September 12 - 26, 2014 What's Cooking

September 12 - 26, 2014 What's Cooking

After returning from Sicily, I've had two wonderful weeks of settling in and getting a bit of routine.  Loving it.  Loving Bari.  Loving the simple pleasures of life and wonderful friends.  Still can't get over being amazed at all my good fortune... to have gotten to experience so much since March 5th, 2014 is almost more than I can take in.  Nice to have this blog (diary) to go back and 'relive' it.

A little of what that routine looks like:  Sleep until I awaken naturally (the best part of being retired), arise and make my herbal drinks, etc.,  Next, I love my morning devotion time.  After that, I do my floor exercises, then shower and get ready for the day.  Now 1-2 hours of language study... much needed breaks in between :) , especially for espresso!  Almost every afternoon, I try to go to the beach for a swim and a bit of sun, however, it has rained a few different days here, so fall is coming and won't get to do this as much as I have been.  I have loved the rain and thunder and lightening.  Interesting how different the thunder sounds bouncing off all these tall buildings that are so close together and you can hear it rumbling down the narrow streets.  Very interesting sound!  Wind kicking up the seas makes it harder to swim in.

And if the parking spot isn't big enough, angle parking works... :)

The rest of my days and evenings gets varied a lot and then of course, Wednesday and Sunday are church days, so I am gone ALL day on Sunday (8:30am to 8 or 9pm) and all afternoon and evening on Wednesdays.  The other days, I hang out either in person, on the phone/computer or at their home with Cristina and family, Liliana, Teresa and Luigi, Freda & Crengutsa, Mafalda, Mariano, etc.  Many lunchs, dinners, going visiting with Freda and Crengutsa, (Cristina going with me places to be my translator), me going with her to watch the kids so she can get something done :).  Of course school has started now for Aurora and Roberto, so her routine has also changed.  I also spend a good portion of time on my computer, typing up some notes that I have collected through the years.  All in all, I am quiet busy.  Some were worried, I would 'have nothing to do' here!!!... still waiting for that day :)  I had an offer to go to Australia for conventions with Freda, and would LOVE to go, however, I must stay where I am for now and study.  Next time...

 This tree at Caputo's has bloomed all spring, summer and now fall... it is so beautiful

 Cruise ships come and go daily

A walk along the sea behind Caputo's home, with Liliana, Marco, Aurora and Roberto after Sunday lunch on the 14th with all the family.  His folks, and sister, and so many others.

 Cristina is having some issues with her elbow, so has been taking some treatments for it.  I went to the doctors office with her one day.  Aurora (4) tried to tell me something in Italian.  She could see that I was not understanding her, so Cristina, said to Aurora to tell Carmen (said it in English what she should say to me).  Aurora spread both her hands in front of her, palms up and said, "she has had enough time... she needs to speak Italian"!  Oh my goodness, I love children... how funny is this!!

The children love to have me come over there and I love going and being with them.  Another day, Cristina was outside her home speaking in English, and she said both the children came running out saying "Carmen is here, Carmen is here", just because they heard her speak English.  They were so disappointed when they found out I wasn't. :(  I see them at least twice a week.

Planning a meal... well that was a unique challenge.  Spent several days going to the market and reading labels, as well as recipes.  Who knew cooking could be so complicated!   Conversions, conversions!  Grams, ml, liters, celsius. Oh my; but from the happy look on these faces, I think it turned out okay... or maybe it was just the wine talking :)  Anyway, I thought it was fantastic, enough that I will share the recipes as per Ms. Gail's request :)  They will be posted at the end Gail...  enjoy, or should I say. good luck!   One thing I've noticed here, are the tomatoes, lemons and olive oil taste soooo much better!  And also the fresh mozzarella!

 Entertaining in my 'new home' and cooking Italian style.  Luigi, Teresa and Alessandra.  What a fun evening.  Too bad about Luigi's motorcycle lock though, when he went to leave, the wheel lock would not open, so had to leave his motorbike outside on the walk all night.  That night, he said he searched the internet and sure enough... they showed exactly how to break the lock, so next morning he came and broke it.  Not a very restful night for them Teresa said...  He has now purchased a much more secure lock.

Nice to have a 'son' here.  Wonderful young man, enjoying and loving to see the new growth in him... great progress.  Italy needs more just like him and Mariano!

Saturday 20th, AnnaMaria (Teresa's sister) came over and I got my first massage since I've been in Italy.  What luxury to have it done in my own home; how very relaxing and the "price was right"!!  Something I can afford :)

Sunday 21st, after church went to Teresa's and she made Beef Bolognese sauce over noodles and other yummy things for lunch, then we had our wonderful afternoon sietas before evening bible study.  Getting quite use to these siestas, and because everyone does it, it doesn't make me feel old. :)

Monday, did laundry, walked down town a bit.  Not much.  Then in the late afternoon, met with the landlord to inquire if they would let me put up a shelf... got my answer today 26th.. Yes!  Borrowing a drill this afternoon to do just that.  Damiano is a wonderful manager for my apartment.  He speaks excellent English, so makes communication enjoyable!  He said I looked 'relaxed'... nice to hear.  I know I sure am enjoying it here and love my little apartment.  It is just right!  Not too big, but suits my purposes perfectly right now!

  It is above these two white chairs that I want to put the shelf.

Added this picture later after I got the shelf up :)

On Wednesday the 24th, Freda, Crengutsa and I were invited to have 1 pm lunch and spend the afternoon with Mafalda until time for evening church.  Mafalda is a lovely elderly lady who is always doing all she can for everyone, has all her 'wits' about her and is vibrant and just adorable.  Lives in her own very large home and gets around like a much much younger woman.

Now, since I was unable to get a very good physical pictures, I will try to paint a word picture for you... I could hardly believe it and yet it felt and seemed so normal (and of course, it is normal here in Italy!!)  I am just loving 'stepping back in time'!!  A much simpler lifestyle, in so many ways...  Anyway, it tickled my funny bone and still makes me laugh when I think of it...

So picture this:  Mafalda is 82 years old and still drives this 2 door car.  It comes with 'character and personal touchs', reflecting a well used vehicle (keep in mind, no different than all the other cars here though), just not a comfortable feeling to know how close some of the calls were :)

This is my Sunday church group.  Mafalda is in white with hand on g'ma shoulder.

Anyway, Freda, Crengutsa and I rode the bus over to the area where she lives and she insisted on coming to pick us up at the bus stop (otherwise we would have walked... I like walking!!)  When we arrived at the bus stop, we saw this tiny 4 foot, 82 year old lady there to pick us in in this two door :).  Not only that, because there are so many undesirable types that get off at this particular stop, another lady who had gotten off when we did, asked Mafalda if she could please have a ride too.... Okay, that now makes five of us....

So we all pile in.  Freda and I ('fully grown women') and Crengutsa (a bit smaller) all pile in the back seat!!!  and then the other Italian lady is in front and Malfalda is driving.   Oh My!  We looked like pretzels in a tuna can packed in oil (those shocks will never be the same)!  This struck me as so funny, I started laughing and trying not too, as I did not want to offend anyone, but how to stop.  Dug up my camera from the folds and pits and tried to take some pictures, but as you can see, impossible to 'get back far enough'  (understatement!!)

 Crengutsa had to sit sideways... all you can see is her arm

 The only room left in the car was above Mafalda's head... she is only 4 foot!  What a big heart this small woman has!  She wanted to be as helpful as she could, always doing and giving her best.  Knowing people like her really humbles me.

 Crengutsa waiting to slither out :)  Loved it... could hardly believe I was doing this after owning a Lincoln Town Car... one of the biggest land yachts yet, and now this.  How do I say Love, Love, Love being here experiencing these things and who I am experiencing them with!

 Freda at Mafalda's

Lunch at Mafalda's with her grandson, Stefano.  Mafalda is an Awesome cook; everything has such excellent flavor.  Stefano is a very nice young man and such a help to Mafalda.

After lunch, we all took our afternoon 'siesta', then around 4pm I got up and walked over to Caputo's to pick up my mail and to get on the internet and take care of some banking business.  Just before 6 pm, Malfalda and the girls came over for Bible study.  After study, I caught a ride home with Giacinto and Freda & Crengutsa with Giuseppe.  All in all, what a lovely day.

And now, it is Friday again already... time seems to go just as fast as it ever did.  Two weeks gone already.  Two full consecutive weeks in my apartment and I have loved it.  What's really nice is how quiet my apartment is!!! I love quietness!!  Oh, How I love it!  So now, time for more studying....

Ciao!

Recipes:  What's cooking

On the table to be eaten with or at any time:

Take fresh chopped garlic and place on a baking dish in the oven and dry toast until golden brown, but do not scorch.  Cool, spread out on a flat plate, sprinkle with fresh ground sea salt, then pour fresh olive oil over, just to cover the garlic.  Now slice very thin slices of your favorite bread and use these to 'dip' in the garlic/oil, making sure to press down to pick up the garlic pieces.... Yummy!  Actually something I learned in the US some years ago.

1st course: 

Italian Semolina Dumplings.   5 tablespoons semolina flour 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning 1 egg 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 pinch salt DIRECTIONS: 1. Bring to a boil in a medium pot, chicken broth, homemade or otherwise. 2. Stir together the semolina flour, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning in a small bowl; set aside. Whisk together the egg, olive oil, and salt in a larger bowl until smooth. Slowly whisk in the semolina until a soft dough has formed, then leave rest for about 5 min. 3. Drop the dumpling dough by small teaspoonful into the boiling broth. Boil until the dumplings float to the surface, then reduce heat and cook on low until they have grown in size, more than double.  About 4 minutes. Serve hot soup.

2nd course: 

Mozzarella, Tomato, Basil Salad. Ingredients 2 large ripe tomatoes, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick 8 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced 1/4-inch thick 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 8 fresh basil leaves Directions Arrange the tomato and mozzarella slices on a platter or individual salad plates, overlapping the slices and fanning them out like a deck of cards. Sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Drizzle with the oil. Garnish with the basil: Cut it into very thin slices or tear into bits and sprinkle on top or leave the leaves whole and tuck them here and there between the mozzarella and tomato slices. Serve immediately. 3rd Course:  Chicken and Pasta in White Wine Garlic Sauce Ingredients 4 (6 ounce) boneless skinless chicken breasts 1/2 cup water 1 cup dry white wine 1 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, drained 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 1 (6 ounce) cans sliced mushrooms 1 cup finely chopped white onion 1/2 teaspoon oregano 1/2 teaspoon thyme 1/2 teaspoon rosemary 1/2 teaspoon basil 1 bay leaf 2 cloves crushed garlic or 2 cloves minced garlic 1 lb linguine or 1 lb other pastas salt and pepper Directions Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces. Combine chicken in large skillet with water, olive oil, mushrooms, onion, garlic, and spices. Cook until onion is tender. Add tomatoes, wine, salt and pepper to taste. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 15 minutes while preparing pasta, stirring occasionally. Drain pasta al dente,place into serving dish and toss with olive oil. Pour chicken mixture over pasta. Serve with fresh salad and garlic toast. 9 I am very generous with my spices when i make this dish and usually add more than the recipe calls for, but it is quite delicious as written. 10.  Now, I did not want to have pasta this time, so I did not dice the chicken, but left them whole halves, braised them on each side before I put them in the pot, then I just thickened the sauce and used it directly over the chicken on the plate when I served it.   Served it with salad and zucchini. Vegetable and Salad.  Salad was just greens, diced bell pepper, salt & pepper, with olive oil and fresh lemon juice squeezed on just at time of serving. Baked Parmesan Zucchini Crisp, tender zucchini sticks oven-roasted to absolute perfection. It's healthy, nutritious and completely addictive! Ingredients - Always use organic ingredients. 4 zucchini, quartered lengthwise 1/2 cup grated Parmesan 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon dried basil 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder Himalayan salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 2 tablespoons virgin olive oil 2 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves Instructions Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a cooling rack with nonstick spray and place on a baking sheet; set aside. In a small bowl, combine Parmesan, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic powder, salt and pepper, to taste. Place zucchini onto prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan mixture. Place into oven and bake until tender, about 15 minutes. Then broil for 2-3 minutes, or until the crisp and golden brown. Serve immediately, garnished with parsley, if desired. Dessert:  Easy No Bake Lemon Cheesecake Ingredients  397 grams sweetened condensed milk 300 grams cream cheese 285 ml double cream 4 large lemons 12 digestive biscuits (crushed) 80 grams butter Method take 7inch loose bottomed cake tin, melt butter slowly on stove and add the crush digestive biscuits once the butter has been absorbed then turn into loose bottomed tin and pat down gently, refrigerate for the cheesecake mixture, place the soft cheese into a mixing bowl and start to soften with an electric mixer add the sweetened condensed milk slowly, this will ensure no lumps from the cheese remain then add the double cream roll the lemons on the work surface, don't know why but they give up more juice & then squeeze them * note husband's are particularly adept at this part if you have one handy! add the lemon juice to the bowl a bit at a time & you'll find the beautifully creamy mixture starts to thicken once all of the lemon juice has been added then transfer this to the biscuit base and refrigerate for an hour. Enjoy! TIP: If you like some texture and extra lemony tang then add some grated lemon rind Fresh watermelon slices also. THAT WAS SUPPER!!!!  AND OF COURSE, ESPRESSO