Food Lover's Odyssey

Paris Pastries Binge - Pierre Herme

 

 

Paris pastry samplings are one of the things I most look forward to whenever I visit the city.  This trip I binged sampled so many I felt a sugar coma coming on. The samplings started and ended with Pierre Herme.  Although some of my friends complain about Chef Herme's higher prices, his pastries and macarons never dissapoint.  Simply and impeccably decorated, the flavors are as flawless as each little pastry jewels' appearance. There is a reason he's the highest priced patissier in town. The problem is that when you start a Paris pastry binge with Pierre Herme, it creates a high standard for the other pastry shops to live up to.  And, many of them don't.

We started with some from the current "fetish" line or special of the season: vanilla and ended with macarons.  Right now Chez Herme has an array of Infiniment Vanille (Intensely Vanilla) specials on offer. We tried two, and each lived up to its promise. All of the various creams in the pastries generously use three kinds of vanilla; from Madagascar, Tahiti and Mexico. I also really wanted to bite into one of those fat vanilla eclairs, but that will have to be for the next PH pastry binge. 

 

Infiniment Vanille selection of pastries from the rue Vaugirard shop

 

Tart Infiniment Vanille

 

This tart starts off with a crunchy pate sable (shortbread crust) at its base, giving some crunchy texture to balance all the creamy vanilla-ness that follows. On the tart's crust lies a vanilla bean and white chocolate ganache. For more vanilla, a lady-finger disc is soaked in vanilla simple syrup and nestled into the ganache.  At the very top, rests a thick disk of vanilla and mascarpone cream.

 

Infiniment Vanille pastry

 

A dense and slightly crunchy almond-vanilla macaron cake holds a layer of vanilla mousseline cream (pastry cream, butter and vanilla) and a layer of the vanilla and mascarpone cream.  It has less textural contrast than the tart and wasn't as powerful on the vanilla flavor, even though each cream again has a combination of the three types of vanilla.  What it lacked in vanilla overload, though, it made up for in creaminess.  I liked the pairing of almonds and vanilla together, too.

 

 

The thing about macarons are that they can be too sweet, as they already have a lot of sugar in the cookie, which is egg whites, sugar and ground almonds. When the filling is jam, more sugar, the entire macaron is much too sweet for my palate.  Pierre Herme understands how to perfectly balance the filling and the cookie. Although sometimes a bit odd or avant-garde, his fillings contrast use flavors that are fatty, creamy, salty and sometimes savory to create macaron bliss.  These were my favorites from his selection (from right to left):

Infiniment Chocolat - Intensely chocolate filling made with a single origin Venezualan chocolate for the chocolate ganache filling. 

Infiniment Vanille - Again for lovers of all things vanilla, there is the infiniment vanille macaron.  White chocolate and vanilla bean ganache is the filling, and I would say this macaron is more intensely vanilla flavored than the tart. 

Huile d'Olive & Vanille - Olive oil and the white chocolate & vanilla ganache pair to make the filling for the green macaron. I preferred this to the infinement vanille because the olive oil offsets some of the sweetness of the white-chocolate based ganache.

Infiniment Caramel - Still my all-time PH macaron favorite. This is for lovers of caramel, especially the salted-butter kind.  A buttercream of caramel and salted butter is the perfect salty, fatty foil to the sweet macaron cookie.

Caraquillo - One of the new flavors for the September re-entry from vacation line, this ganache filling blends together chocoate, coffee and anice flavors and definitely puts this macaron in my top three of all of them. 

 

Other selections from the Pierre Herme pastry case

 

I'll soon share more pastries from my pastry binge at some of the other best pastry shops in Paris.

 

Pierre Herme - There are several locations in Paris - These are the patisseries I visited:

185 rue de Vaugirard - Metro stop: Pasteur

72 rue Bonaparte - Metro stop: St. Sulpice

Macarons and Chocolates only: 4 rue Cambon - Metro stop: Concorde or Madeleine

Most indivudual pastries cost 6 to 6.50 euros and mini macarons cost 72 euro a kilo (I paid 8.50 euros for the 5 above)

 

 

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Where is your favorite pastry shop, Paris or in another city?  What is your favorite pastry?

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Related Posts:

French Pastries and Ten Top Patisseries in Paris

Paris Walks for Food Lover's - Rue de Seine and Bonaparte

Journey Through the Pastries of Paris - Part One

Journey Through the Pastries of Paris - Part Two

The Dish from France: Viennoiserie

Cooking Classes for the Culinary Traveler in Paris

Fraisier

Chocolate Eclairs with Chocolate Pastry Cream

Meyer Lemon Tart Topped with a Lightened Lemon Cream

Four-Spice Palmiers

Croustade aux Pommes - Flaky Apple Tart Inspired by Lunch at Pavillion Margaux

L'Epicuriste - Dining in Paris

 

Those of you who follow Food Lover's Odyssey on Facebook have had a sneak preview of my pastry binge sampling in Paris.  That's not all I've been sampling though.  I've had a few fabulous meals, too.  My dinner at L'Epicuriste was one of the best of those meals. Making it even better was the very reasonable price.  Serving "bistrot classics revisted" according to Gault-Millau, a friend and I had a 3-course meal priced at 34 euros per person.

Once inside, the interior doesn't make you think French bistrot.  The dark wood tables, metal accents, and modern lighting could easily make you think you're dining in any U.S. city.  Well, that is until they set the chalk board at your table with the evening's fare listed solely in French.  The couple next to us saw us struggling with a few words and happily went through the entire list of dishes.  They also mentioned that the wine list was great.  When our very warm and welcoming waiter suggested a red from the Rhone, we went with it.  It paired perfectly with our meal. 

 

 

 

For the starter, I dove mouth-first into their terrine of foie gras.  A thick slice of it is served with a quenelle of fig, raisin and apricot jam.  Creamy, rich and always a must for me when in France.  My friend went with a lighter pumpkin soup, which he devoured faster than I did my dish.  Between slurps he mentioned something about crunchy bits of bacon/lardons in the soup that made it very nice.

 

 

My main course was a classic French dish, paupiette de veau. Traditionally the veal is pounded thin, stuffed with sausage and seasonings, and wrapped with a thin lining of caul fat.  It's then seared and braised.  This version was a lighter one, stuffed with a mix of parsley, garlic and breadcrumbs and instead rolled and tied at each end.  Served on a bed of potatoes and carrots with a veal sauce. It was cooked perfectly to a beautiful pink color and so tender I was tempted to cut it with my fork. Bliss. My friend took the recommendation from our dining neighbors and had the porcelet (baby pork) confit on a bed of daikon radish.  A little twist on the classic sausage and saurkraut Alsatian dish, the radish was served in the Alsatian "choucroute" style.

 

 

 

 

The dessert was a nice ending to an already great meal.  I had the "mi-cuit chocolat." The molten chocolate flowed out of the cake and into a "soup" of pineapple and passion fruit juice. I've seen the molten cake a lot, but it's usually paired with whipped cream or creme anglaise.  I especially liked the acidity of the soup, which played nicely against the very dense dessert.  Again, my friend was extremely happy with his dessert, devouring any before I could get a taste.  His was a rice pudding with a fruit compote at the bottom.

Classic dishes (sometimes with a little twist or addition), simple preparations and perfect execution, the meal was also a very good value for the price. The foie gras was an extra 5 euros. Our half-bottle Hermitage appellation wine was 22 euros.  Both my friend and I agreed that this was one of the best meals of our week in Paris.  So great, I might be back again before I leave Europe.  

 

L’Epicuriste
41 Boulevard Pasteur - 75015
01 47 34 15 50
Metro: Pasteur
Closed: Sunday & Monday

 

 

Related Posts:

Dining Solo at Mon Vieil Ami

A Night at Atelier Joel Robuchon

Paris Food Walks: Rue de Seine and Bonaparte

French Pastries and Ten Top Patisseries in Paris

Italy on a Plate: The Week in Italian Food: September 18, 2011

 

It's a celebratory week here at Food Lover's Odyssey.  The weekly edition of Italy on a Plate turns one today.  When starting this week in Italian food post, I originally thought I would share some of my favorite Italian food links I found on Twitter. I realized that not everyone spends as much time as we bloggers do on that site and the links would be interesting for those that read this blog.  I think it does that, but the weekly roundup has also allowed me to find a whole bunch of great Italian food and food & travel blogs/sites and make many new Italian food-loving friends.  Thank you everyone who follows and those who have added to the list of great Italian food links each week.

In this week's edition, Figs are at the forefront in the recipe roundup.  There are also two risotto recipes, one inspired by a trip to Lake Maggiore and one from the city of Monza.  You know I love something sweet, and I've added several links, including a Tuscan Rice Cake and a Semifreddo with olive oil.  Eating Italy has pizza in Naples - a pizza festival and a top 10 pizzerie guide.  There are food markets, cheap eats and gelato in Rome.  The grape harvest in Italy has started and there are two great pieces on the harvest - with photos. 

I have another reason to celebrate. This week I leave on my blogging-based trip to France and Italy.  I will be gone for a while, 7 weeks!!  I thought instead of stopping Italy on a Plate completely until I returned, I would instead publish a shorter "traveling" edition each week.  I hope you do check in during the week to follow my food travels. Either way, I will definitely be back here again next Sunday.  Enjoy and Buon Appetito!

 

 

 

My Choice for This Week's Top 10 Italian Food Recipes:

Fichi allo Virio (Virio's Stuffed Figs)- Cucina Povera: Tuscan Peasant Cooking - Little Paradiso

Homemade Pasta: Caramelle di Pasta all'Uovo - Filled pasta in the shape of caramels - Browsing Rome

Pasta di Gragnano con crema di olive, capperi e acchiuge - Pastaficio dei Campi

Risotto alla Monzese - Simple Italy

Risotto con Perisco (Risotto with Perch) - Ciao Chow Linda

Orange and Bacon Guinea Fowl - Jul's Kitchen

Semifreddo all' Olio d'Oliva e vaniglia con pesche e lamponi saltati (Olive Oil & Vanilla Semifreddo with sauteed peaches and raspberries - Un Dejeuner de Soleil (in Italian and French)

Tuscan Rice Cake - Lucullian Delights

How to Make Honey from Figs - Emiko Davies

Lu Ranu Stumpatu al Vincotto (Wheatberries with Reduced Grape Must) - Silvestro's Salento

 

 

 

 

Eating Italy:

Napoli Pizza Village 2011 - Scenes from the recent pizza festival in Naples - Napoli Unplugged

La Vendemmia - Italy Magazine

Harvest Dispatches from Europe are Changing the Way We Understand "Vintage" - Great photos from various grape harvests in Italy, and links to many more - Do Bianchi

Guida alle Migliori Dieci Pizzerie Napoletane - Guide to the 10 Best Pizzerie in Naples and Campania - Luciano Pignataro (in Italian)

Budget Dining in Rome, Revised - Katie updates her budget dining recommendations - Parla Food

Mercato (via Gregorio VII) - Elizabeth Minchilli in Rome

Rome Gelato Tour: Il Gelato di Claudio Torce - An American in Rome

Rome: Neve di Latte - Gelato - Urban Italy

Italy Struggles to Engage a Younger Generation in Agriculture - The Atlantic

Savor the Flavors of Venice - The Independent

 

 

 

 

Upcoming Food and Wine Festivals in Italy:

CousCous Festival - September 20 - 25 - San Vito Lo Capo, Sicily

Mortadella, Please - September 30 - October 2 - Bologna and Zola Predosa celebrate the Mortadella International Festival and other local food and wines (Here is Information about the festival in English)

Dolcemente 2011 Pisa - October 1 & 2 - Pisa hosts the festival that celebrates all things sweet in Tuscany - Tuscan pastries, chocolate, guided tastings, pastry classes and more

Tuscany Wine 2011 Arezzo - October 8 to 10 - Arezzo, in association with VinItaly, the festival focuses on Tuscan wines (Here is information on Tuscany Wine in English)

EuroChocolate - October 14 to 23 - Perugia - The biggest chocolate festival in Italy

Alba Truffle Festival - October 8 to November 13 - The 81st Annual truffle festivals takes place in Alba

ChocoBarocco - October 28 - November 1 - A chocolate celebration in Modica, the city in Sicily famous for its chocolate.

November Porc - Every Weekend in November - The Strada del Culatello di Zibello Association hosts events in the area of Emilia-Romagna to celebrate cured meats of the area.  Each weekend there will be some type of salami competition (the biggest, the heaviest, the longest, the "biggest chocolate") in a different city along with food stands, street markets and other entertainment

Chocolate in Piazza - November 4 - 6 - Carpi in Emilia-Romagna celebrates its 3rd annual chocolate festival

Merano Wine Festival - November 4 - 7 - One of the biggest wine events in Italy - The 20th anniversary of this festival will happen in the northern Italian city of Merano

Festa del Torrone - November 18 - 20 - In Cremona, a festival to celebrate the candy that much of Northern Italy associates with Christmas

Wine and Food Festivals in Emilia-Romagna - Autumn 2011 - A list, with links, to many of the food and wine events in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy

Events in Tuscany - Site listing many events throughout Tuscany, and not only food and wine

Events in the Langhe area of Piedmont - Site from the Alba Tourist office listing many festivals, mostly wine & food, happening in the Langhe area of Piedmont

 

 

 

 

 

Related Posts:

Pizza Lover's Odyssey in Naples

Torta Setteveli - Seven Veils Cake from Palermo

Eating My Way Through Venice - Cicchetti and Seafood Antipasto

Best Ways to Savor Venice

The Art of Making Pasta by Hand: A Pugliese Pasta Lesson from Nonna Vata

The Sea and Spaghetti Siracusana

Pasta alla Genovese and Other Classic Neapolitan Sauces at Citta del Gusto

Roman Pasta Dishes and Ten Places to Eat Them in Rome

 

 

Jardin du Luxembourg for a Picnic in Paris

 

It's very easy to find a park if you want to picnic in Paris.  The city is filled with so many painfully picturesque parks that you could spend your entire stay visiting them.  Some of the parks are tiny plots tucked away between buildings. Others are lush and grand oases in the city.  If I had to choose one, just one, to while away the day, or better yet to have a picnic, it would be the Jardin du Luxembourg.  And, favorite picnic spots is our topic for this month's Across the Cafe Table.

There are many reasons why I prefer the Jardin du Luxembourg over all the other parks in Paris, but the biggest one was probably subconcious. On a guided walk through the gardens, I learned that the park has Italian origins!  Originally owned by the duke of Luxembourg, hence the name, Marie de Medici, wife of Henry IV and mother of Louis XIII, purchased it in 1612.  Her plan was to model the palace and the park after her childhood home, the Pitti Palace and Boboli Gardens of Florence.

 

The Luxembourg Gardens provide both a verdant and tranquil setting for a picnic,  along with quiet corners where you can nestle yourself away from the crowds.  When I want to be part of the crowd or people watch, I'll take a seat center stage around the Grand Bassin, the pool in front of the Luxembourg Palace (now the French Senate), or check out the old guys playing boules and chess.  After the French Revolution, the gardens were redesigned in the French style. Traces of its origins remain; including the original layout, the Medici Fountain, and a statue of The Mouth of Truth modeled after the one in Rome.

 

The Grand Bassin and its fountain

Medici Fountain

After one of my Paris Food Walks, with much picnic fare purchased, I'd enjoy a picnic on one of the park's benches. It's also an idyllic place to have a morning viennoiserie before you start your day in the city, or to pause for pastry binges in the afternoon.  I've walked off those calories without even leaving the park as there are plenty of little alleys running along the park's perimeter and weaving their way throughout the grounds. 

 

What's in my Paris picnic basket?  Well, it's all about the bread, the cheese and the pastries. I'll frequently add a bit of foie gras, seasonal fruit, maybe some olives and charcuterie, depending on who's joining me and how hungry we are.

 

 
Fountain of the Four Points of the World

 

 

This is the fourth installment in the "Across the Café Table" series organized by Margo of The Travel Belles. Once a month, Margo asks a travel-related question. We who participate share our answers “across the virtual café table,” on our own blogs, and all link to the Travel Belles' post. Everyone is welcome to participate.  As Margo says, "Grab a beverage and pull up a chair – there’s always plenty of room!" Why don't you head on over there now, and check out what others' favorite souvenirs are from around the world.

 

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Now, it's your turn: Where is your favorite spot to have a picnic? What's in your ideal picnic basket?

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Related Posts:

Paris Food Walk: Rue de Seine & Bonaparte

Favorite Parks in Paris to Picnic and People Watch

Cours Saleya Market and a Picnic in Nice

Best Picnic Spots and Picnic Fare in Rome

French Pastries and Ten Top Patisseries in Paris

Market Day in Sarlat

Foreign Cookbook Obsession and Other Travel Indulgences (Across the Cafe Table #1)

Beach Bag Essentials and My Favorite Italian Beaches (Across the Cafe Table #2)

My Best Souvenir - Launching Travel Memories in My Mind (Across the Cafe Table #3)

 

 

Italy on a Plate: The Week in Italian Food: September 11, 2011

 

Welcome to this week in Italian food.  No, I didn't forget about this week's roundup.  It's just that I've been scurrying around, probably looking crazier than the Mad Hatter, to finish up projects and tie up all ends before my upcoming blog-based trip to Italy and France.  Although Italy on a Plate is a little late this week, I think you'll still like the roundup of links.  They include lots of pasta dishes, a fig & frangipane tart, and jams - one onion and one fig.  Eating Italy has tips on favorite aperitivo spots in Lake Maggiore, a great piece on HomeFood in Italy, photos from a grape harvest in Tuscany, a food walk in Lunigiana, and a huge helping of food in Rome.  Enjoy everyone and Buon Appetito!

 

My Choice for This Week's Top 10 Recipes from Around the Web:

Zucchine alla Parmigiana - Memorie di Angelina

Saffron and Leek Risotto - Quatro Fromaggio and Other Disgraces on the Menu

Tagliatelle alla Borragine (Borage Tagliatelle) - Briciole

Pasta al Melanzane e Pomodori (Pasta with Eggplant & Tomatoes) - Bella Baita Views

Ragu di Giuseppe - Neapolitan Ragu Giuseppe's Way - Napoli Unplugged

Tegame di Vernazza - Anchovies from the Cinque Terre - Bella Vita Italia

Fig Frangipane Tart and Falling for Florence - Emiko Davies

Confettura di Cipolle (Onion Jam) - Aglio, Olio & Peperoncino

Made in Italy Marmellata di Pomodori (Tomato Marmalade) - Domenica Cooks

Confettura di Fichi Bianchi (White Fig Jam) - Volevo Fare Lo Chef (in Italian)

 

 

 

 

Eating Italy:

Rome's Michelangelo of Pizza - More about Gabriele Bonci and his pizza making classes - There's also a great video included in the article - The Guardian

Passeggiata del Gusto in the Lunigiana - Wandering Italy

Boulangerie San Bartolomeo in Rome - Elizabeth Minchilli in Rome

Tuscan Harvest of 2011: Maremma Report - On the Wine Trail in Italy

Pick Your Own Apples in Val Taleggio - Rubber Slippers in Italy

Jessica Spiegel on Home Food - Jessica for Parla Food

Il Gelato Fantasia in Rome - Una Americana a Roma

Food & Wine: Some Lovely Aperitivo Spots in Stresa - Lake Maggiore - Stresa Sights

Rome Gelato Tour: San Crispino - An American in Rome

Where to Eat in Rome's Most Touristy Areas - Revealed Rome

Reclaiming the Noble Wines of Southern Italy: Sara Carbone, Basilicata - Vinissima

Lunch in Siracusa: Sicilian in Tavola - Gina Tringali

In Defense of Italian Food: Regional, Diverse and Refined - The Atlantic

Fall's Gold: Friuli's Autumn Food Festival - The Guardian

 

 

 

 

 

Upcoming Food and Wine Festivals in Italy:

Festival del Prosciutto di Parma - September 9 to 18 - Parma celebrates its 14th annual Parma Prosciutto Festival

Slow Food Cheese - September 16 to 19 - Bra, the home of the Slow Food Headquarters - An cheese festival that originally highlighted only local cheeses, now is an international affair celebrating artisanl cheesemaking - the site is still under construction

Taste of Milano - September 15 - 18 - Food festival celebrating the food of Milan

CousCous Festival - September 20 - 25 - San Vito Lo Capo, Sicily

Mortadella, Please - September 30 - October 2 - Bologna and Zola Predosa celebrate the Mortadella International Festival and other local food and wines (Here is Information about the festival in English)

Dolcemente 2011 Pisa - October 1 & 2 - Pisa hosts the festival that celebrates all things sweet in Tuscany - Tuscan pastries, chocolate, guided tastings, pastry classes and more

Tuscany Wine 2011 Arezzo - October 8 to 10 - Arezzo, in association with VinItaly, the festival focuses on Tuscan wines (Here is information on Tuscany Wine in English)

EuroChocolate - October 14 to 23 - Perugia - The biggest chocolate festival in Italy

Alba Truffle Festival - October 8 to November 13 - The 81st Annual truffle festivals takes place in Alba

November Porc - Every Weekend in November - The Strada del Culatello di Zibello Association hosts events in the area of Emilia-Romagna to celebrate cured meats of the area.  Each weekend there will be some type of salami competition (the biggest, the heaviest, the longest, the "biggest chocolate") in a different city along with food stands, street markets and other entertainment

Chocolate in Piazza - November 4 - 6 - Carpi in Emilia-Romagna celebrates its 3rd annual chocolate festival

Merano Wine Festival - November 4 - 7 - One of the biggest wine events in Italy - The 20th anniversary of this festival will happen in the northern Italian city of Merano

Festa del Torrone - November 18 - 20 - In Cremona, a festival to celebrate the candy that much of Northern Italy associates with Christmas

Wine and Food Festivals in Emilia-Romagna - Autumn 2011 - A list, with links, to many of the food and wine events in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy

Events in Tuscany - Site listing many events throughout Tuscany, and not only food and wine

Events in the Langhe area of Piedmont - Site from the Alba Tourist office listing many festivals, mostly wine & food, happening in the Langhe area of Piedmont

 

 

 

 

Related Posts:

Pizza al Taglio at Pizzarium in Rome

Fettuccine ai Funghi (with Mushrooms) - Inspired by an Autumn in Rome

The Dish from Liguria - Spaghetti allo Scoglio

The Cinque Terre - My Happy Place

Mom's Slow-Cooked Meat Ragu

Dining Around Naples with Napoli Unplugged

Pizza Lover's Odyssey in Naples

Pasta alla Genovese and Other Classic Neapolitan Sauces at Citta del Gusto

 

 

 

 

 

Italy on a Plate - The Week in Italian Food: September 4, 2011

 

Happy Labor Day weekend to those in the U.S. and a happy return for those returning from Ferragosto and August vacations.  Both are signs that summer is over even though it doesn't officially end for another few weeks.  Along with a step-by-step focaccia recipe, the recipes this week include some warm-weather ingredients; tomatoes for a tomato-basil risotto, a bell-pepper pasta sauce, and peach desserts and preserves.  In Eating Italy there's a lot going on, too. Links to pieces on the wines of the Veneto and Valtellina, and a piece about Montalicino - who's upcoming vote is causing much unrest around the web. There's much more, including eating in Florence, Rome, Ortigia, Lake Iseo, and the Emilia-Romagna.  Enjoy and Buon Appetito!

 

 

 

My Choices for This Week's Top 10 Italian Food Recipes from Around the Web:

How to Make Focaccia Step by Step - Italian Food Forever

Tomato Basil Risotto - La Bella Vita

Baked Anelletti (Anelletti ca Carne Capuliata) from Sicily - Manus Menu

Late Summer Mushroom Pappardelle - Emiko Davies

Bell Pepper Pasta - Quatro Fromaggio and Other Disgraces on the Menu

Alfonso Caputo's Spaghetti alla Nerano and a 2009 Greco di Tufo - Kyle Phillips Italian Wine Review

Peach Tiramisu - A Twist on the classic Venetian dessert - Aglio, Olio & Peperoncino

Roasted Peach Gelato - Briciole

Summer in a Jar: Amaretto Peach Jam - Cucina Panzano

Abruzzo Blackberry Ratafia: The Foragers' Liqueur - Life in Abruzzo

 

 

 

 

Eating Italy:

A Tour of Veneto Region's Wines - Chicago Tribune

The Best Food in Bologna and Emilia-Romagna - Walks of Italy

Primo Sale (Lunch in Rome) - Elizabeth Minchilli in Rome

Eating Our Way Through the Ortigia Market - Gina Tringali

What the Hell is Going on Montalcino - One of many informational posts from Jeremy this week explaining the situation and upcoming vote on the wines of Montalcino - DoBianchi

Scrumptious Italian Desserts - Delicious photos from pastry shops & gelaterie in Italy - Scordo

Eating Everything but the Squeak - Italy Magazine

Eat, Pray, Love Florence - Europe Up Close

Lakefish Cuisine at Lago Iseo - Rubber Slippers in Italy

Valtellina Love - The American in Italia

Renzo e Lucia Pasta all' Uovo: Great Fresh Pasta in Rome - Spotted by Locals Rome

Regional Cuisines in Rome - Part 1: Focus on Northern Italian Restaurants - Buzz in Rome

Regional Cuisines in Rome - Part 2: Focus on Central Italian Restaurants - Buzz in Rome

Regional Cuisines in Rome - Part 3: Focus on Southern Italian Restaurants - Buzz in Rome

 

 

 

 

Upcoming Food and Wine Festivals in Italy:

Wild Boar Festival - August 26 to September 11 - Porto Ercole in Grosseto

Santa Brigida Crostino Festival - September 2 to 11 - The small village of Santa Brigida outside of Florence, celebrates its 20th annual festival of crostini

Piadina Days - September 10 & 11 - The province of Forli-Cesena in the Emilia-Romagna celebrates the region's famous piadina

Festival del Prosciutto di Parma - September 9 to 18 - Parma celebrates its 14th annual Parma Prosciutto Festival

Slow Food Cheese - September 16 to 19 - Bra, the home of the Slow Food Headquarters - An cheese festival that originally highlighted only local cheeses, now is an international affair celebrating artisanl cheesemaking - the site is still under construction

Taste of Milano - September 15 - 18 - Food festival celebrating the food of Milan

CousCous Festival - September 20 - 25 - San Vito Lo Capo, Sicily

Mortadella, Please - September 30 - October 2 - Bologna and Zola Predosa celebrate the Mortadella International Festival and other local food and wines (Here is Information about the festival in English)

Dolcemente 2011 Pisa - October 1 & 2 - Pisa hosts the festival that celebrates all things sweet in Tuscany - Tuscan pastries, chocolate, guided tastings, pastry classes and more

Tuscany Wine 2011 Arezzo - October 8 to 10 - Arezzo, in association with VinItaly, the festival focuses on Tuscan wines (Here is information on Tuscany Wine in English)

EuroChocolate - October 14 to 23 - Perugia - The biggest chocolate festival in Italy

Alba Truffle Festival - October 8 to November 13 - The 81st Annual truffle festivals takes place in Alba

November Porc - Every Weekend in November - The Strada del Culatello di Zibello Association hosts events in the area of Emilia-Romagna to celebrate cured meats of the area.  Each weekend there will be some type of salami competition (the biggest, the heaviest, the longest, the "biggest chocolate") in a different city along with food stands, street markets and other entertainment

Chocolate in Piazza - November 4 - 6 - Carpi in Emilia-Romagna celebrates its 3rd annual chocolate festival

Merano Wine Festival - November 4 - 7 - One of the biggest wine events in Italy - The 20th anniversary of this festival will happen in the northern Italian city of Merano

Festa del Torrone - November 18 - 20 - In Cremona, a festival to celebrate the candy that much of Northern Italy associates with Christmas

Wine and Food Festivals in Emilia-Romagna - Autumn 2011 - A list, with links, to many of the food and wine events in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy

Events in Tuscany - Site listing many events throughout Tuscany, and not only food and wine

Events in the Langhe area of Piedmont - Site from the Alba Tourist office listing many festivals, mostly wine & food, happening in the Langhe area of Piedmont

 

 

 

 

Related Posts:

Food in Rome: Taste of Testaccio is Offal

Dish from Rome: Coda alla Vaccinara (Romany Style Braised Oxtail)

A Taste of the Sea and Spaghetti Siracusana

Torta Setteveli - Seven Veils Cake from Palermo

Journey Through the Pastries of Napoli

Pastries of Lecce - A Tour with Pastry Chef Luca Capilungo

Favorite Regional Italian Pasta Dishes

Caramel Gelato and Favorite Gelaterie in Rome

Torta Caprese - Flourless Chocolate Cake from Capri