5 lbs. of Deliciousness

"Wow, that was a good kebab." I never thought I'd hear those words, but tonight I said them. Out of sheer boredom I decided to give the kebab another chance. I strolled to the closest kebab shop and ordered a wrapped kebab (padine) with everything on it. From chili sauce to yogurt sauce and lamb meat to mustard, the man threw everything on it. It must've weighed nearly 5 lbs. when he handed it to me. The kebab that comes in a wrap is much more pleasant to eat than the panini-style kebab. Not one piece of food fell from my kebab onto my plate. It was a very clean experience compared to my last kebab experience. I ate the entire kebab, even the bottom of the wrap that was soggy with chili and yogurt sauce, and I was still hungry for more. I washed it down with an ice cold can of Coca-Cola and I didn't even get heartburn. I will definitely be back to that kebab shop soon to buy me another 5 lbs. of deliciousness.

Another Cheap Meal

I made some "Tortelloni ai Carciofi" all by myself today. Once again, I surprised myself and it tasted great. It only took about 3-4 minutes to cook and I drenched it with Pomodoro sauce. I bought it at the market for only 1,78. More money saved!

A Cheap Meal

It is now two weeks into my vacation/study abroad trip and my wallet is starting to feel the strain of eating out all the time. I have decided to make a strong effort to cook for myself as much as I can. I do not consider myself a cook by any means. I know how to pour a bowl of cereal and toast a bagel -- that is about it. But when I saw how cheap the pasta is at the market I couldn't resist giving it a try. I bought a package of "Dallari Tagliatellina" for 1,30, a jar of Barilla Basilico tomato sauce for 1,48, a 5-pack of Mars bars for 2,45, and a 1.5 liter bottle of Coca-Cola for 0,99. That is enough ingredients for three meals and it cost 6,22 Euro altogether. That is a measly 2,07 per meal. Cheap! And the Mars bars weren't even necessary; it would have only been 1,25 per meal without them. The best part is that I surprised myself and was successful in cooking the spaghetti and it tasted delicious. I foresee myself eating a lot of spaghetti/Mars bar/Coke meals in the future.

Cooking with Fulvio, Part I

Tonight we had our first of two cooking sessions with the famous Italian cook, Fulvio De Santa. He has cooked for the royal family of England and for Papa Benedetto XVI, so the man clearly knows how to cook. He doesn't speak English well, but with the help of Rala he was able to share his skills and knowledge with us. He let the class participate greatly in the cooking process. This made me enjoy the food even more at the end knowing that I played an active role in making it. We made tasty treats like stuffed tomatoes and panna cotta with strawberry sauce. We even made our own spaghetti from scratch. It was an experience I will never forget.

Panino Giusto

Today I went to Lake Garda with Rala and some classmates. The cold weather prevented us from swimming in the lake, but it did not stop us from enjoying some fine paninis at Panino Giusto Restaurant and Cafe. I ate the "salame di Castell'Arquato stagionato sui colli piacentini." I do not know what that translates to, but it was basically a bunch of salty salami thrown between two rolls. Simple and delicious. For a beverage I drank a German beer called Warsteiner. When I asked why they didn't carry any Italian beers, the waitress gave me a funny look, pointed to the German emblem on her shirt, and in her best English said, "It is a German restaurant." I felt silly. Pictures to come.

Osteria Perbacco

For dinner tonight we went to a small and dimly lit restaurant called Osteria Perbacco. It was literally a hole in the wall and we never would have found the place if it were not in the guide book. I finally felt like I was eating in a traditional and authentic Italian osteria. There were no other diners in there but us. The waiter, and owner of the restaurant I presume, spoke very little English. He appeared delighted to have young Americans in his osteria and he served us extremely well in a friendly and efficient manner. Thus far, the Osteria Perbacco has been my favorite Italian dining experience. As for the food, I ordered pasta with pork, cheese, and mushrooms (figure 1). Genna ordered polenta with ham on top (figure 2). I sampled her polenta since I had never had it before. It was excellent. It had a spongelike texture to it. The ham on top made it easier to digest. Emma ordered orange chicken with a little slab of polenta on the side (figure 3). We washed down our food with some acqua naturale and red house wine. In short, the food was amazing and the prices were cheap. I will definitely be back!

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

Figure 3.

First Post

Unfortunately, my Italian food experience has been pretty limited thus far. Aside from an occasional gelato or margherita pizza, I have not fully immersed myself in the Italian food culture. Hopefully this will change soon.

When I arrived to Verona a week ago from today, I made a trip to the popular Italian supermarket called Pam. Pam is very similar to the American supermarkets that I am used to. The produce is in the front of the store while the frozen goods are in the back. My shopping spree was uneventful. I stuck to the products I was familiar with. I bought some salami, bologna, and bread to make sandwiches; the Italian equivalent of Frosted Flakes called "Frosties" which still had Tony the Tiger gracing the front of the box; some latte for my Frosties; a few cans of Pepsi; a one-euro bottle of wine; and some white chocolate as a reward for surviving the long haul across the Atlantic. Needless to say, the food tasted exactly as it does back home.

During the course of the last week, I have treated myself to some margherita pizzas (soon I will leave my comfort zone and start ordering pizzas with unusual toppings, such as shredded horse meat), risoto con pesce (I was surprised to find that "pesce" was not a whole fish, but rather a couple measly steamers placed on top of a bowl of rice), gelato, and some bottles of Valpolicella wine. Last Tuesday in Venice I ate a "mushroom role" for lunch. It was mushrooms and tomato sauce wrapped in soft bread. While in Venice, I also tasted some Italian beers. Tall bottles of Birra Moretti and Forst costed less than two euros. The deal was too good to pass up!

Today, our class traveled to a Doner Kebab shop to dine on some kebabs and see what all the hype was about. I got my kebab loaded with lamb, chili sauce, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, peppers, French fries, yogurt sauce, ketchup, and mustard. I washed it down with a warm Pepsi. The whole meal cost four euros. I definitely got four euros worth of food, but I don't think I will be returning to the Doner Kebab anytime soon as I am enduring a mean case of heartburn as I type. A kebob similar to the one I ate today is pictured below (picture taken from pt.inmagine.com).