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Do Italians eat meatballs?

Recently, I received a comment from my zeppole post stating that meatballs don't exist in Italy.

True: Meatballs as Americans know them are not an Italian recipe. Spaghetti with meatballs? No way - no Italian that I've ever known has dared to put a big hunk of meat on his or her delicious pasta.

There are, however, polpette. These are your basic equivalent to meatballs but are served as a second course. They can be eaten either with or without a tomato-based sauce.

Posted by Kelsea at 7:15 AM | Comments (3)

House Blessings

I walked out of my apartment building this morning and noticed that an announcement was posted on the main door. I stared at it for a minute, trying to translate whether the building would be without hot water or have a temporary power outage.

None of that -- it was naming the date that a Catholic priest would be in the building to bless each residence with holy water for Easter. As I looked up and down the street, I saw that every door had the same sign posted. This caught me by surprise - I only know of priests coming to bless houses in exorcism horror movies!

Apparently, this is a ritual that was traditionally done on the eve of Easter. Homes are blessed by the parish priest in memory of the angel who signed door-posts with lamb's blood in Egypt. Although Easter is a ways away, I suppose Rome is just too big for the priests to hit every house the day before Easter.

Posted by Kelsea at 6:01 PM | Comments (1)

St. Joseph's Day: Father's Day in Italy, with zeppole

I've been getting a little confused. Everywhere I go I see T-shirts and coffee cups with the words Festa del papa (which most easily translates as "Father's Day") written all over them.

Fearing that I had forgotten to salute my Dad on his designated day, I took a look at my calendar to get it straight. Sure enough, Father's Day is still scheduled for June 18th, so what's going on?

This Sunday, March 19th, Italians celebrate St. Joseph's Day and appropriately parallel it with Father's Day. I asked some of my Italian friends if there is any festa in June, but that appears to be an American thing. So, it looks like my Dad gets double the gifts this year.

The common treat for the Festa del Papa are the zeppole. Coffee shops and pasticcerie (pastry shops) sell these sweet, deep-fried rings of dough topped with confectionary sugar. (No filling, no cherry.) Between these and pasta, I have no idea how Italians continue to stay so thin.

Posted by Kelsea at 4:11 PM | Comments (5)

Images of Tuscany

Finally, spring break has arrived for us students! Although I hadn’t planned to do any travelling, a few days away from the city was definitely needed. My boyfriend and I piled our things into his car and drove out to Tuscany…

Whenever travelling outside of the major cities in Italy, the best place to stay is called an “agriturismo.” These places are kind of like Bed & Breakfasts, but they also serve lunch and dinner - and the food and wine is almost always from their own farms and vineyards. Some agriturismos do horseback riding as well.

A small agriturismo atop a Tuscan hill

I spent my afternoons exploring the nearby historic towns, like Tuscania.

If you get up high enough on a hill, you’ll be able to catch sunset over the sea:

Posted by Kelsea at 9:00 AM | Comments (0)

Baptism - another reason for food and family

Today I attended the baptism of my boyfriend’s niece, Nicole. During the days prior to the event, his house had been practically turned into a bakery as his mother had decided to prepare all of the sweets herself, including the Italian classic (and my personal favorite) tiramisù.

Nicole, eyeing up her grandmother’s torta alla panna.

Friends and family gathered after the ceremony to enjoy pizza, supplì (basically a fried ball of rice, tomato sauce and cheese) and the homemade treats. It was quite tiring, however, because Italians always salute one another with a kiss on each cheek – and when dealing with a big family, that’s a lot of kisses to go around!

Posted by Kelsea at 2:36 PM | Comments (0)

Festa della Donna

Tomorrow, March 8, is Women's Day. I have read that this is an international holiday - but before moving to Italy I was never aware of it. First celebrated internationally in 1911, it is based on a number of previous women's rights demonstrations in the USA. Here in Italy, men give mimosa flowers to their female family members and friends.

Posted by Kelsea at 8:02 AM | Comments (0)

American band meets Roman soccer

I never did mention the outcome of that soccer game from two posts ago...

Roma won - not only that game but the Roma-Lazio derby a week later. Fans went crazy and were cheering in the streets, honking horns, and even streaking in Piazza Navona (oh yes, it was quite a sight). Through it all one thing was constantly being sung: the bass-line of "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes.

Why? When Roma played in Belgium two Sundays ago, the competing team began singing this tune after the first half of the game. The Roma fans - wanting to insult and challenge the other team's fans - sang it back louder. Since then this has become the theme song for a.s. Roma. Morning radio shows call up the soccer players at home and ask them to sing it for a laugh. This morning, outside my window, I heard someone whistling it.

The best part is, most of the Romans that I have talked to have no clue who the White Stripes are.

Posted by Kelsea at 8:37 AM | Comments (10)