Addicted to Italian Cusine

I think there is one cuisine in the world that has a huge influence on my cooking.  That would be Italian.  Think about it.  How many things do you eat Italian in a week?  Pizza, pasta, risotto, calamari, breads, wine, cheese, anchovies, espresso, olives, bruschetta, and caprese salad.  The list goes on and on.

I"m not saying I am not influenced by other cuisines.  Surely I am with French, German, Russian, Mediteranean, Mexican, Spanish, Japanese, and Vietnamese.  You name it, I"m sure I am influenced by it in my cooking.

But I have to admit, I love all things Italian.  Even my husband.  I love the freshness of the ingredients.  I love the versatility of the dishes.  I love the variety one finds in pasta (somewhere over 600 types).  How can you not love Italian food?

Are you one of those people that remembers what you eat when you travel?  Are you like me, interested enough in the gastronomy of the country or region of the world you are in to not only remember what you ate, but then go home and repeat it?

I remember odd things like the 3 course meal I had in Florence for my friend Jule's birthday in 2004.  We started with a mushroom struedel, enjoyed spaghetti with a lamb ragu, moved onto bistecca fiorentina, and finished with a chocolate banana tarte with a Muscato for dessert.  I don't know why I remember that meal besides it being very good.  I remember the first time I had spaghetti carbonara in Roma.  Or eating croquettes in Amsterdam and crepes in Paris.  I remember this amazing Grune Salsa in Oberursel, Germany, served with hard boiled eggs and fried potatoes.  I remember rabbit ragu in Tuscany for my 1 year anniversary dinner with Peter.

Food is as much a part of my travel as the sights, the people, and the method of traveling.  In Italy, food is so much a part of the experience because its abundant, its beautiful, and its accessible.  I remember on my last trip eating 17 different types of gelato, 12 different types of pastas, and 16 differnt pizza flavors.  And I was only there for 19 days.  Imagine what it must be like to have those choices each and every day!

In many ways you see a region, a city, a culture through its food.  You understand the intricacies of the people in what they eat, how they eat it, and in what they drink.  Be it anything limone in Amalfi and Capri, pesto in Liguria, hearty bean and vegetable soup in Tuscany, or polenta in Vincenza. These foods that we eat in our own country, when traced back to their origins are all the more interesting, flavorful, and intoxicating when experienced in their city or country of origin.

I think we are all influenced by Italian Cuisine; its hard not to be when calzones, pizza. calamari, and caprese salads are found often on menus.  Next time you travel, think about the influences you see in the cooking; be it a simple seafood soup in San Francisco, Tallarin Verde (green spaghetti) in Peru, or paella in Spain.