Italian Cooking

Walking back to our hotel after a great meal

(Sami here) One of my goals for the trip was to learn a little bit about Italian cooking. I have always wanted to master a few good Italian dishes. When we were on our own in Rome we tried to find places that were not geared to tourists. That was pretty easy because friends who lived there and travel there a lot gave us suggestions, and Italians eat out a lot so there are lots of places locals lot. Only twice did we have a ho-hum meal and that was the two times a meal was part of a tour. In fact, we were so intent on eating the food that we almost never photographed it (can you imagine that?!) In spite of that, here are a few of the things I learned...

> Good Italian food is subtle. By that I mean it is not starkly tomato-y or garlicky and is often understated and very complex. > Pasta is not a backdrop, but a centerpiece. Good pasta tastes wonderful. >  Italians love vegetables. They are in many, many dishes. > Its always easy to get a table in Rome if you like to eat before 8 o’clock at night.

Fresh fruit and vegetable market in a little plaza where we had lunch. The leaves at the right are part of the most beautiful celery I've ever seen.

I did take a photo of the tiramisu we shared at L’Enoteca Antica, on Vila Dela Croce the second night in Rome. It was the best I have ever eaten and it was presented so beautifully.

The cocoa used in this tiramisu was the best I ever tasted.

During the cruise I went to an Italian cooking class which was lots of fun and I learned a lot. We made Saltimbocca Romana Style, (a veal, mozzarella and prosciutto dish that means “jumps in your mouth”), Wild Mushroom Risotto (with shredded confit of duck), also an angel hair pasta with cherry tomatoes, basil and lemon, and Tiramisu. Our teacher was one of the ship’s chefs, a man from Mexico City - a man who seems to live to cook.

The wine everywhere was good, but after a while Don craved a glass of beer.

By-jingo! The beer is good too!