Simple Italy – Page 16 – Celebrating Your Inner Italian

Scoppio del Carro

Posted March 29, 2013 by Sharon 3 Comments

Image credit: Commune di Firenze

Back when I lived in Florence, I experienced the spectacle of Scoppio del Carro (Explosion of the Cart) one fine Easter morning. This centuries-old tradition of is said to have its origins in the Crusades. Thousands now cram Piazza del Duomo for the event.

As the bells peal in Giotto’s bell tower, a rocket in the form of a mechanical colomba (dove), lit by the Archbishop, flies down a wire from the high altar of Santa Maria del Fiore (the Duomo) to the 30-foot-tall 500-year-old cart outside, setting off the fireworks between the main door of the Duomo and the Baptistery.

Because it’s daylight, there’s far more smoke than sparkling lights. I just remember being thankful that
no one caught on fire. Spectators crush up really close to the cart to capture images.

Image credit: mytuscanjournal.com

The part I liked most were the chalk-white Chianina oxen with crowns of spring blooms, who pulled the cart through the city streets. Sadly, I don’t have any photos from my viewing so I googled to find some.

I discovered a photo of the Chianina, a perfect crystallization of my recollection of these gentle giants, that led me to an Easter post on My Tuscan Journal, written by Lisa Brancatisano, an Italo-Australian who now lives in Tuscany. Along with a sweet personal report of her father visiting from Melbourne, she shares the tradition of the Scoppio del Carro in words and photos.

Grazie Lisa, e Buona Pasqua a te.

Porcini Mushroom Antipasto

Posted March 20, 2013 by Sharon 3 Comments

Dried porcini funghi add true Tuscan savor to this fresh mushroom antipasto.

Too often, outside of Italy, antipasto can be a tired tray of assorted salumi. Or, “lunchmeat,” as a server an “Italian” restaurant in Chicago, once hilariously answered, in response to our query about what came on the antipasto platter.

Throughout the regions of Italy, antipasto (before the meal), are varied, seasonal, and local. Seafood, robust cheeses, grilled vegetables, crostini with myriad spreads, cured olives, frittate, and more.

Porcini-Stuffed Baby Bello Mushrooms are an antipasto that’s right for any season. By supplementing fresh baby bello mushrooms with reconstituted dried porcini, you create a win-win. The intense porcini flavor (at a fraction of the cost of fresh funghi porcini–if you could find them) with the toothsome texture of fresh mushrooms and assorted seasonings. [Read more…]

Francis and Francis

Posted March 14, 2013 by Sharon 2 Comments

The former archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio is reported to live a life of humility and caring for the poor.

After much pomp and circumstance, the former archbishop of Buenos Aires, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio is elected Pope Francis.

It’s been widely reported that Bergoglio chose the name Francis to honor St. Francis of Assisi. This puzzles me. First, he’s not a Franciscan; he’s a Jesuit. And second, I’ve always thought of the Jesuits as intellectual and elitist.

Like Francis of Assisi, Bergoglio is reported to embrace the poor, the homeless, the diseased, the disenfranchised. But unlike Francis of Assisi, who never became comfortable with the power and politics of the Roman Catholic Church, Bergoglio is now the capo di capi of this wealthy and (despite its many current challenges) influential institution.

[Read more…]

A Tavola

Posted February 27, 2013 by Sharon 4 Comments

Yesterday I listened to an NPR report about the state of the family meal in America.

This was the scene of one family that was interviewed. At 6:02 p.m., three children sat down to supper. The mother and father did not eat with the children (they planned to eat later). The father wasn’t at the table. He was checking his phone. Grandpa was nearby looking at his iPad. The TV was blaring in the background. The meal lasted for eight minutes.

In Florence, as everywhere in Italy, dining is a celebration of life.

A few years ago on a research trip to Rome, I connected with Giuliana, the former neighbor of an American friend who had lived in Rome for a while. We agreed to meet one spring evening at the Spanish Steps.

[Read more…]

The Most Beautiful Italian Love Song?

Posted February 14, 2013 by Sharon 8 Comments

Watercolor by Walter Sanders

I search google.it for la canzone d’amore più bella (the most beautiful love song) and get 741,000 entries.

The first is a YouTube post of “Adagio,” sung by Lara Fabian. With more than 3 million viewings, it merited a listen from me. I found the song a tad overwrought—more longing than loving–but seems as if I may be in the minority.

The second link is a blog called clo&demk that couldn’t limit itself to just one melody. Its Le 200 Canzoni D’Amore Più Belle di Tutti i Tempo (The 200 Most Beautiful Love Songs of All Time) leads with “I Say a Little Prayer” by Aretha Franklin. Sorry, it’s a sweet song but not Italian.

[Read more…]

Joyce Heitler’s Inner Italian

Posted January 29, 2013 by Sharon 8 Comments

By Joyce Heitler, guest writer

Joyce Heitler in the southern hill town of Piciotta.

Joyce Heitler in the southern hill town of Pisciotta.

Retired from teaching kindergarten in Chicago after 45 years, I, too, have an Inner Italian.

My husband Frank and I went to Italy about 11 years ago with my son- in-law Renato, who was born in Italy, to see his sick uncle in Tuscany. The uncle lived in a beautiful four-story castle with antique furniture.

We decided to learn Italian so Frank looked up schools on the Internet and found a small language school in Pisciotta, about one hour south of Salerno. The photos looked fabulous and we signed up for a three-week total immersion class. After one week, I fell in love with Pisciotta and the people. Being the impulsive person that I am, I decided to buy an apartment there.

Not many apartments were available for sale so when I went to church I prayed that I would find a place. When I left church, a man, who had heard us speaking English, approached us. His name was Agnello, named after the patron saint of Pisciotta. He had worked in New York for 12 years and then moved back to Pisciotta. I asked him if he knew of anyone who had a house for sale and he said, “Yes, me.”