Summer Vegetable Bake and other Stories

Hello everyone! I have started teaching finally, part time, but it's taking more of my time and effort than I ever thought it would...hence, fewer posts. This dish is an imitation of one which Antonio's mother made one evening for supper, and the combination of thinly sliced eggplant, zucchini, potatoes and onions with some olive oil, salt, pepper & oregano and some pomodori pelati (tomato pieces) between the layers creates something more delicious than one would imagine! It makes a good light supper dish along with some peasant bread, cheese and olives, and is tasty even lukewarm. Start with a large oven proof pan with some olive oil in the bottom and build layers of the vegetables, spreading the tomatoes, oil and seasonings in between. The only "down side" is that it takes rather long to get nice and 'roasty'--our huge baking pan was in the oven at 450 degrees for almost two hours last night! It made a great lunch today however...

One of the only other things of note I have made recently is pistachio ice cream--it turned out a very light green colour and the flavour is spectacular! I even went out and bought a package of sugar cones and I must confess a little container of organic cream in a somewhat pathetic attempt to re-create my Italian ice cream experience of a cone with "panna" and a passeggiata. This turns out to be impossible for many reasons and the alternative, a cone at La Paloma, is frankly a little too expensive to be enjoyable. Who would have ever thought two decent sized ice cream cones (small size) would set you back almost $10? Here's to the ice cream machine Antonio bought me last year for my birthday!

Forza Italia!!!

Antonio is pictured with a random soccer fan holding a clever sign... We walked up and down our strip, St. Clair West, for a couple of hours with my parents, and ended up eating dinner at Marcello's. It's 10:45 pm and I can still hear the fans celebrating out my window! Thank goodness it's only once every 4 years because Antonio yelled loud enough for our entire building-- though I'm usually not very fond of watching soccer, I got into it near the end, and on St. Clair held my own with whistle blowing, flag waving and the like! Auguri everyone!

Back with the sweet taste of summer idle in my mouth...

Dear neglected readers and friends, after suffering for days from the ravages of jet lag and culture shock, I am indeed back home in TO. After complaining about the lack of water in Sicily, and about the extreme heat, I am back to complaining about the quotidian affairs--such is life! I hope to be posting a little more often now. I will continue to post more photos of the trip on flikr, as it takes less time. Happy summer to all!
Above: Pasta alla Norma (at the Sabatino farm 'Finocchiara'), Antonio and I in a rare peaceful spot in Palermo, farm fresh fruit for breakfast