Back in the south

Yesterday and today have been nice, relaxing days back here in San Demetrio. Yesterday morning I snacked on some nuts in class, and then after we had a whole long lesson on the passato prossimo, a few of my friends and I decided to go to Dante's for lunch. I got my favorite Dante dish, potatoes and peppers sauteed in olive oil, and a fresh green salad dressed with balsamic vinegar. It was perfectly filling, and fueled me for a couple hours of studying.

After doing some work, Danielle and I decided to take a nice walk on the mountain again; I snacked on a big pretzel before we left. It was a great walk- we got super sweaty and it felt great to get in some more good exercise after such a lazy weekend on the bus. On our way back, we found a grove of pear trees and snagged a couple fresh pears for a snack!

A while later, on our way to check our emails, we also had gelato cones- it was too hot to pass up a cool treat!

Dinner was alright- the pasta, farfalle with zucchini, was so incredible I ate my whole plate! We also had risotto balls (I only ate 3/4 of one) and vegetable fritatta, which I ate all of. I was pretty full afterwards, but I still had a small gelato they gave us for dessert! We hung out at fusion for a while talking to some locals, and got to bed for a good night's sleep. It was a bit of a chilly night in Calabria, SO refreshing after these hot days!

For breakfast this morning we were out of fruit, so I just had some muesli and coffee yogurt, before stopping at the fruttivendolo before class. During class I had a couple granola cookies to hold me over. I ran some errands after class, it's been nice and warm but not too hot, great to walk around in!

It was just a relaxing day here, we stopped at Dante's again for big salads and fresh bread for lunch, with a tiny square of dark chocolate for dessert. In the early afternoon I snacked on a nectarine and some pretzels before doing a 20 minute core yoga session.

I had more gelato on my way here- another cone, I love my afternoon cones! They're refreshing, yummy, and since the gelato is home made of milk and no creme, and all fresh ingrediants at Stilla- they make a good snack that holds me over.

Gotta love treats with benefits =)

Tonight we have another cooking lab, the rest of the week should be much busier than these last couple of days!!

Weekend Excursion

Just another weekend excursion here in Italia!

Friday night was a good night, we heard from the gelato guy again, we tried a couple of the home made sorbettos and had a great dinner- Risotto porcini, tomatoes with olive oil and ricotta, some potatoes and a couple fried veggies. We had gelato and a small piece of cake for dessert- it was someone's birthday so we had extra treats!

Friday night I spent out at Fusion with my friends, so I was quite tired on Saturday and my appetite was strange. For breakfast I had muesli with almond milk, and my stomach was feeling a bit funny in the morning so I snacked on some pretzels and dates... a weird combination I know, but it made me feel better.

For lunch we stopped and got these funny little things...

They're called "pizzos" and they're special at the stop we were at in Lecche. They're basically tomato bread with onions, olives and peppers. It was good, but quite large- I only had about 1/2 of it.
We spent some time in Lecche, had some gelato and a nectarine in the afternoon, and FINALLY after a long bus ride arrived in Puglia, at the most gorgeous beach I have ever seen in my life!

We spent some time relaxing and enjoying the city, dinner was ok- just pasta with pomodoro, fresh bread, insalata, and they gave me MORE pasta with vegetables, for my secondo piatto- which I just ate a few bites of because I realized there were meatballs in it. Ew. I guess some Italians really don't understand "vegetariana".
The night got better, however- dessert was fresh fruit, and we spent the evening walking around town, did a little shopping, ate some crepes, and went to bed fairly early for a weekend. I was glad though- I needed the rest.

Sunday was an interesting day. Breakfast at the hotel was a simple croissant and yogurt, during the morning we visited another castle and did some shopping in town. My friends and I tried some of these interesting sweet/salty treats famous in the area, I have no idea how to describe the flavor, but they sure were addicting! I had a handful, I almost couldn't stop!


The day went by slowly, we did a lot of driving and didn't stop much. We had a great big lunch, some antipasti, pasta pomodoro, grilled zucchini, mozzarella and italian french fries. I had all the antipasti on my plate, a piece of bread, 1/2 the pasta, 1/2 the eggplant/mozzarella and a few fries. We had two desserts yet again- watermelon and cake. I was full, but luckily not TOO stuffed- we had to drive another 5 whole hours to get home!!


On the way I had an apple and we stopped at a small caffe where I got a frozen latte.

We got home late and didn't want a full dinner, so we just grabbed a piece of pizza, and yes- we had yet ANOTHER treat... a small ice cream bar. We went out to the bar later on and had a couple drinks with some snacks as well.

So I didn't eat the healthiest this weekend, and Sunday was kind of a drag, but just the few hours in Puglia alone made the weekend magical. Now we're back, ready to start classes yet again- I had some yogurt, muesli and a peach as usual. I'm trying to stay healthier this week after such an odd weekend of eating... I'll definately try and post as much as I can but they will defiantely be quick, I have SO much work to do!
This week will be jam packed, I can't believe I only have 10 days left! I'm having an incredible experience, and it has flown by... I don't want it to end!

Io sono molto piene...

Which means I am STUFFED in Italian.

Yesterday and today were great days, but I must admit they were not the best, food-portion wise. Everything I ate was delicious, but here in Italy, sometimes they feed you, and feed you, and feed you...and it's pretty hard to say no!

Carolyn and I were craving something cool on a hot day, so we decided to grab gelato cones on the way to the bus to Acri. I got limoncello and nocciola- lemon liquor and hazelnut! They were perfect together, and hit the spot in the sweltering heat.

The gelato held me over through the museum we went to, and then my friend and I split a larabar to tide us over before dinner.

Dinner was amazing- but I definately went overboard. We started with some appetizers- I tried a little of everything, stuffed mushrooms, fried bread, capers, feta puffs.

Then we went to one of the most famous Pizzerias in the south of Italy. Oh my gosh was it INCREDIBLE. The pieces were sooo thin and fresh, yes, I ate a piece of every kind they served... 5 in total. The pieces were wide, but short and super thin- so although I definately over ate, I didn't feel too stuffed afterwards. It was definately worth it to try all the different kinds!!

This morning I needed a light, healthy breakfast- more coffee yogurt, muesli, and a nectarine. My friends and I did out skits during class today, which was a lot of fun, and then snacked on a banana and a couple of graham crackers to hold us over during our cooking lab!!

This cooking lab was the best yet- it was with Fifina again, and EVERYTHING was vegetarian! We learned how to make FRESH pasta! It was tagliatelle with ceci (chickpeas) in a olive oil/paprika sauce, and finocchio with tomatoes and garlic. So delcious, they gave us a big plate of each- and we HAD to finish them both! I stayed away from the bread at this lunch... we also had sauteed potatoes with green tomatoes, and a zucchini salad I helped prep made with olive oil, white wine vinegar and oregano. For dessert we had cocomelo- 3 pieces!!


I love, love, loved learning how to make all of this today! I was starving the entire time, ended up stuffing myself until I couldn't walk... but it was worth it, in every way. Not only did I get to experiance cooking in a real Italian kitchen and eat incredible foods, I learned so much about myself- really, nothing makes me happier than cooking, learning how to cook, and good food =)

Tonight, on top of all the incredible food we were stuffed with today, we're trying the gelato we made two nights ago AND it's one of my favorites for dinner- risotto! Gosh, I love Italia!

Nonstop

Andiamo, Andiamo, Andiamo!

We have been going, going, going here in Italy- it's been a great time but NONSTOP! This is another quick post, because I have a paper to write before we're off to Acris to learn about mushrooms and have dinner at a local Pizzeria.

Making gelato was awesome- we made a non-milk sorbetto with figs, lemon, fruitti di bosco (berry), ciocollata, and straciatella (my favorite!) I had a couple pieces of chocolate and a few almonds during the process- but I was SO tired, I was hardly even awake when I was whipping egg whites and peeling figs!!

We went to dinner afterwards, I had Linguini with pesto sauce, which I LOVE so I ate 3/4 of... the rest of the group had Linguini con frutti di mare... which was a lot of clams and squid- not my cup of tea, but they made for some cool photographs!

I also had 4 out of the 5 pomodoro mozzarellas, some grilled eggplant and zucchini, and a small piece of fresh bread. Dessert was ice cream, but I couldn't even think about gelato because I was so COLD... so we ended the night with tiny pastries from Stilla and a tiny pour of red wine instead.

This morning I woke up bright and early, and had some muesli with coconut yogurt, a HUGE apricot, and had a caffe at Bar Centrale before heading to class.

We have ANOTHER test tomorrow- luckily it won't be as hard as last one- last one was probably the most challenging I've taken. I got an 88, which isn't too good in my book, but I've been doing well on projects so it should make up for it.
During class I had an apple and a granola cracker, and after a quick trip to the supermercato after class we went home to make lunch.

Lunch today was light and healthy, another salad with carrots and garlic olive oil, lupini beans, olives, and tomato with mozarella.

I also had an herbed pretzel while writing out notecards... and a tiny piece of dark chocolate my friend offered me!!

I'm off to Acris, I promise pictures will be up soon!!

Pazzo Pizza!

aka Crazy Pizza...

Last night, I did not eat healthy. Not in the least bit. I ate too many snacks, and far too many pieces of pizza. But it was worth it, and today is a new day, and I'll be back to my usual schedule form now on!

While I was blogging, la Mamma brought us some snacks- an italian pretzel and a mini pear, which I ate to hold me until dinner.

Making pizza was SO much fun! I went with 4 friends, and 4 of us made pizzas! Margherita, I made a vegetarian one with peppers and eggplant, they also made one with Pancetta and one with
I'm not revealing how many pieces I ate, but there weren't many leftovers ;)

Later that evening we went out to hang out for a while, and we had a couple drinks and snacked on some of the appetizers they kept giving us for free! It was a good time, and we stayed out late- I'm tired today, but it was so much fun!!

We didn't have class today, so I spent the day relaxing with Carolyn- we went on two walks, I had some yogurt and muesli before and an orange after.

I had a little fun making lunch... I made carrot flowers!

We made a big healthy lunch of salads with carrots, lupini beans, garlic olive oil and fresh bread. It hit the spot, and I felt great after eating it!

We went on another walk in the afternoon- the long hill walk, which I actually ran the second half of (up hill) with our guy friends that came with us. It was hard, but felt SO great to get some exercise after such a food filled day!

I snacked a little in the afternoon- a banana, 1/2 a pretzel and a couple whole grain granola crackers.

Sorry for my quick post- I'm on my way to learn how to make GELATO!!

Simple pleasures

I apologize for my lack of pictures lately, the wireless internet in Italia has quite the mind of it’s own. I’ll try for as many of the best pictures as I can!

Yesterday afternoon leaving the DeRada center, it was SWELTERING hot… my friend Carolyn and I could hardly move in the boiling heat, so we decided there was no better time to stop for a quick gelato on the way back to the apartment. I had frutti di boso e caffe- two of my favorites. They defiantely cooled us down on the walk back home. Back at the apartment, I snacked on a small yellow plum before dinner.

Dinner was fantastic again, another creamy mushroom sauce, which I have the greatest love/hate relationship with. I KNOW how bad they are for me, but I just love them so much! I ate ¾ of this plate, before a small piece of bread to cleanse my palate before the next course.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get a good picture of my secondo piatto- it was my favorite risotto stuffed peppers (I ate one small one), insalata mista (I had a BIG helping) and a whole bunch of olives.

Dessert was a fruit bowl- cocomelo e mela, and afterwards my friend Erika and I stopped at a bakery nearby for a tiny sweet treat. It was the perfect little funghata- a "mushroom" shaped flaky chocolate pastry covered in granules of sugar and filled with a chocolate creme, topped with a tiny sliver of white chocolate. The perfect tiny treat to end my night.

I spent the rest of the night nervous about my test in the morning, so I didn't sleep well- but I woke up in just enough time to have some granola, yogurt and a juicy nectarine for breakfast before heading to Bar Centrale with Carolyn for a caffe before class.

After my quiz (which went well- I got 100 on my last one so I'm hoping I do just as well on this one!) we stopped by the frutti vendolo and supermercato to stock up- I ate an apple while shopping, and got some more apples, peaches, lettuce, carrots, wheat crackers, mozzarella and bread for lunches, yogurt, muesli and almond milk.
After our grocery shopping we had another great cooking lab with Rosa- she taught us to make Pasta Carbonara- a delicious but heavy dish made with eggs, pancetta (italian bacon), olive oil, salt and pepper, parmesan and cream. It was amazing watching her chop the onions and show us how to put the dish together. Every day I'm in the kitchen here my desire to become a chef grows greater and greater...

Rosa was nice enough to make me some spaghetti with pomodoro sauce for lunch while the rest of the class chowed down on their creamy creations- but I have a confession to make. I did have one bite- just a bite- of the carbonara (sans pancetta), just to taste it. It was very good, and since I ate no meat directly I was fine, but I just couldn't resist trying what we had made!


The pasta was good, and Danielle, Carolyn and I came home to do some yoga. After a core session (just 25 minutes but boy was I sweating!) and some studying I had a peach and a couple wheat crackers (they taste like granola!).

On our way here, we stopped for another cool treat- I know I've been eating gelato every day, but honestly, I don't care. I'd rather have a small treat every day and not feel bad than not allow myself the treat and regret not having it! The portions are small enough and the ingredients are pure enough anyways, I don't ever feel heavy or as if I'm over eating after a refreshing gelato. Today was fragole and straciatella (strawberry and italian chocolate chip)

What I'm loving the most about Italy is the simple things that make me happy. When a cool breeze hits my face walking up the street to the DeRada Center, my afternoon gelato, walks with Carolyn, olives at dinner and getting emails from family and friends. These little acts that make me smile are making my time here all the better, and more and more I realize how thankful I am to be here, to be experiancing this, at the best time.

Weekend alla Spiaggia

What a weekend! Friday's dinner was great- the food was fantastic, I had 2 helpings of the porcini mushroom linguini because I loved it so much! I ate about 1/2 of the rest that was served as well, and we had gelato for dessert.


After dinner Friday night, we all went to bed and woke up bright and early on Saturday morning to head to Southern Calabria. I had a quick breakfast before we left, and snacked on a banana larabar and some grapes during the day.


We spent the morning walking through an ancient forest- the trees were incredible, it was a beautiful hike. We stopped for a quick sandwich on the road- we were so hot we ended up getting ice cream for dessert as well.


When we were finally in Crotone at the hotel, we spent the afternoon lounging on the beach, tanning, reading and swimming in the Ionian sea. It was truly magical. I had a few grapes on the beach as well.
Dinner was great, again! The hotel did an awesome job- I had pasta with pomodoro sauce (I ate 3/4), herbed potatoes, a small piece of bread, and I ate the grilled eggplant/zucchini, a bite of tomato and a bite of mozzarella. A lot of carbs, but I was satisfied. They served us gelato again, but I only ate half I was so stuffed.



That night we went out into the town, hung out at a bar with a singer on the beach, and went home late. I had a couple of fruity drinks, but not too much. We slept in the next morning, and went for the buffet breakfast. I had 1/2 a croissant, a kiwi, some yogurt with peach and whole grain cereal.

We left the hotel and headed for our next destination- Le Castella. This was equally as beautiful as Crotone. We explored the mideveil castle, and were so hot, we decided gelato would be the perfect treat. So Carolyn and I ate gelato (peach and white chocolate!) while doing some shopping in town. I had some good finds- some housewares, spices, and pretty scarves.

We ate lunch at a really great restaurant overlooking the castle and the sea. The owner was so sweet- he decorated our sandwiches and took a picture of myself and Danielle and Carolyn! My panino was by far the best I've had yet- grilled eggplant and zucchini, fontina cheese and a spicy sauce.

We spent some more time on the beach at Le Castella, and headed back to San Demetrio. I had some wheat crackers and a pear while reading to hold me until dinner.

Dinner was back at Pub Fusion- lasagna, cheese balls, delicious salad (I had 2 cheese balls and 2 portions of salad) and figs for dessert. Still craving sweets, a few of us grabbed gelato on the way back to the apartment. Two in one day, again!

Today we didn't have much choice as to our food- everything's closed because it's Monday, so I had a small plum when I woke up, and we went out for chocolate croissants for breakfast. This held me for a while, and I snacked on some nuts before lunch.

Lunch was another panino- pomodoro/mozzarella on foccacia. My classic Italian lunch, always satisfying.

Now I'm relaxing on the computer before heading back to the apartment to study for our test tomorrow.

What a weekend!