Near the Finish Line....

Wow!!! Five months have and gone.

Upcoming will be the last week for me at Al Vedel. That went by fast.

I can honestly say that I learned tons, and on many levels. But at the same time, I can also see that this same amount is a mere dr0p in a huge bucket that comprises the grand cooking traditions of Italy.

The restaurant closes 6 July. I'm sure we'll have some semi-big celebration, and then everyone will go on vacation for about a month. Why don't we in USA-land do vacations like this? My vacation will be as a tourist - I will visit Lake Garda, Liguria, several towns in Tuscany, and finally Rome. Come early August, I will be a Californian again.

Whew!!!

And I will be able to play Fetch once again with my dog on the beach...

Lo Storione

Storione is the Italian name for sturgeon. I think that, served in a smaller portioning, this would be a great appetizer in the U.S.

Chef Matteo has been selling this dish like crazy. It is a study of various contrasts: lean and rich, soft and crunchy. The lean is the storione - cut into large cubes and sauteed in a very hot pan to get that crusty caramelization. The rich is foie gras, also cubed large and beautifully caramelized. The crunchy is a refreshing salad of julienned celery and carrots, dressed simply with olive oil, salt and pepper. All these are nestled atop a pea sauce - peas cooked in bacon or pancetta fat with a pinch of salt and sugar, which are then pureed. Whole peas finish the decoration.

Rich, and yet light - you'll come away feeling comfortable and refreshed.

Progress Report from Al Vedel....

It occurred to me a few days ago that I have been preparing a vast majority of the fresh pasta at Al Vedel, from simple to filled pastas. I feel pretty proud of this....

Little ol' me, an American making and serving fresh pasta to Italians, in their own country. A few months ago, if you were to tell me I'd be doing what I'm doing now, I would have looked at you funny....

Over one stretch of two weekends I must have made around 2500 pieces of the various filled pastas we serve, mostly Tortelli Erbetta. This includes a day where I made over 1000 pieces...

Where is my massage therapist when I need one????

Chocolate Gelato!!!!!!

Beware!!!!

It's Gelato Season!!!!

Gelato is not merely ice cream. Nooooooo. It is much more than that. It is a conspiracy. It is cruel. In fact, I cannot think of many more diversionary tortures in Life than this.

Gelato is devious. It has telepathic powers. It can, and will, control you. It works like this: Imagine yourself walking somewhere, perhaps for a hair appointment, perhaps home. Suddenly, you are abruptly yanked by your ear into the gelateria, and a cup of your favorite gelato appears in one hand. Inexplicably, the other hand moves to place a morsel of this gelato on your tongue. You feel powerless. No. You are powerless. Paralyzed.

You are levitated to another dimension that you cannot touch or hear. It seems that you can perceive the world (as you know it) around you, but just the same, it seems very far away. At this moment, it is just you, and that gelato. You are compelled to consume it. You find that you actually enjoy its company. Then, suddenly, inexorably:

It is just you, and your gelato. There is nothing else.

And it is at this moment that the gelato has you, not the other way around, as most people would believe.

I've had quite a number of these moments while here in Italy, and unfortunately for me, I don't regret any of them. Some of my best out-of-body gelato experiences have been in Jesi, where there is a small bar that produces some of the best gelato in all of Italy.

But I digress. Take heed and be warned: Gelato is actually a experimental vehicle for an extraterrestrial being that is looking to take over the earth. This is fact, and yet you see untold numbers of humans being consumed by gelato.

We must be vigilant!!!

OK - all kidding aside - my latest ritual on my days off are this: on my way back to my bus stop, I stop in at my favorite gelateria, and then ooze my way to said bus stop in sheer bliss over silky smooth choco gelato....