butternut squash spread.

And sadly, the same night as the granola and salad/roasted potatoes dinner, I made one more thing...butternut squash spread.

On the farm, Maria made this delicious pumpkin jam-spread. I used to have it almost everyday for breakfast, with pieces of her bread. It. Was. Phenomenal. I don't think I've ever enjoyed pumpkin that much (aside from pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread and...okay, so I enjoy pumpkin). I went to the store but they didn't have pumpkins (or I couldn't find it...Saino's can get pretty confusing sometimes), so I bought butternut squash. I've made butternut squash muffins before, so I figured that if that came out fabulous, this shouldn't be too bad.

I boiled the butternut squash into oblivion (Maria said she baked the pumpkin) and made a huge pot of mush. I boiled some apple along with it. Some cinnamon, brown sugar, honey, salt, lots of mashing, and TADAAAAA.



Pretty darn good on bread with butter; it's still a bit too savory though. Honestly, the pumpkin would've worked better.
AND THEN I THOUGHT WHY NOT PUT IT IN A TART?
(this post to come later)


x

spring break food part 2: italy (pescosolido).

After Paris, I flew to Italy. I got in late to Pisa airport, so I took a bus to Firenze and stayed with my friend Tori. I left relatively early the next morning for Rome, so I didn't really spend too much time with her (we caught up at dinner when I went back, to be discussed in the upcoming post).

On the way to the train station the next morning, I stopped by my dear old Il Forno bakery and the Mercato Centrale (daily fresh food market) to grab some breakfast. I ate my two bite-sized pastries, one sfoglie (my absolute favorite, although I like them without chocolate), and giant apple on the train. When I tasted the olive oil in the two little guys, I definitely felt some gastronomical nostalgia (why does that sound like a disease?).




So once I got to Rome, I took the metro to Anagnina and then hopped on a bus that took me to Sora (2 hours). Why? Well, I decided that since I was way too lazy to plan 3 weeks of spring break travels in Europe (woah, spoiled much? geez), I'd camp out in one place for a while. I perused www.workaway.info (kind of like wwoofing) and found an agriturismo in Pescosolido (total countryside, next to the Abruzzi National Park) that was willing to take me for 10 nights. In return for room and board, I'd have to work for 4.5 hours each day. Most of the work I did was farm-related (feeding, digging, planting, gathering), but there was also plenty of cleaning and dish washing to be done. Washing dishes after a meal for 18 is surprisingly not that terrible.

Maria did all the cooking. Her food was simple but very delicious and filling! I definitely took mental notes on everything I ate, and since then have tried my own variations. I didn't take too many photos, but here are some of my favorite things:

For breakfast, the volunteers got bread (that Maria baked) and jam/marmalade/jelly. Sometimes Maria made her own, and this one was legitimately the best jam of my life. I asked her what was in it, and she said pumpkin and sugar. That's it.


Here's the bread that Maria makes. I helped her make it once; I think we made 5 loaves. Here's a pitcher of the wine that Guiseppe (Maria's husband, 65, only speaks Italian...I mostly worked with him doing farm things) makes every year. It kind of tasted like a more fruity cider (as in, the alcoholic kind).



He also makes olive oil, from the olives in the groves. It had a VERY strong olive oil taste and was already slightly salty. It complimented the ricotta cheese that Maria would always make from the goats milk that I would bring in every morning from the barn (sounds romantic, doesn't it?).



Here's Giuseppe's olive oil with sprigs of Sicilian basil. I swear, I'm doing this at home. Next to it is a jar of peperoncino aka hot pepper, a favorite of Giuseppe's. He always stressed that everything he made was biologico and had no chemicals.



Aaaand the final photo? The baby goat (yes, from the farm) that the family ate for Easter, next to the fire it was roasted on.




x

spring break food part 1: paris.

I just came back from a three week easter break (SO LONG!). As I uploaded my photos onto my computer, I realized that most of them were of food...I think this food obsession is getting serious.

I started my break with two nights in Paris, France. I stayed with my dear friend Anna. She is spending the semester there, attending various schools (so I understand?) and living by herself in a cute little apartment in the eleventh arrondisement. I wish I had taken photos of it, but obviously I was a bit more focused on food.

After I dropped her off at school the next morning, I went off to explore the Marais (third) district with an almond croissant in hand (that was WAY too sweet!). Last time I was in Paris, I ran around doing all the very touristy things, so this time around I felt less pressured to do that. I'm really glad I explored the Marais, because I hadn't before, and one full day was perfect for it! My morning started with an espresso and map reading. I still don't think I enjoy Lavazza espresso. It's a bit too bitter for me.



I met up with Anna and we decided to track down some lunch. Walking through the Marais, we decided to hit up this falafel place that had a huge line with lots of Japanese people. We Japanese do hardcore research before going anywhere, so I knew it would be fabulous. Oh, and it was. Best falafel of my LIFE. There was a perfect balance of creamy, spicy, sweet, and crunchy. AND there was no funky aftertaste, which is a HUGE plus.



Although the falafel had no terrible aftertaste, we had to get some dessert. Neither of us had ever eaten at Ladurée, so we decided to splurge and get ourselves one of those famous double-decker macarons.



We thought the price was a bit outrageous, but once we took a bite we realized why...they were perfect! I got the vanilla and Anna got violet. I could totally taste the vanilla (and not just that crappy vanilla flavoring, but the real stuff) and the consistency of the meringuey top with the marzipany middle together was the perfect soft crunch.

The next day Anna took me to a quaint vegan café.



Anna got the pumpkin one, with what I think were azuki beans on the bottom. I got the slice of satsuma potatoes with carrot shavings on top. Both were in a (kind of dry...) whole wheat crust. The fillings were perfect though! I might have thrown on a bit of sesame salt, but I love salt, so I think otherwise it would have been fine.

And of course, dessert follows lunch! So we bought a slice of apple pie-ish thing. I was expecting something sweet (I feel like all apple pies are overly sweet), but this one was just right! And that's coming from someone who was kind of sick at the time. I think we agreed that a little dash of cinnamon or nutmeg on top would've given it a little extra something, but what we got was pretty damn good. I think there was a layer of oats below the apple. I just wished the crust weren't the same as the other savory slices we got earlier.



All of that with unlimited anise tea (which, surprisingly, I enjoyed). x