Italy: Day Two/Three

Sitting alone at the outside table at 9:15
On a crisp sunny morning
Kip and I are the only ones stirring in the house
I suppose that means the dinner party was a success
Yesterday we went into Orvieto in the morning
To go fetch some things at the market
Pecorino- young enough to melt on the chili cheese toast
Mozzarella (and not the bland cow crap we eat in the states)
Tomatoes, peppers, cranberry beans, peaches, plums and figs
And bread
The market is a good cross between farm fresh and flea
In other words you have your tube socks neighboring the raddichio
I mentioned that I may need a bite to eat
Something to tide me over until lunch
Tony mentioned the porchetta sandwiches at the market
After explanation I knew I had to seek and eat
From five booths down I could see the stand
A converted food truck with “porchetta” displayed on the side
Here’s the thing, they sell one thing, outside
Of coke, fanta, sprite and water
He sells pork sandwhiches and not just any pork sandwich
[btw, these are common all over, but this particular experience for me was not common]
there was a display case about 8’ across
behind that case, on a cutting board sat three quarters of a cooked pig
as if they had flash fried the thing standing up
with all innards, hoofs and head taken away
the middle of the pig was stuffed with fennel and garlic and herbs
I ordered un pannino and watched the gentleman shave delicate portions of this onto a roll
It must be understood that each layer had its own nuance
The skin was crispy and tough, the fat layer underneath the skin melted into
The perfectly slow cooked meat beneath it
I took a seat while the rest of the group doddled around the market
And savored something so simple so delicious
On our way out of town we stopped at Jasmina’s studio
She being a friend of the boys
We wanted to see her fabulous three story studio
In which she creates sculptures inspired by her own paintings
Out of tufa- the indigenous rock from the area
Back at the house
The boys whipped up a lovely lunch for everyone
I sat at the end of the table
Belly still full from my pork love pannino
And drank Prossecco while every one else ate
Then we lingered and laid by the pull until
It was time to rally into gear from party prep
Naman and I helped Kip move tables down by the pool
All the while keeping one eye on the thunder storms lurking to the north
We assured ourselves that it was moving around us and we need not worry
Half an hour later we were moving tables back up onto the patio
Fifteen minutes later the skies open up and relinquish themselves to the earth
Plan B took the honor of being awarded the nights agenda
We were all assigned a task to complete for the party
Naman and I did apps- aforementioned chili cheese toast
Lax and Nancy were in charge of cocktails- the Jazz4- in honor of Jasmine in which the drinks were garnied and July 4
It had vodka with blood orange and tropical juices, with muddled rosemary, basil and mint
The guests arrived and we gathered on the front porch for our starters
Peter and Riener are a lovely couple from Berlin that have been living here for 12+ years
Anita is an Aussie that lives here now with various jobs- one being teaching students better English
Tom, I didn’t get to speak to too much (I believe him to be British)- younger fellow with a kind smile
Arianna was our token Italian at the table with her salt and pepper hair and drama du jour
In the way that Italians can be infectiously dramatic
It was a great mix of personalities and culture
Let’s eat
We started off with a fresh caprese salad and a vegetable frittata
Which I could eat again right now if put in front of me
The pasta was [this is where I need to learn my shapes]- was penne like but bigger
Filled with sweet tomato sauce that was balance out with bertolli beans (cranberry) and black olives
I had two helpings
For dessert, Anita brought Peschi cooked in cinnamon and cardomon and a tub of marscopone
For one doesn’t use cool whip around here, or even panna, go ahead and drop the good stuff on top
I felt as if we were gearing down around eleven
Backed off the wine and went inside to clean the kitchen
Well, it became 2 am before we knew it
Our friends had all gone home and we still sat around the table
Going through more wine
Eating any food that may have been left over from two short hours before
Laughing, drunk, smoking, silly
Into the night under a almost full luna
In umbria