Perhaps like you, I read non-fiction about residing in Europe and traveling there, to live vicariously through the lives of the authors and to anticipate sojourns that I may (or may not) ever get the chance to take.  Rarely do I come across a story about a little known destination that I have visited and loved tremendously, but this is one.  Here is an excerpt in writer Chris  Harrison’s words, illustrated by my photographs of an area in Sicily.

Guidaloca was shaped like a slice of melon and its water looked just as refreshing.  After dumping towels on the beach, Daniela and Francesco ran for the blue water

while I scaled the headland on my way to a World War II watchtower.  Built from the stone of the headland, it was perfectly camouflaged, the attraction, no doubt, for the teenage lovers I surprised inside.  Despite their vantage point they had failed to see me coming. It’s little wonder the allied invasion of Sicily was a cakewalk.  …

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Daniela and I swam in the caves while Francesco trapped crabs, ripped them apart and ate them raw.  Both in Sicily and in Puglia I enjoyed paddling in the placid sea, but have to admit I found unruffled water rather dull after a time.  Having grown up surfing the Bondy breakers, I associate going to the beach with wipe-outs rather than relaxation.  In Australia I took a surfboard.  In Italy I took a book.

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As in Andrano, the second half of the day began around five, when Daniela assumed the role of tour guide and whisked me off to places of interest near Alcamo.

First up was the ancient city of Erice.  Perched on a mountaintop overlooking the sea, according to legend it was founded over 3000 years ago by the son of Venus and Neptune.

I should have photographed the town’s eighth-century walls,

the twelfth-century castle

the twelfth-century castle and the cobblestone lanes so narrow they must be walked single-file.  But I didn’t.  I had intended to.  I had even bought a guidebook.

But next to the bookstore I found a pasticceria which sold fruit made from marzipan, a sugary Sicilian specialty.  So I sat on a bench scoffing miniature bananas, an orange, a mandarin and a peach, while watching the sun set on the seaport of Trapini over 700 meters below.

Next stop was the ancient treasures of Segesta.  Erected in 420 BC, the 36-column Doric temple was billed in my guidebook as “the best preserved Greek architecture site to be found anywhere”. Quite a claim, but one archeologists dispute less than whether or not the Greeks intended to put a roof on the building.

Another topless attraction was Segesta’s amphitheatre, a primitive arena carved from a rock atop Mount Barbarian,

venue for summer performances of Greek tragedies other than the Olympic Games.

Other excursions took in the monument to Garibaldi at Calatafimi, which commemorates a famous victory of his Red Shirts over the Bourbons, an as much of Palermo as the heat and our resultant late starts would allow.  We would return to the hill at sundown, to be greeted on the driveway by the scents of dinner, which I must confess, enticed me more than the treats in my guidebook.

Every evening Valeria laid a table in her garden for twenty, to which neighbours would bring food for forty.  A typical feats began with Zia Tina’s antipasti, which include prosciutto with sugar melon, pizza slices, burschette, fried eggplant, zucchini and peppers in olive oil. That alone would have done me.  But Luisa’s primo piatto as net, a daring but delicious mix of baked potato and mussels.  Then Nona Lina’s horsemeat pieces in tomato sauce.  ‘Eat quickly,’ said Antonio.  ‘It was a racehorse.’  The meat was springy, yet surprisingly tasty although I couldn’t heal thinking that I may have been eating something more intelligent than me.  Valeria usually prepared the terzo piatto: kebabs of liver and other animal sundries the origin of which I preferred not to ask.  Fruit followed for those whose arms could still reach further than their stomachs: watermelon, apricots, peaches and figs.  And then came the coup de grace, an onslaught of calories called cannoli siciliani-a sweet comprised of flour, sugar, chocolate and white wine, fried into a wafer in the shaped of a hollow bow tie filled with ricotta cheese and chocolate.  Stuffed, both dinner and desert.

Reading Chris Harrison’s account of this and his time in Puglia brought the agony and ecstasy of Italian ways to life, love it or leave it.  I would like to get a chance to love it please.

Kath’s quote: “They eat the dainty food of famous chefs with the same pleasure with which they devour gross peasant dishes, mostly composed of garlic and tomatoes, or fisherman’s octopus and shrimps, fried in heavily scented olive oil on a little deserted beach.” –Luigi Barzini, ‘The Italians’ (1964)

Stones collected on Guidaloca.

Love-that is all.

Our first dinner together at Eat, Write, Retreat 2013 was a casual affair in one of the conference rooms at the Hilton, Doubletree.  The buffet style meal meant that I was able to accompany my oregano chicken with heaps of spring asparagus and heirloom tomatoes.  I recall thinking, this is a great way to start a weekend of taste indulgences.

I was sitting with the Carrot Cake gang.  Each table was designated with a different three tiered dessert tray and ours was laden with Carrot Cake.  We were encouraged to mix things up after dinner and visit other participants (and swap desserts).  This was a great way to arrange the seating plan and I am very much looking forward to adapting the principle, sometime in the future.  I made a beeline for the peanut butter chocolate brownies and added a fresh fruit tart-oh yum.

The next day at lunch time we meandered through the adjacent streets to Supper, for lunch.  I didn’t get a chance to take any food shots at the Canadian Lentil luncheon but I can tell you that the food was expertly prepared and each little plate, a surprise: “really, this has lentils in it?” Being a Canadian prairie girl with my roots in Eastern Europe my favourite was the “Ode to Borscht” Lentil Dip but the bread pudding dessert, came a very close second.  I was so delighted to finally meet Rachel Kehrig in person.  We have chatted together many times via email and only live one province away from each other, but had never met in person!

I would love to have the chance to return to the gorgeous Supper, perhaps next time for….supper.

That afternoon, we settled in for a fascinating session on growing and harvesting mushrooms.  What I love best of all about being a “foodie” is meeting farm families, first hand.  The brothers Tony and Joe D’Amico who led this session could rival the siblings that host the home renovation shows.  HGTV sign them up!

One of the best things that I ate, as a result of attending Eat, Write, Retreat 2013, I actually consumed just last night.  I sometimes make dinners ahead of time before we head out for weekends at our little beach house.  Last evening, I decided to refer to Mushroom’s “Trend to Blend” announcement.  I devised a meatball recipe that incorporated 1 1/2 pounds of cremini mushrooms that were first sauteed with onions and red peppers.  I used the OXO Mini Chopper that I was given last year at the conference, so that I didn’t have to lug out my food processor, to finely chopped the sauteed veggies.  Holy, moly, whadda meatball!  Absolutely jammed packed with earthly flavours and the texture was soft and inviting.  I simmered a sauce of tomatoes and fresh rosemary with lots of red wine and now I cannot wait for Saturday night’s dinner on the deck.

The Saturday evening gala featured the “secret ingredients” from the “Amazing Apps Culinary Challenge”.  I hung around the fig table most of the evening.  Remembering our mornings in Sicily when we would go out to the orchard and pick fresh figs and almonds to have with our breakfast, to my surprise, California figs are equally divine. My love of sweet and salty is beautifully satiated by a shard of salty cheese and a wedge of fresh fig.

This WOULD have been what was served, had I won the Culinary Challenge (speaking of Sicily).  I took my friend Concetta’s pasta recipe of cauliflower, pine nuts, and raisins and wrapped it into layers of phyllo dough-just saying…..

The next morning, I learned how to make this “Grilled Potato and Kale Pizza“.  My readers know that I am potato crazy and I absolutely loved the variety that the “BBQ Queens” quickly demonstrated on Sunday morning of the conference.  I plan to make every recipe in my “Get Grilling with Potatoes” pamphlet over the summer.  The pizza, by the way, was tender, funky (in a good way), and fused with delicious and nutritious new taste combinations.

To top it off-I won the Calphalon 5-in1 Grill that we used for the pizza!  I was thrilled.  Last year I won a Calphalon Panini maker and I didn’t have enough room in my luggage to take it home, so I traded it with another attendee.  I had been grieving that loss ever since.  This year, I brought an entire empty suitcase (thank you Air Canada) and the grill was the first thing that I found a spot for.  Atoosa, thank you from the bottom of my heart.  The grill has a place of honour on our counter top because we use it every single day.  Last night I seared the meatballs (above) before plunking them into the simmering sauce.

I was very full of potato pizza by the time we made our way across the street to the Williams Sonoma at the Bellevue for our “Taste of Philly Lunch”.  I did indulge in this fantastic nibble.  I followed directions and placed the entire spoonful in my mouth at and the varied tastes literally exploded in my mouth.

My roomie and I sat in the lobby and hugged new friends as they departed for home.  We had made arrangements to stay an extra night and so the eating adventure did not end with that farewell lunch.  Supper that evening was on a nearby sidewalk patio at Pietro’s Coal Oven Pizzeria. There will be more details to come regarding that delicious evening.

And of course, no visit to Philadelphia would be complete without a Philly Cheese-steak.  This too will be described in a future post-suffice it to say, the city and its food is calling me back.

Was that 10?  Who’s counting?

Kath’s quote: “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes
tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. ”   Matthew 24:32

Love-that is all.

The truth is, I truly can’t decide which is my favourite destination between Italy and Mexico and the food is the reason why.  How do you choose between the fresh sparkling taste of cilantro when paired with chilies, tomatoes and freshly squeezed lime and the earthy tones of rosemary, garlic and red wine which transforms a tomato into something else, indeed?  Thankfully, now a days, the world is truly our oyster, so why do I just have to have one favourite?

The first time I set foot on Isla Mujeres, I knew that the little island would always be a part of my life.  We have already booked a villa on the sea for the 2014 season, when we take the entire family including “Baby”, who will be born this summer.  Getting to Mexico can be fairly affordable, if you plan carefully and start researching airfares in advance.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, if you choose to travel at the last minute, there are often some tremendous deals.  But, we don’t roll that way.  My readers know that the anticipation of a trip for me, is often as satisfying as the trip itself.

Italy and the rest of Europe is a special treat.  We reserve overseas travel for significant birthdays and anniversaries.  With the exception of this fall, when we are taking time in October so that I can lead a blogging workshop in Tuscany.  The vacation package includes tutelage in the kitchen by Chef Enrico, whose ancient restored estate is where the participants will reside.  That is, when we are not touring the cities and towns of Tuscany or foraging for truffles in its forests.

But in the mean time, here is a more immediate reward.  If you are interested in one of four $100. Sobey’s gift cards, create and then share your own Sobeys West Pinboard.  Copy and paste your board  URL(s) in the comments section below. How the contest works: Anyone who creates a pinboard and repins 4 pins from http://pinterest.com/sobeys, using the keyword SobeysWest, is entered to win!  You have to reside in Manitoba and west to do so.

Here’s a link to my own pinboard: http://pinterest.com/foodmusings/dream-destinations-mexico-or-italy/

So, make a cuppa tea.  Sit back and let’s dream of where we want to travel next….happy pinning!

Kath’s quote: “We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There  is no end to the adventures we can have if only we seek them with our eyes  open.” – Jawaharial  Nehru

Love-that is all.