Irene in Rome: Hiatus in Oregon

Monday, December 15, 2008

Hiatus in Oregon

Happy Holidays Blog Followers! I am on hiatus in Oregon at the moment. Hopefully, I will actually see most of my blog readers over the upcoming weeks. I look forward to starting up the blog again when I return to Rome which should be about mid-January. I will send out an email to let everyone know when I'm back to writing. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking the time out of your busy schedules to spend a few minutes reading what I have to say.

I wish all of you the happiest of holidays, with good friends, good food, and most of all, joyous times with your families.

With love,
Irene

3 comments:

Unknown said...: Ah.. going back a bit. Donna Leon, yeah she is a great quick read that gives you a good insight into Venice. And the realtionship that the Commissioner has with all the various characters including his father-in-law makes for a good story.

Have a great time in Oregon. Look forward to seeing you again in Rome. Thanks for sharing that special evening with us at the Morandi concert.; December 16, 2008 at 12:31 PM
Anonymous said...: nice work irene; January 7, 2009 at 12:03 PM
Anonymous said...: hi irene checking out the site love kathy; January 7, 2009 at 12:06 PM

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Chard with Potatoes and Sausage

The other day, my friend Joanne Miale took me for a walk through fields near the ruins of Ostia Antica. As we walked along, she pointed out wild chard growing alongside the path. We immediately whipped out plastic bags that we both happened to be carrying and started picking. Here’s what I did with my share: Wash the chard carefully and roughly chop. Plunge into boiling, salted water and simmer until tender, but not mushy. Drain and when cool, squeeze out the excess water. The sausages in this recipe were two leftover sausages from a previous dinner which I diced up. Heat up some olive oil in a large frying pan. Add cubed potatoes. When the potatoes begin to become golden, add some chopped onion and a minced garlic clove. At this point, the smell will drive you crazy. Add the chopped cooked sausage, and once that has heated up, season with salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and Cavender’s. Toss in the squeezed chard and break it up into the potato mixture. Once it’s all evenly mixed up, and you’ve double checked for seasonings, it’s ready to serve in a bowl with freshly grated parmesan on top. A very yummy, hearty one dish meal!
I know what you’re thinking…..aren’t we overdoing the starches a little here? But really, this was so delicious. The recipe was given to me by a new friend here in Rome, Amy Vestito. It’s something she cooks all the time for her family, and when the boys come for spring break, I’m going to make it for them. They’re going to love it! Heat up some olive oil in a large frying pan and add diced potatoes. As they begin to cook, add chopped onions and chopped bacon (I use the chopped pancetta that is similar to something that Trader Joe’s carries). Meanwhile, heat a pot of water for the pasta. Once the water is boiling throw in some coarse salt and add ditali pasta. It’s a smallish tube shaped pasta. When the potatoes are golden, add tomato sauce, and the drained pasta. Save some of the drained pasta water to loosen the sauce if you need to. I also added some chopped red bell pepper when I added the onions, and little slivers of sundried tomatoes. Season to taste and serve sprinkled with freshly grated pecorino.
I'm not cooking much on this trip to India. I've pretty much taken all of my spices to Rome. Dennis and I seriously miss Indian food when we are away from India. The food here is so indescribably tasty. I've tried to duplicate it but it never works for me. I can't get the spices down right. I thought I'd share with you a picture of some of the great fruit we get here. I buy it from a local guy who sells it off a cart down the street from our apartment. Papayas and mangos are fabulous here, and my fruit man has never failed me when I've asked him to find me a "ready" one. Fresh figs, which are one of my favorite treats are abundant this time of year. I have four waiting for me in the apt. now. Adorable little melons are always so sweet, and the tiniest of bananas are much more flavor filled than the big ones I eat elsewhere. Yesteday, I bought a giant papaya, a small melon, four figs, and six small bananas for the equivalent of about US$3.00

What I'm Reading

The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers. I must admit, I’m not finished with this book. I’m currently about half way through, but I’m loving every word of it. Carson McCullers was only 23 years old when she wrote this book in 1940. It’s an amazing feat as she writes with such depth of knowledge. The book is set in a small town in the south and was probably current when she wrote it. The characters are fabulous, and whether black or white, she makes each one such an individual. We get a picture of life on the poorest side of town back then, and as we learn more about each character, it’s never enough; we want more. Highly recommend
Slumdog Millionaire by Vikas Swarup
I recently finished Ghostwalker by Rebecca Stott. It was just ok to me. It was one of those novels that kind of traveled back and forth between current day, and the past and had to do with Isaac Newton. It was a mystery, but I think the author was trying to cover too many angles or something. I just was not captured by it. I was finishing it just to finish it which is always a disappointment. Right now, I'm reading a David Baldacci novel called Stone Cold. I know, I know....it's trash. But I love it! It's a beach read, a page turner, whatever you want to call it. It's a good airplane novel. I promise I'll read something denser when I'm done with this one. Have you all seen the movie Slumdog Millionaire yet? I've heard nothing but good things about it, so I bought the book yesterday. Not sure if that's what I'll read next, but I think I want to get it read before I see the movie.

What's new on the Ipod

As I write this I’m listening to Chris Isaak. I just love the majority of his Heart Shaped World album. It’s quite old; I’ve been listening to it for years it seems, but I never get tired of it. And the song “Wicked Game” is one of my “desert island” songs. You know; if you were stranded on a desert island and could only listen to three songs ever again which would you choose? “Wicked Game” would be one of mine.
Now that I’m going to be in one place for a while, I’m looking forward to spending some time sampling new music to download. One of the albums I’m looking forward to sampling is Coldplay’s latest entitled Viva la Vida. I’m sure you have all heard songs from this album as have I. But, I have not listened to the whole thing to determine whether I want to buy it all, or pick out bits and pieces. Until then, I must say I have been very happy listening to their Parachutes album many times.
I actually haven't been listening to my Ipod much lately, as I've been so on the move. But last night, as a form of exercise, I listened to my "What's Cooking" playlist which is the one I listen to when I'm doing serious cooking. It's a list of songs that really gets me moving and makes me dance around the kitchen. I decided to give it a listen and dance around the apt. as a form of exercise, as I don't get much of that when I'm in India. Anyway, my favorite dance song right now is "Let it Roll" by Seal. Every time I hear it, I have to get out of my chair. I would love to hear what everyone else's favorite dance song is so I can add to my playlist. What's yours?