Sept 15, more lunch. More caprese (too good to pass up), olives, sliced meats, a bit of bread.
Sept 15, lunch. A fig. Fresh.
Sept 15, dinner. I fried up some zucchini blossoms (stuffed with Gruyere cheese and sardines) and sage leaves as an antipasto. Used a VERY thick batter. Flour and water only, with an egg because I couldn't resist.
Sept 15, dinner. Little heart-shaped stuff pasta with parm, ricotta, and lemon. Served with a brown butter and sage sauce I cooked up out of sage growing outside the kitchen door. Jan wanted more sage. I was happy. This was with Jan, Craig and Eileen, and Pam and Bill.
Sept 15, dessert. Eileen cut up some pineapple. Very good end.
Sept 15, dessert. I picked up some 'gourmet' german chocolate in Frankfurt, including this one with habanero, another variety with pepper, and normal dark chocolate. They were interesting, and tasty. I think that the chocolate could have been better, but the spicing was perfect.
Sept 16, breakfast. At Colle delle Querce, a cappuccino, two figs, and some grapefruit juice.
Sept 16, snack. At the Bar outside La Consolazione, a beautiful Bramante cathedral in Todi, a cappuccino.
Sept 16, lunch. At Le Noci in Grutti, this antipasto plate has a bit of everything on it. With Jan, Craig and Eileen, and Alysse and Francesco.
Sept 16, lunch. At Le Noci in Grutti. Some tartufo nero on a pasta, probably a strangozzi.
Sept 16, lunch. Sharing a plate of "misto," mixed grilled meats. A bit of pork, a bit of wild boar, and some lamb.
Sept 16, lunch. A contorno at lunch of green beans, boiled, with a bit of lemon. I think that these were not the best beans I have ever had in Italy. But still good. At Le Noci in Grutti.
Sept 16, lunch. A plate of biscotti from Le Noci in Grutti. They fill up the plate and pass it around; any you don't eat, you can take home. All were good.
Sept 16, lunch. More dessert. We wanted to know what a Portuguese Cream was, so they brought one out. I still don't know. It's essentially a creme caramel, but I'm not sure how it's different from a creme caramel. Life is full of mysteries.
Sept 16, lunch. One last course: vin santo and tozzetti. That's a big lunch. At Le Noci in Grutti. Rustic, but very nice and outstanding service. A patio outside if the weather is nice.
Sept 16, dinner. Salad. After a lunch like that, who can eat. And some vegetables. I cooked, at Colle delle Querce. With Craig and Eileen, Jan, and Alysse and Francesco. And Homey.
Sept 16, dinner. A contorno of some eggplant, zucchini, and prosciutto.
Sept 17, breakfast. A cappuccino at Nilo's Bar in Ponte Rio.
Sept 17, lunch. A small disaster. We went to Cartoceto to find the lunch at the Hotel Symposium, which was supposed to be wonderful. Except it was closed and locked up (end of season), so we ended up in the town square at Cartoceto, eating leftovers the bar had. In this case, tunafish and mayo.
Sept 17, snack. Some Baci gelato at a bar in one of the main squares in Urbino. Expensive at 4.50, but you're paying for the table view of the square (Piazza della Republica)
Sept 17, dinner. Starter at the Ristorante La Fornace di Mastro Giorgio in Gubbio. Went there after a long day driving to Ancona, through Urbino, and back, with Jan, Craig, and Eileen. This is some sort of grain, maybe barley, with a few vegetables, covered with chips of parm.
Sept 17, dinner. Dinner roll.
Sept 17, dinner. A raviolino, a huge raviolo. Filled with a bit of cheese, a piece of pasta the size of a lasagna noodle, wrapped up. Covered with some light olive oil sauce and a Parmesan foam.
Sept 17, dinner. A bit of tuna, seared raw, with a scoop of gelato (blood orange) between, on top of a fruit concentrate. I didn't eat the flowers, although I suspect they were quite edible.
Sept 17, dinner. A bit of tuna, seared raw, with a scoop of gelato (blood orange) between, on top of a fruit concentrate. I didn't eat the flowers, although I suspect they were quite edible.
Sept 17, dessert. I didn't need dessert, but they brought this anyway: a bit of lime cream covered with some fruit puree and a single blueberry.
Sept 17, dinner. Caffè.
Sept 18, breakfast. A cappuccino, two figs, and some grapefruit juice. At Colle delle Querce.
Sept 18, snack. Some fresh black figs from the garden. I didn't eat all five of these, but I could have.
Sept 18, lunch. An antipasto of sliced meats, bruschetta, and some cheese. One split four ways with Jan, Craig, and EIleen. At the Osteria Belvedere, on the road between Orvieto and Todi. I think this was technically in Corbara. It certainly had a beautiful view of Corbara. A lovely little restaurant, with some nice fish dishes, good for eating outside!