Sardinia - flamingos & celery

Sardinian surprises: flamingos inhabiting inland waterways near the airport leisurely greet arriving visitors their one legged poses appearing impossibly comfortable. And did you know that celery could be an anticipated delicious accompaniment? I thought figi di India was enough - and then celery surfaced. Some vegetables and fruits are suppose to play silent roles. Celery surprises. But as I "remember the taste of fruit" I should add that any fruit or vegetable grown carefully and picked when just ripe deserves attention. Memories of great meals in Sardinia - bottarga sprinkled on pasta, paper thin "bread" called Carta di Musica - are replaced by a delightful dinner tonight on my return to Rome in a restaurant near the Campo di Fiori where I had the perfect Roman dish pasta vongole followed by Osso buco.

Oh but read Abraham Verghese book Cutting For Stone - my companion - along with Roberto - on the excursion to Sardinia

Jam Sardinia - figi di India

Figi di India - cactus pear jam - for breakfast - an inspiring way to begin the day and stay in Sardinia. The recipe does me no good in Cambridge except as inspiration. I found a fellow jam maker in Iola, the owner of the bed and breakfast in Dolianova just north of Cagliere on the Island of Sardinia. She immediately asked "se usa pectina?" with a frown after giving her my Bonnie's Jams card and when I answered "certo no!" the exhale of relief was evident and then disparaging remarks flew back and forth about the uselessness of such jams. Her jams are kept in tiny round bottles and lovingly brought out for visitors in the morning along with the local bread and butter.

overlooking the Colosseum

Antipasti from Maureen's class with a little prosecco while sitting on her terrace with Franco and Roberto as the sun fades from the walls of the coloseum was a good beginning for our Roman stay. The intensity of the tastes of good ingredients means that simple food is magnified to majestic levels. Each fruit and vegetable must be grown with great care because they only taste this way from farmer's markets in Massachusetts in August. Maureen buys perfect tomatoes from an intense man who sells at leave 30 varieties and will only sell the chosen variety after establishing the recipe. So the pomodoro with Mozzarella was perfectly matched as was the tomatoes cooked with fageole - these long flat and green. The pointy pale green cauliflower simple cooked in olive oil I wanted to drink followed prosciutto with melon and then I lost track. No jam yet - but Sardinia is next.

Bonnie's Jams Rome

Arrived in Rome and found almost immediately in the shadow of the Pantheon one perfect nectarine. And waiting an apartment we have rented lots -3rd floor up high stairs - high ceilings and great details like moldings and framed paintings everywhere - lovely little terrace with lots of plants and a yellow wall just covered in a lacy design with green leaves - very quiet and yet in the center of Rome. Right down stairs and around the corner is the Pantheon and our favorite coffee bar Bar Camilloni where Teresa and Enzo seem to do nothing but wait for us to arrive each year. I am sure -and they seem to express - that no other customers are as welcome or as anticipated. The apartment owner is a young cute Italian named Emmanuel who sets the mood perfectly! Dinner tonight Food writer (the Encyclopedia of Pasta Oretta Zanini De Vita trans Maureen Fant) "leftovers" from her recent class...will report back

Fruity preserves remembering summer

All the berries are fading - great summer this was for berries with lots of sun and a little rain. The best berry jam making season I can remember. Stone fruits are suffering though - picked too early with or without sun. I am confused by the growers eagerness to get to market when no one wants hard tasteless fruit. I bought incredible nectarines from on farmer who could wait until the sun had done its alchemy and the fruit emerged juicy, rosy - remembering the taste of that fruit from my California childhood summers. Yum