk back. We managed to catch a cab by the Duomo - a feat in itself because the thunderstorms that had been threatening all day had arrived. Our driver whisked us up into the hills and 7 euros later we were let out at the famous square with a magnificent panoramic view of Florence, Italy.

The clouds had broken so we could stow the umbrellas and be awed by the sight. I am sure the area would have been far more crowded but the rain had done a number on the tourists. We were not complaining.

The view was stunning so we took a gazillion pictures. Our walk back down the hill to the Arno was made happier by the Rose and Japanese gardens we found along the way. The roses were past their best but you could tell how stunning they would have been a few weeks ago.

After crossing the Arno we had to rush a bit to get back to the B and B in order to meet Nancy and Joanne for dinner. Of course we got lost. While we know our way around the central part of Florence fairly well it was foolish to have set out without a map. We used the dome of the Duomo as our guide and eventually made it back to the B and B (after stopping for some shopping and finding Dante's House). We had just enough time to freshen up, change, and head out to the restaurant.

Dinner was at Cucina Del Garga. Part of Florence's culinary history was located on via del moro, Trattoria Garga, which was run by artist Giuliano Gargani and his Canadian wife Sharon Oddson. Wildly painted walls and non-traditional versions of Tuscan recipes were their trademark. Their son Alessandro left Florence and spent 7 years in New York, honing his skills before returning to Florence with his wife to raise his children where he grew up. His restaurant, located a few blocks from the Central Market, carries on in the tradition of his parents.

We had eaten there when we were last in the city and had such a fabulous meal that it was on our list of restaurants to return to.

Happily it was every bit as amazing as we remembered. We were amongst the first people in when they opened the doors but it wasn't long before the place was full. We had an amazing meal - great food, wonderful wine, and laughter. It was one of those meals when you look at our watch at the end and are amazed that 3 hours had whisked by.

 

It was even better because Joanne and Nancy had decided to treat Paul and I. Woo hoo

After dinner we made our way back to the B and B for a well-deserved sleep!

Hello Again Florence

Yesterday was primarily a travel day - full of the joys that travel days bring. A few weeks ago someone post a pic showing air travel in the 1950's vs. air travel now. There is no doubt that in the rush to profit and provide for cheap airfare we've lost some civility.

We flew Air France. The service was great. The food, OK as far as airline food. The four of us were seated in a row which was odd since we had not booked our flights together or even at the some time. We were surrounded by the usual cast of characters (although we were spared 'screaming baby and parent who ignores screaming baby'). We did meet a new travel 'friend' who we dubbed 'coot in desperate need of a shower' - I wished that I had had some body spray to spritz his way. He was seated near Joanne so she got the brunt of it.

I, who never sleeps on a flight, slept not badly.

We connected through Charles de Gaulle.

When we booked the flights there was a tight connection time between our flight and a later flight to Florence. We decided to go with the later flight to make sure we made it. Of course we made it through customs and were at the gate with 90 minutes to spare for the 10:10 flight. We were tempted to try switching the flight to have more time in Florence rather than the airport but were afraid our luggage would get left behind somewhere.

If you're going to be stuck in an airport CDG isn't a bad option. We ate croissants, drank coffee, shopped, and napped. The only thing that would have made it better would have been one of those hotel pods which I LOVED in Schipol in January.

When we finally arrived in Florence our luggage popped off the plane quickly. Our friend Nancy's bag did not. Joanne, Paul, and I were making happy jokes about lost bags but for some reason Nancy was not impressed. She got in line to report what is an epidemic in arrival in Italy this year it seems. Sure enough her bag needed more time in Paris - the 6 hours was just not enough for it. They are promising to have it delivered today.

The cab driver from the airport took us on a route I had never seen before. I could only imagine about what Joanne and Nancy must have thought is their cab had taken them through similar looking areas. :-)

It was wonderful to be welcomed back to Tourist House Ghiberti. This is our third visit here and we were given the best room yet. YEAH

Lorenzo took his time to make sure we knew how everything worked and pointing out the new things since we had last visited. He is a great guy and his attention to detail is like my own but all I could focus on at that point was a need to have a shower. Finally we wrapped up and Paul and I had an opportunity to wash off the travel grime and get settled.

It is unbelievable how something so simple as a shower can make you feel human again!

Feeling refreshed, I popped out to find a wine shop. I do have my priorities you know.

Paul, Nancy, and I sat on the terrace sipping an amazing Sangiovese. Don't think us evil - we saved some for Joanne!

After some time she joined us - fresh from a nap and a shower - and we laughed and giggled for a bit before heading out to explore the city. We wandered around the Duomo area, to the Palazzo Vecchio, through the Uffizi courtyard to the Arno, over to the Ponte Vecchio, back through the Piazza della Republica, and back to the Duomo. Nancy and Joanne had seen many places where they wanted to shop, Paul and I many places where we wanted to eat!

It was 7:30 so we declared it to be 'dinner time'. We went to a spot by the B and B where Paul and I enjoyed our first dinner in Florence all those years ago. It was just as we remembered, rustic, honest fare. The dining room full of locals, and a guy behind the cash desk who would burst into song at the drop of a hat.

We made a mess of ordering with antipasti for some, primi for all, and a secondi for me. By the time we had finished our pasta course Paul was nodding off at the table. I sent him back to the B and B for sleep and Joanne, Nancy and I stayed and chatted while my last course of pork scallopine in a wild mushroom sauce and truffles came. I was able to provide them with their first taste of patate - those amazing roast potatoes with herbs and a hint of garlic. I think they will be ordering roast potatoes with every meal while they are in Italy!

The bill was 73 euro for dinner for 4 and wine for me. Pretty impressive for dinner out in Florence!

The clock indicated that it was 10 when I went to bed - it was an amazing sleep and before you know it it was 6:30 and time to get up.

Right now I am sitting on the terrace with a coffee, and my lap top. The swallows are happily chirping as they dive through the air looking for mosquitoes, church bells ringing in the distance. It is wonderful to be back in Italy!

The Plan

This will be my 6th trip to Italy. People ask why we keep going back and the simple reason is that you can never see it all - this country has more than 25% of the world's cultural heritage locked up in a gorgeous landscape. Then there is the shopping, the food, the wine . . .

The trip is in honour of my 50th birthday later in the year and we're travelling with two of our favourite people - our friends Nancy and Joanne. Traveling with others always makes things a titch more complex - Paul and I are in such sync when we travel. You're not always sure what other people want to do. Happily both Nancy and Joanne have a mind of their own and are more than happy to do their own thing if there is something that they wish to do but we do not.

We'll be travelling together for 11 days and then they head back to Canada.

We fly into Florence where we'll be staying at our favourite B and B in the city: Tourist House Ghiberti.

We have the following things booked for Florence:

• Florence Walking Tour
• Academia Museum
• Uffizi Gallery

Some of the things I hope to do while we're there is to climb the Campanile, head across the Arno to Piazzalle Michangelo for the amazing views of the city, tour Santa Croce, tour the Palazzo Vecchio, and explore the new level of the market.

We have one dinner reservation - a return visit to La Cucina del Garga.

After a much too short visit we'll cab to the airport on Sunday where we'll pick up our cars for the upcoming week of exploring the Val D'orcia.

On the drive south we shall pop into Cortona.

I was able to score a lunch reservation at Osteria del Teatro in Cortona. Many of my friends rave about the place so it will be great to experience it myself.

After lunch we continue south to Montisi where I have rented a house outside of  the wee town for a week - Villa Santa Anna.

Our friends Sandi and Gail will be staying in Montisi while we are there (although I expect Gail will be busy in her partner's restaurant much of the time!) so I expect that one or both of them will be joining in on our fun while we are there.

We do not have a ton planned for this portion of the trip.

So far I have one restaurant reservation:

da Roberto Taverna

I also have two winery reservations:

• Poliziano
• Querciabella

I have also arranged for a full-day tour of Siena with Antonella Piredda.

Other than that things are flexible so we will take the week as it comes.

At the end of the week in the Val D'orica we head north again, Nancy and Joanne to the airport, Paul and I to Verona.

We have never been to Verona before and Paul really wanted to go. The plan is to drop the car off at the airport and cab into our hotel: Hotel Giulietta e Romeo.

I've left this portion of the trip in Paul's hands. He has a list of restaurants he'd like to try and things he'd like to experience. I shall go with the flow!!

After a few days we will hop the train to Venice. I can't believe that this will be my fifth visit to this amazing city. We're booked into our favourite hotel the Hotel Abbazia.

Once again we have no plans at all.

One one day we will meet our SlowTravel friend Jan and her husband Ken for lunch.

On another day we'd like to head out into the lagoon and explore the island of Burano.

Other than that we will just wander . . .

Sadly at the end of all of this wonderfulness we have to come home.

:-(

We're Off!

 . . . and I am beyond excited!

It is a bit of a crazy day today as I will be presenting in Brantford today at 1:00.  I figure I will be finished by by 1:30. I'll drive home and the shuttle to the airport picks us up at 3:15.

Barring an unforseen incident. :-)

However, tomorrow I will be in Florence!!!!

This video will show you why . . .

 

Travel Tuesdays - Eating Italian!

I've been saving the best for last . . .

Tomorrow we leave for Italy and I am so looking forward to the amazing food and drink that we are in for over the next few weeks!

Pan-Seared Salmon with Spinach and Shitake Mushrooms

A few weeks ago our CSA shipment contained a ginormous bag of spinach and some local shitake mushrooms. I was tempted to make a big omelet until I found this recipe on the Fine Cooking website.

It came together quickly and even yet - only made use of one pan. In my books this makes it the perfect week-night meal. Don't get fooled though - the taste and presentation makes it elegant enough to serve to company, or as a special holiday meal.

One word of advice - the recipe calls for 1/4 cup heavy cream (whipping cream). You might be temtped to go low fat. Don't bother making it then. Low-fat cream curdles when used in cooking as the heat just breaks apart the limited fat content. A low-fat Greek yoghurt might be able to stand up to the heat but low-fat cream would not.

Pan-Seared Salmon with Spinach and Shiitake

3-1/2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium shallots, finely chopped
1/2 lb. shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups lightly packed baby spinach leaves
4 6-oz. boneless, skin-on salmon fillets
3 Tbs. fresh lemon juice

Heat 2 Tbs. of the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring often, until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the cream, thyme, 1 tsp. salt, and 1/8 tsp. pepper. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring often, until thickened, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the spinach until wilted. Transfer to a bowl and cover with foil to keep warm. Clean the skillet and return it to the stove.

Heat the remaining 1-1/2 Tbs. oil in the skillet over medium heat. Season the salmon fillets all over with 1 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Arrange the salmon in the skillet skin side up in a single layer and cook, turning once, until golden brown and just cooked through, 7 to 9 minutes total. Transfer the salmon to a large plate.

Mix the lemon juice with 1 Tbs. water, add to the skillet, and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until just thickened, about 30 seconds. Drizzle the pan juices over the salmon and serve with the warm shiitake mixture.

Korean Chicken Wings

A few weeks ago I made a recipe that just may turn out to be my favourite food creation of the year. We had planned an Asian-themed dinner and invited mom to dinner. These wings were spicy but so, so good. In fact, Every time we have seen mom since then she has gone on and on about the wings and how yummy they were.

These wings are incredibly crispy - this is a result of the light batter which contains corn starch. Double-frying the chicken wings is the other secret to achieving the delicate, crackly crust that is the hallmark of this popular Korean specialty.

There is more going on with these wings than a crispy crust though. The sauce is brilliant! It makes liberal use of gochujang, a mixture of miso and hot chiles, which is available at Korean markets or online. We bought a package for a recipe in the fall and had plenty left for these wings. Balancing out the heat are the flavours of garlic, soy, and ginger.

The finished product is quite addictive - a super crunchy wing with a hot sauce that will have your lips tingling from the heat. I guarantee that you won't want to stop eating them (well, unless you're like our friend Nancy who finds pizza sauce to be spicy, in which case don't even bother, just give ME your serving and be done with it!)

Get some gochujang and get busy with these - you may never eat another type of chicken wing.

Korean Chicken Wings

Canola oil, for frying
5 cloves garlic
1 (1½") piece peeled ginger
3 tbsp. soy sauce
3 tbsp. gojujang (Korean chile paste)
1½ tbsp. rice vinegar
1 tbsp. Asian sesame oil
1 tbsp. honey
⅔ cup flour
1 tbsp. cornstarch
16 chicken wings (about 1¾ lbs.)

Pour oil into a 6-qt. pot to a depth of 2". Heat over medium-high heat until a thermometer reads 350˚. Chop garlic and ginger in a food processor. Add soy, gojujang, vinegar, sesame oil, and honey; purée. Put sauce into a bowl.


Whisk flour, cornstarch, and ⅔ cup water in another bowl. Add chicken; toss. Working in 3 batches, fry chicken until golden, 6–8 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Return oil to 350˚. Fry chicken until crisp, 6–8 minutes more. Drain again. Toss chicken in sauce.

Photo Hunt - Yellow

This week's Photo Hunt theme is 'yellow'.

Whenever we're in California we always look for the distinctive yellow In-N-Out decor!

Pay Restaurant Workers a Decent Wage

I've been reading with interest the battle around the world for restaurant workers to earn a decent wage. It really reveals the difference between the national viewpoints when it comes to the idea of 'what is a living salary' and 'what is expected from the state in the social contract with its citizens'.

In North America it seems as if we've bought into this notion that if workers were paid a decent salary business will all fail. Yet we know that is not the case. When the minimum wage was recently raised in Ontario everyone cried that it would harm the economy - yet the opposite happened and the economy picked up steam, as it were.

In Europe restaurant workers are paid a living salary, have access to pensions, benefits, etc which is why you don't tip the way you would at home; serversdo not rely upon tips in orderto survive.With all of that you don't see restaurants floundering across the continent.

It seems to reinforce the notion that if people are paid better they have more disposable income their subsequent economy has a positive impact upon the economy.

This pic making the rounds on facebook reveals more about the situation in Europe . . .

I was shocked to read that in New Mexico servers earn $2.13 an hour and this amount has not increased in 22 years! It is no wonder that so many restaurant workers must rely upon food stamps, and other subsidies in order to survive.

I don't frequent fast food restaurants much any more but if I did I'd have no problem paying a bit more so people can afford to live!

Modern Images of Beauty

Take Part photo editor Lauren Wade wanted to make a point about the way that the excessive use of Photoshop permeates our conceptions of beauty. She reimaged classic works or art to show how they might have looked if they had been painted with today's image of beauty in mind . . .

It certainly rings true when you think of the controversy created last  eek when a lingerie store started using mannequins with protruding rib bones.