Patron saints. Every Italian town has one and a local public holiday for celebrating their heavenly protector to boot. Turin, my adopted city of over ten years, is no exception. Here, San Giovanni Battista or…
I must admit, I had a difficult time choosing which Italian Easter dish I wanted to write about for this edition of Cucina Conversations. Initially, I thought about preparing one of the ricotta-based specialties typical…
Sometimes I question the worth of my food-blogging past-time. It takes up a lot of what little free time I have between writing, recipe testing and photographing, not to mention broadcasting what I’ve been up…
Home. Where exactly is home for me now? It certainly was a question I struggled to answer as I was ordering savoury pies, vanilla slices and coffees for myself and my family in the Tasmanian…
Calabrian proverb: Those who marry are only happy for a day, but those who slaughter their pig are happy for an entire year. It was January 16, the eve of Saint Anthony Abbot’s Day. The family…
I got lots of lovely presents this Christmas. There was the gorgeous waxed canvas handbag with leather trimming that doubles as a camera bag from TP. Friends, colleagues and students gave me some handmade cards…
The day was 5th January 1432. It was approaching mid-morning. The sun had just begun to peak above the horizon. The Venetian merchant Pietro Querini and his crew were on lifeboats. The sailors’ voyage from…
“Vuoi una bugia? (Do you want a lie?)” my flatmate asked me one February evening, indicating a platter with some flat, sugar-coated fritters on them. “A lie?” I replied puzzledly. I had arrived in Turin…
In Italy, the festive season does not end with New Year celebrations. So, if you’re hoping that I’ll be posting about something a little bit lighter after all those deep fried zeppole I posted about…