I arrived in Italy yesterday and am ready for a week of enjoying la dolce vita. Yesterday when I arrived, my boyfriend's mother and brother took me over to the beach club, where we had focaccia sandwiches made with speck (a smoked prosciutto) and pecorino tartufato (pecorino cheese with flecks of truffle). Even something as simple as that sandwich was more than enough of a welcome for me. We lay around in the sun for a few hours before returning home. Later, I thought that I would have gone with my boyfriend to the pharmacy, but quickly found myself being dropped off alone in the middle of a small town near where he lives, wearing my bathing suit, a very small sundress, and flip flops. I was not happy about the fact that I would have to walk around like that for an hour! I walked up and down the main street, which took about 15 minutes, and then plopped myself down for an aperitivo, my favorite meal of the day. I ordered an Americano, which is made with vermouth, campari, and a slice of orange. The waitress brought over the chips, peanuts, and sliced up focaccia sandwiches that always come with the pre-dinner drink. Italy is so civilized in that sense, you are always given food when you order a drink. That is something that I never have understood about American bars. They want you to drink a lot and pay a lot, but never offer any snacks. I enjoyed my drink and read Plenty, my current book club book. We returned home to a dinner of linguine with shrimp and zucchini, prawns, and salad. For dessert we had fresh strawberries with vanilla ice cream. I love eating here because everything is so fresh and seasonal.

I will be blogging every day from here, taking note of cultural differences, and culinary adventures. I hope you keep reading!

Tonight was our monthly book club meeting, and it was my turn to host. Because tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo, I thought I would do some Mexican appetizers. I made massive amounts of guacamole (and the cost of all of my supplies still managed to be cheaper than 1 serving in a New York restaurant!), jicama and carrots with lime and chilli powder, and black bean hummus. I have been thinking of black bean hummus for more than a year now (not constantly), but I have never gotten around to doing it. Part of the reason is that recipes for it started popping up in magazines around the time I thought of it, which sort of spoiled my excitement.
I thought I had everything under control until 4:30 pm, half an hour before people were supposed to arrive, and the black beans were still not cooked through. Oops. Even though I had soaked them all morning, they were taking a long time to cook. It got to the point where I just gave up on the idea entirely. It was not until 4:55, when I tried the beans one last time, and felt my teeth sink right through. I threw the beans, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and tahini in the blender and just started whizzing like a mad woman. Well, less than five minutes later I had a marvelous black bean hummus. If I make it again, I will go even more extreme and make it with pumpkin seed paste instead of sesame. I cooked the beans with a little nub of ginger, which is supposed to aid in digestion. Be kind to your friends and always use ginger or cumin when cooking beans to prevent your friends from getting gas.

I am definitely a creature of habit. Once I start doing something in a certain way, it is hard for me to change. Especially when it comes to my breakfast. I get started eating a specific cereal, and then I am stuck in that rut for a long time, and I do not adjust to the changing season or how my body is actually feeling. Our bodies change with the seasons, and we need to adjust what we are fueling ourselves with, especially in the morning. Oatmeal is great in Winter, but starting a Summer day off with a hot bowl of oats might make you feel sluggish.
I have decided to make a conscious effort to shake up my breakfast routine of cereal and fruit, and try more proteins and different whole grains in the morning. I wanted to write this entry, because this morning I had a sprouted whole grain english muffin topped with sunbutter and grape preserves, and it made me so incredibly happy and energized. If you have not tried our Sunwich Pita Pizza , then you are totally missing out on how good homemade Sunflower Seed Butter is. All you have to do is lightly toast sunflower seeds, and then grind them up until they break down with their natural oils and turn into a smooth paste. I still do not understand why it is not as popular as peanut butter, while it is so healthy and delicious. Anyway, I am lucky enough to have been able to top by muffin with Squisita di Uva, a grape preserve without added sugar or artificial preservatives from Italy. It does not resemble grape jelly at all, but is sort of a sour loose jam. All I know is that it pairs beautifully with sunflower seed butter, and I am addicted! My plan now is not to eat this tasty breakfast everyday, but also integrate eggs, whole grain porridges, and fresh yogurts, so as not to start my day off with the same-old thing. Do you often get stuck in the breakfast rut?

The other day my dad asked me if I wanted to try the best coffee in San Francisco. He had heard tell it was just around the corner from where we were. Of course I said yes... Usually when I hear "best of" type statements I tend to be dubious, but the Bluebottle Coffee Company just might be.

It is in a small alley in Hayes Valley and it is essentially a garage. There is no seating, but there is a tiny little table that you can stand around as you drink a delicious cappuccino out of a sturdy ceramic mug. I also had saffron almond biscotti to dunk. To find out more, go to: http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/

And if you go, and can hang around, please make sure you ask for a ceramic cup... some people got their coffee in paper cups and then stood around drinking them, and then throwing the paper cups away before leaving. It was hard for me to see that and not judge.

That is all.