Buongiorno tutti,
Come state? Or 'how are you all? Like so many others all around the world right now, we are still in quarantine here in Piedmont until at least Thursday but happily feeling a lot better! I hope you’re keeping well too.
Whilst we don’t have a lot of exciting news to report from the last weeks, I have been getting a crash course in Italian cinema courtesy of my partner Andrea. If you love Italian films or would like to add a few to your list for language practice, I’ll share some with you at the end of this email.
A few weeks ago, I also recorded a new podcast episode all about the delicious food and wine you can find in my Italian home - the region Piedmont. For some reason, Piedmont often flies under the radar for most tourists especially for Americans, Australians and Brits, (unless they’re really into Italian wine aka Barolo.) When I was living in Australia, I don’t remember ever hearing about the region, much less their cuisine, except for an episode of Jamie Oliver’s Cooking with the Nonnas. However, this region is an absolute food lover’s dream! I’ll tell you more about it below - warning, don’t read (or listen) while you’re hungry.
Finally, I also wanted to remind you about our Untold Italy tours in 2022. I know travel might be far from people’s minds at the moment with the latest COVID wave, and that’s completely understandable. Whilst the situation is fluid, one thing we do know is that Italy enjoyed a fantastic Spring, Summer and Autumn season last year and I’m quite hopeful that this year will be the same (if not even better!) If you are planning on coming to Italy this year (hooray!), make sure to take out comprehensive travel insurance as soon as you book your trip.
Delicious Dishes from Piedmont Podcast
Want to discover the food of this regal region? Have a listen to the Untold Italy travel podcast I recorded with my friend Katy. We speak all about some of the most typical food and produce of the region and unpack a typical menu you could expect to enjoy here (or on one of our Piedmont tours).
Here are some of the classic dishes you’ll find on a trip here:
Vitello tonnato: thin slices of veal topped with a creamy tuna sauce and caperberries
Battuta al coltello: carne cruda
Insalata russa: Also found in other regions, it’s a delicious salad
Agnolotti al plin: typical stuffed pasta
Tajarin: rich egg yolk pasta also known as tagliolini
Fritto misto: Fried mix of vegetables, meat, and even fruit
Bagna cauda: Hot sauce made with parsley, anchovies and garlic
Brasato al Barolo: Braised veal cooked in a bottle of Barolo
Bunet: Chocolate flan
Zabaione: dessert made with egg yolks, sugar and marsala
Torcetti biscuits
Panna cotta: Traditionally from Piemonte!
Untold Italy Tours Departing 2022
I wanted to remind you about the immersive small group tours we are running this year. Our Untold Italy tours are nothing like those big bus tours you might have been on yourself or heard about (no Contiki, Top Deck, Trafalgar vibes here). Instead, they are small groups only (max 12-14 people), feature boutique accommodation (4 star and above), visit local family-run wineries (no mass tourism options here), focus on phenomenal food & wine (think slow food, and organic wine), and put the focus on slow travel - allowing you to stay in each place a little longer and really get a feel for the region (whilst still slotting in with a 2-week itinerary so you can include somewhere else on your trip). Each tour includes interesting local guides who will help us bring to life the places we visit and authentic experiences (like cooking classes with a local school, olive oil groves, truffle hunting, boat rides).
Above all, perhaps the reason why the Untold Italy tours are so different to what you might have seen before, is because we’ve created the tours that we would like to go on, and the places we’d take our family and friends to.
I’d be beyond thrilled to host you on these tours and introduce you to each of these stunning regions!
Piedmont Tours: Food & wine paradise, royal connections & beautiful towns
Choose from our Spring tour (16-20 May), or our Autumn tour complete with the white truffle festival in Alba (26-30 October).
Mermaid Coast (Cilento + Capri) Tour:
Just one special tour running on May 24-30. Three nights in the Cilento Coast and three nights in magical Capri.
Puglia Tours: Ancient Land, Sea breezes, enduring traditions
Choose from our early Spring/Summer tour (June 3-9) or our late Summer version (September 16-20).
Umbria Tours: Hilltop towns, rustic flavours, vines for miles
Choose from our summer tour complete with a trip to the once a year only Infiorata flower festival (June 13-19), or the cosy Autumn version (November 7-13).
Recipe: Garganelli Pasta with Zucchine and Guanciale
In my last newsletter, I promised to share a delicious recipe with you that my partner Andrea made for us recently. Having an Italiano lovingly handmake you pasta for lunch while singing to some classic Italian ballads is what my dreams are made of, and I was swooning over his pasta (just as much as over him!)
Serves 2-3
Pasta Ingredients:
200g flour tipo 00
2 eggs + 1 extra egg yolk
Sauce Ingredients:
x2 zucchini, one sliced into thin rounds and the other grated
100g guanciale, sliced into thick batons
Extra virgin olive oil
1 clove of garlic, crushed
Method
Begin by pouring a mound of flour onto a wooden board and making a hole in the middle. Crack your eggs into the hole and use a fork to whisk slowly into the flour, gradually incorporating more flour into the liquid. When it’s too difficult to continue using the fork switch to your hands and knead for at least 10 minutes until your dough is smooth. Tip a bowl over the top of your dough and rest for 30 mins.
Pour some olive oil into a heavy-based saucepan and gently infuse the garlic into the oil on a low heat. When it’s aromatic, add your zucchini to the pan and cook for 10-15 minutes until soft.
In a separate frying pan, cook your guanciale batons on a high heat. No oil needed! When crispy, you can add to the pan with your zucchini as well as a tablespoon of the delicious fat from the pan.
Pasta- divide your pasta dough into four even pieces. Work with one piece at a time and keep the others covered with the bowl so they don’t dry out. Flatten a piece of dough lightly with a rolling pin into a rectangular shape. Roll through a pasta machine from the thickest setting to the third setting, before folding into a ‘book’ and repeating three times. On the third time you can proceed to roll your dough through all the way to the thinnest setting.
To roll the garganelli- Cut your pasta sheet into little squares. Take one square, and roll it up on the end of a wooden spoon. Gently press it into and roll it out onto a wooden gnocchi/cavatelli board.
To cook your pasta bring a large pot of water to the boiling and salt well. Your pasta will cook in literally 1-2 minutes. Toss into the zucchini sauce and serve with lots of grated Parmigiano Reggiano.
5 Italian Films to Watch
Watching a film in Italian with the subtitles on (in Italian of course) is a great way to improve and practice your language skills. Here are some classics I was introduced to in the last week by my Italiano:
Mediterraneo: From 1991. Set during WW2 when a group of Italian soldiers wind up on a deserted Greek island. Oscar winner!
Il Ciclone: From 1996. Set in dreamy Tuscany (the province of Arezzo to be specific). It’s a romantic comedy and you’ll love it for the story just as much as for the views!
Il Postino: From 1994. Set on the Aeolian Island Salina, it is about a local man (the postman) who falls in love with a local girl, whilst befriending a famous Chilean poet staying on the island.
Tre uomini e una gamba: From 1997. Literally called ‘three men and a leg’ and it’s a hilarious roadtrip movie that starts in Milan and ends in Puglia on the way to the main character’s wedding.
Chiedimi se sono felice: From 2000. Means ‘Ask me if I’m happy’ and features the same trio of comedians as the previous film. A story of friendship.
Wishing you a beautiful week in what has been a bit of a crazy start to the new year. I hope you keep well and your travel dreams in Italy are well and truly alive for 2022. Hope to write to you next when we are able to leave the house. We have been talking about an immediate trip to Le Langhe (the wine region in Piedmont) and visits to some wineries that we’ve been wanting to try for a while. I look forward to sharing with you all!
x Liv