Dinner in The Sky

Nothing sounds better then enjoying a beautiful night in the city and barbecuing with friends. Thanks to Sara she invited us to her beautiful loft in downtown Montreal.She prepared us a great meal which consisted of sirloin steak,salmon that was slowly cooked with tomatoes, grilled veggies and a delicious salad yum!

oh yes, apprently I am unable to open a bottle of wine properly.

SUGAR RUSH

Here are a few of the last pictures of my trip to Italy. I kept the best for last! Dessert! Hope you guys enjoy.

 Marco and Bianca enjoying their Tiramisu in Rome

 Zabaglione Gelato with fresh strawberries

 Sfogliatelle Napoletana

 Ricotta & pear tart (typical of Amalfi)

 Sicilian breakfast: Freshly baked brioche served with strawberry granita

 Tartufo di Pizzo

 Sicily's world famous Cannolis

Marco, Luca and Vince 

Friendly Fridays

Nothing beats spending a beautiful summer evening with friends. My boyfriend and I stirred things up in the kitchen and created a feast for our friends to enjoy. Among these wonderful dishes were small salmon tartars, BBQ chicken and flank steak skewers, fried stuffed olives,  home made pizza and many more. Hope you guys enjoy the pictures !

Napoli

Next stop Napoli. This beautiful city, located on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, reminded me a bit of back home. With its tall buildings and beautiful restaurants, this is another city that everyone must see. As you may already know, Napoli is recognized as the birthplace of pizza. The mode of preparation and cooking process is what makes it so irresistible. 

The place in Montreal that most closely resembles a real pizza from Napoles is "Bottega". If you guys want the next best thing to actually going to Naples, you should definetely check it out!

At The Edge of The World

After visiting Rome, we headed towards the town of Praiano in the Amalfi Coast. The Amalfi Coast is a place that everyone should make a point to visit on future vacations. It is known for its fresh fish, seafood, and lemon trees.  

From Italy with Love

       Home sweet home at last! Over the last three weeks, I have been traveling throughout the southern part of Italy with my boyfriend and his family. As you will see, I clearly didn't forget to take countless pictures of all the wondeful food and dishes that I was treated to. Even though there was plenty of pizza and pasta in my stomach by the end of my jouney, I made sure to try to get a taste of the other things that make Italian cuisine so recognized and fabulous! Throughout my trip, my goal was to try the specialty or renowned dish of each city or area that I was visting. Stay tuned as I will be sharing with you each and every dish that I was lucky enough to enjoy!

First stop, Rome:

      Rome is definitely one of my favorite cities in Italy. From the ancient architecture to rustic and classic food, Rome will sweep you off your feet everytime you vist. There are three pasta dishes that  the city of Rome is famous for. They are Carbonara, Amatriciana and Cacio e Pepe. I was fortunate enough to try all three of them during my stay in Rome.

Carbonara

[egg yolks, pecorino and guanciale (or pancetta)]

Amatriciana

[tomato sauce, pecorino and guanciale (or pancetta)]

Here are two links that I found of recipes for both Carbonara and Amatriciana

 Cacio e Pepe 

Cacio e Pepe Recipe 

The key to getting the perfect plate of Cacio e Pepe is to keep some of the boiling water that the pasta was cooked in. Once the pasta is cooked al dente, quickly drain it and add it to a large serving dish or bowl. Then add the grated pecorino cheese and a generous amount of black pepper. Slowly add in a bit of pasta water and start mixing until all of the cheese is melted and the dish has a creamy, smooth consistency.

1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino romano cheese (of the highest quality)

Freshly ground black pepper

(450 g) spaghetti or bucatini

Reserve half a cup of salted cooking water. 

I'd be very excited to hear from anyone who has tried these recipes and who would like to share their experiences or suggestions. Thanks for reading and I'll be sure to be posting more from my recent trip very soon.