Daily Archives: 27 November, 2013

It seems it’s back on!

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We have been in a bit of a lull, as I may have mentioned before now.

There was a point (I think about April or so of this year) when there was, what I believed was, serious talk about us moving in together.

There are, of course, fundamental differences in opinion upon what is “the perfect flat”. In addition, there are fundamental differences on where is the “perfect area to live”.

To recap, these are “somewhere light and airy” (him) and “somewhere with character” (me). “Somewhere modern” (him) and “somewhere from the 20s or 30s” (me). “An area of Milan that’s cheaper” (him) and “the area I have always lived in Milan” (me). “New furniture” (him) and “don’t mind as long as all my ‘period pieces’ come with me” (me).

See how close we are? ;-)

As I may have mentioned previously, I was an ardent looker for flats that didn’t come through an agency (less money to pay up front). Until, that was, I gave the numbers of a couple of places that I had found and rung, to F for him to follow up and make appointments. When he didn’t do that, I stopped looking.

Recently, in the last few weeks, he has started looking again.

And, this week he came up with one through an agency which he went to see yesterday. It’s a small distance away and, more or less, in the same area. It has good transport links. The important thing (and the thing that means that he has listened to me) is that, as he pointed out, it is in a beautiful, 1920s building. And he explained that it really wasn’t so far from where we live now.

He loves it since it fulfils his requirements of being very light and airy plus it is not a bad price for the size.

Unfortunately, I have to see it in the light (the electricity has been turned off, obviously). To do that, I have to wait until the weekend after next since we are away this weekend.

But he loves it and thinks it would be perfect. He is worried that in a week it will be taken.

My opinion is that he may be right. My secret opinion is that, if he is right, then it will still be there in just over a week, in spite of what he thinks to the contrary. My secret, secret opinion is that, actually, if it is right, I will know as soon as step into the place when all other considerations will fall by the wayside. He doesn’t know of my secret opinions.

Unfortunately, I still have my concerns over this “living together” as I know I have mentioned in a previous post. But there’s no concrete objections or thoughts – just concerns. I’m sure we can work them out but, given that we don’t really discuss important things, the working out of them may take some time. So my concerns remain.

Hmmm.

Dishes that Italians didn’t export – probably for good reason

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Italians have exported so much of their food successfully that it’s hard to imagine that there are dishes that, I am sure, would never be a hit abroad – certainly not in the UK.

But, there are some.

As I’ve mentioned before, vitello tonnato (thin slices of cooked veal covered with a mayonnaise with tuna) would be one of them. We just don’t really do fish and meat together.

Another was something we had in the canteen at work. Pizzoccheri.

As it happens, I really do like this dish. It’s a bit like “winter comfort food”. It comes from Valtellina (a place/area very close to the Swiss border, in the Alps, north of Milan).

This is true winter food. Something to fill you and warm you from the inside.

But ……… to look at it, with it’s pasta the colour of mud and the look and texture as if someone had made a huge mistake and cooked everything just way too much to make it a cloying, tasteless mess, you’d be forgiven for turning your nose up at it. However, that would, in my opinion, be a mistake.

The pasta is a flat, ribbon-type pasta make from buckwheat. Hence, I guess, its colour and texture. To it are added boiled, diced potatoes and chunks of cabbage or chard and a delicious melting cheese that holds it all together and also makes the eating of it more fun, in that strings of cheese hold onto the rest of your dish as you bring the forkfull up to your mouth.

Pretty, it’s not. Filling, substantial and very tasty, it is.

Somehow, I can’t imagine this ever being a “hit” in the UK. Which is a shame.

I’m not sure that you have this in the South of Italy. Perhaps my readers who live there can tell me?