Sitting on the patio of a very small restaurant in Franciacorta, Italy. Run by two sisters, you ate what they made for dinner. Homemade pastas, homemade salumis, marinated veggies from the garden, fresh fresh meat braised or grilled in the most delicious manner. Fruit fresh from the trees in the orchard. The husbands were carbinieri and made their own limoncello and wine. The pitchers of both flowed freely as the family sat with you over a traditional Italian dinner. We went here many times over the two years I lived in the area...never knew the name of the restaurant, if it had one, but will never forget the wonderful food and experiences we had there
My current drink of choice:
Pellegrino with a squeeze of lemon or lime
I really wish I could:
Spend more time in Italy. I love the lifetstyle and the food and the people.
My "Go-to" dinner party dish:
These days we entertain very informally and are most apt to invite a few folks over for pizza off our Big Green Egg.
My favorite comfort food:
Mashed potatoes. Definitely mashed potatoes
My top 5 favorite restaurants:
Here in the Chandler area I'd have to say: Cyclo, Tutti Santi, Yupha's, Kai, Sushi Ken
My most tattered cookbooks:
Hazan's Essentials of Italian Cooking; Steven's All About Braising; Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone; Seattle Junior League Simply Classic