{"id":787,"date":"2011-08-16T15:11:04","date_gmt":"2011-08-16T22:11:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.raisingjane.org\/journal\/?p=787"},"modified":"2011-08-16T15:11:04","modified_gmt":"2011-08-16T22:11:04","slug":"theres-an-app-for-that-including-delicious-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raisingjane.org\/journal\/787","title":{"rendered":"There\u2019s an App for that! (including delicious recipe)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\tMuch to my vicarious delight, vacation and work commitments recently took Alyson O\u00fcten to Europe for a month; from Spain<\/a> to Portugal<\/a> to Italy<\/a> and Israel. (If you read my magazine or CLUCK newsletter, you\u2019re already familiar with Alyson.)<\/p>\n

For some of my Geography Journal entries she\u2019ll take you to each of those stops (and more), but today she begins with her business trip to Italy where her travels spanned from Milan to Rome … and from pizza to Puttanesca.<\/p>\n

Take it from here. It\u2019s all yours, Aly!!!!!<\/p>\n

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Often times our American version of Italian food is overly rich; the pastas wear too much sauce and the pizzas are burdened by a glut of ingredients. In reality, Italian cuisine can be quite delicate.<\/p>\n

My favorite meals are nearly always those served at little hole in the wall places like Osteria la Stirpe outside of Rome. However, my experience there was anything but typical.<\/p>\n

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As I was checking into my hotel, I asked the front desk clerk about a restaurant that had been highly recommended to me by a friend. She asked what time I\u2019d like to eat. Having already spent several weeks in Europe at this point, I\u2019d adjusted to late night eating habits, but I was hungry and tired. I thought 7 O\u2019clock seemed reasonable. The clerk agreed to call the restaurant (although she assured me reservations were unnecessary) and get a taxi for me.<\/p>\n

When the taxi arrived, the driver spoke no English. While I told him I didn\u2019t speak Italian, he insisted on talking to me in Italian the entire drive … repeating sentences over and over thinking I would somehow suddenly learn Italian and a fluent conversation would ensue. It did not.<\/p>\n

This language barrier made our brief drive seem long \u2026 and, to my surprise, so did the fare! I was charged \u20ac24 for a three-mile taxi ride and he didn\u2019t accept credit cards!<\/p>\n

It had been a few days since I\u2019d checked by cash reserves and I only had \u20ac34 \u2026 that left \u20ac10 remaining after the taxi ride. I didn\u2019t know if the restaurant accepted cards and I now had no way to pay for a ride back to the hotel.<\/p>\n

It was only after the taxi driver had driven away did I realize the restaurant \u2026 was closed! It didn\u2019t open for another hour and a half! Hey \u2026 thanks hotel clerk for making that call for me.<\/p>\n

The restaurant is in a very industrial area \u2026 there was nothing around it, nowhere for me to walk, no one for me to call.<\/p>\n

As I stood in the parking lot, turning circles and looking forlorn, someone whistled and shouted \u201cchica!\u201d It was a crusty old fella sitting at a table outside the restaurant; he spoke as much English as my cab driver. After several minutes of failed conversation, I downloaded a language translator application (app) on my iPhone and started typing out my questions to him. His name was Enzo, he was a truck driver \u2026 and I don\u2019t think he\u2019d\u00a0seen an iPhone before in his life!<\/p>\n

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A while later, the chef arrived \u2026 one of those lived-hard, handsome-ish guys who looks like a chef. He spoke a tiny bit of English, but not much. Through those wonderfully expressive Italian gestures, I got the message that I should relax and everything would be just fine.<\/p>\n

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There was no menu, there was no waitress announcing the specials of the day, there was no chalkboard featuring the day\u2019s fare, but food magically and endlessly started arriving at the table that I now shared with my new friend Enzo.<\/p>\n

Perfectly grilled eggplant and zucchini, followed by two different types of salami and something that looked like raw bacon. Then a delicious salad with a delicate dressing was placed in front of me, followed by the most incredible pasta with mushrooms that I have since tried to replicate (below).<\/p>\n

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Earlier in the evening the chef lit several logs in the outside fireplace and now used indirect heat to barbecue the meat course. He cooked one plate\u2019s worth of meat at a time. While the lamb, bacon, beef steak and pork sausage sizzled, he walked to his garden to pick the appropriate garnish for each plate; mint, rosemary, or, in my case, berries and strangely sweet grapes.<\/p>\n

(See more of Alyson\u2019s photos of Italy after the recipe.)<\/p>\n

CREAMY MUSHROOM PASTA<\/h2>\n

PREP TIME: 10 MINUTES
\nCOOK TIME:\u00a020 MINUTES
\nMAKES: 4 SERVINGS<\/span><\/p>\n