Pasta for two: start with 100 to 120 grams of semola flour (in the US, called Semolina–high protein, less gluten than all-purpose, totally different actually), one fresh egg, some fine salt, a fork, and a wooden board (ideally).

Pour your flour into a heap on the board, then plunge your fingers into the center and move [...]

Last night I took my time and made myself an appertifo of sorts: Yellow Fin Tuna Carpaccio (raw, thinly sliced) with a Yuzu-Tarragon sauce. I let the sauce sit on the tuna for about 20 minutes before I ate it so it would all come to room tempreature and the tuna would cook a little [...]

So I had a couple friends over and got all three of my roomates in on dinner tonight, just randomly. I decided during my 2:30-5pm class that I wanted to cook tonight and have people around, so called a few friends who didn’t answer and got a hold of a few others and ended up [...]

I made some Bologna style ragu sauce a couple nights ago (it’s one of my staples) and had leftovers, so for lunch I whipped up some fresh pasta (hand rolled, hand cut, as the people of Emilia-Romagna would have it) and called it a date.

Last night I made my roomates a snack of Fritole, these fabulous yeasty Italian doughnuts with raisins. They’re very easy to make and incredible, so I thought I’d share this traditional recipe.

200 grams all purpose flour
60 grams sugar
1 egg
10gr (or more for faster rising) brewer yeast (Fresh/wet yeast that is kept regrigerated)
200ml milk
50 grams raisins
generous [...]

I have crazy stories about being stranded in Italy, spending an unplanned night in Rome, eating fried chicken in Georgia, getting back to San Francisco and more but mostly I left 10 kilos in Italy. Yep. You can have them, Italy. Send them to the south.

Something sharp is LODGED in my foot after several days at the beach in Levanto. Yesterday the surf was really rough (2nd day of red flag) and i took a beating along the rocky sea floor and as I came out must have hit a sharp rock or a peice of glass or something that [...]

I had a wonderful weekend via smart car in less traveled Italy only to have my purse and everything possibly very valuable to me inside it at the time on the bus ride from the car drop off to my apartment. Mostly I was in Castagnetto Carducci and Bolgheri, but hit San Gimignano and others [...]

Last weekend I took a trip to Cinque Terre and spent a few hours on the way in Pisa (quite underwhelming). Cinque Terre is right up there with Big Sur for favorite places ever and because of its accessibility and the presence of cheap eats and fresh seafood, I might even like it better than [...]

Some moments since I’ve been here, all within Florence as I’ve written seperate entries about trips.