rondini
Our flight arrived in Rome and by the time we got our luggage and passed through customs it was nearly 3:30.
Our friend, Alessandra, picked us up at the airport with her brand new daughter, Maria Beatrice, who is not yet three months old. It was our first time meeting her. Maria, who couldn’t be called a great a conversationalist, shared the back seat with me while Jill and Alessandra chatted away in the front. About fifteen minutes into the trip, Maria got a little restless in her car-crib, so I picked her and bounced her gently her in my arms and sang old Jewish melodies to her – like I used to do with our kids, and it was quite successful. I think the kid’s crazy about me.
We pulled up to our house a little after 5:00 and the first thing we noticed were the birds. We’ve got a million of them.
Hoopoe
I read that there are 2200 species of birds in Umbria. I can readily recognize the rondini, which are the swallows that swoop around and above our pool, and I know the hoopoe, which is an amazingly beautiful striped bird with a woodpecker - type head that makes an eerie muted hooting sound we hear in the early evening. So that’s two that I can identify; 2198 more to go.
We met friends at the Palazzaccio and after great deliberation I went for the strongozzi al’tartufo – local pasta with truffles. It’s a classic Umbrian dish and quite simple to make – if you know the little secret:
………………………………..STRONGOZZI AL’ TARTUFO
2 anchovies
olive oil – 4 tbsps
garlic – 1 clove (optional)
1 pound strongozzi (or spaghetti if that’s what you can find)
I black truffle (or truffle paste in a jar – if you’re not in Umbria where
you can buy black truffles almost anywhere for next to nothing)
1. Chop the anchovies and sauté them in the olive oil until they get
creamy. If you have a fresh truffle, there’s no need to add garlic;
if you’re using truffle paste, sauté 1 clove of garlic, chopped fine,
with the anchovies.
2. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water; drain; put into the pan with
the anchovy and oil; toss well.
3. Grate the truffle over the top (or add the truffle paste); toss well
and serve.
And that’s it. The secret is the anchovy, which is only a secret because the dish doesn’t taste like it has anchovy in it. But it does; trust me.
After the pasta with truffles, the castrato (grilled lamb chops that we ate with our fingers – the best in the world), the sautéed chicory, the fried potatoes and the fresh pineapple for dessert, we were driving home through the cultivated fields outside the little town of Poreta and we had to stop for a parade of wild boar.
baby boar
There was a mama and at least a dozen babies. It’s hard to believe these bristly, snouty things can be cute – but cute they are – especially when they’re crossing the road in an orderly line in front of their huge, snarky-looking mother. That’s the thing – momma guards the rear. When she finally crosses, you know the line is finished and you can drive on. Last night, the mama boar stopped, looked at our car and said, “Hey, Mike and Jill – welcome home.”
Well, she didn’t say it quite like that. She said it in Italian.
Yaaaay! you’re back in Umbria!!! I”ve been dyin for you to get back there so that i can start reading posts like this one. And i’m making spaghetti al tartufo tonight, coincidentally, with four black truffles i smuggled into dulles airport on sunday from acqualagna in le marches. i will follow your recipe and add a bit of parmigiana.
Rondini are Kamkazi-crazy…and I love them.
How about the smells…jasmine and Spain broom?
Are the poppies still in bloom still?
Have you been to Trattoria Il Verziere in Montefalco? What fun…
Tu godersi la vita en Umbria!
La bella Umbria! From the ginestro to papaveri to torta di testo, che meraviglia. Just got back from Umbria. Last stop was a visit to Agriturismo i Mandorli in Trevi. What an experience flying in and out of Fiumicino and then returning to JFK. The only thing that changes in Italy is that it becomes increasingly more beautiful. My heart aches and am suffering from culture shock. Godatevi ogni momento!
Love those birds and boars, baby!
Welcome “home”! Glad you made it safely and I look forward to many blogs from the homeland. LOVE the baby boar – too cute! Enjoy yourselves and know that I, for one, envy you both. Ciao!
Palazzaccio!! Sooooo jealous. Loved it there.
that boar was so cute I would have kept him for a pet…but Michael, you might have cooked him when he got older!! your dinner sounded divine…and you are in paradise…and I know from experience…delicious dripping lamb chops with your hands… what could be more divine!
swim in that sea of color and birds and luscious vegetation..and keep writing and keep eating!
ciao, you lucky Umbrialites…
xoxoxo
Love reading your witty remarks, looking forward to reading your blogs while you are in Italy..Can you believe I just gave my son a cooking lesson
“over the phone” Veal chops and escarole, a rather long call but fun never the less..!! Ciao and have some Gelato for me!!
Yum. And it sounds so blissful. Ah…summer in Italy.
@ Tutti — Thanks for your responses. More soon. I’d like to write more but I’m busy eating.
Someday that cute little baby will grow up to will fulfill its destiny.
I just hope that I’m in Umbria when it does. I will visit the Wednesday market in Umbertide and the white porchetta truck will be parked there.
Mmmm Mmmm good!
Thanks for this delicious morsel from Umbria Michael.
Sending love. xox
Please putme on your list. Your website is great. I am a yoga teacher and would love to find a place in Italy to t each yoga. I am also Italian descent. I have family in Abruzzi
@ Lolly – We love the Abruzzi. We have friends here now from there.