Lettuces, Rags and Lies for Carnival
“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…
La focaccia della befana
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…
Le zeppole calabresi
I’m rather disdainful of detoxes, fad diets and the guilt-inducing language that often surrounds the act of eating, particularly during the festive season. My motto is that all foods (except overly processed mass-produced ones!) are…
‘Twice-cooked’ piparelli biscuits
There are few things I love more than analysing words and language. It’s only natural, I suppose, after studying languages (Italian, French, Spanish and a little bit of Latin), linguistics and several years of teaching…
Italy’s Day of the Dead
The urns of strong men stimulate strong minds To deeds of great distinction O Pindemonte And these urns make sacred for the traveller that earth which holds them – Ugo Foscolo, Of the Sepulchres, 1807…
A holiday in the Marche
Before heading off on our summer holiday to Numana, a town on the central Adriatic coast of Italy, I had big plans for this post. I would write a detailed guide about the often overlooked…