Worshipping Santo Pasticciotto

Our Italy trip featured many highlights. For our one full day in Rome, we went on an epic 12-kilometer (7.5-mile) walk, starting at our hotel and heading straight to Vatican City.

There, we climbed the 551 steps up to the cupola of St. Peter's Basilica, with great views of both the interior and exteriors of the dome and of Vatican City and Rome beyond.

 

After walking around the interior of St. Peter's, we crossed back over the Tiber and found our way to Piazza Navona, the Pantheon, Piazza Colonna, Piazza di Trevi (the Trevi Fountain), San Pietro in Vincoli (with Michelangelo's incredible statute of Moses), and the Colosseum, which was right around the corner from our hotel.

 

Piazza Navona

 

A busy day at the Pantheon

 

Gelateria around the corner from our hotel

View of the Colosseum from the gelateria around the corner from our hotel

The Colosseum under a full moon

 

The next day, we met up with Uncle Bob and Aunt Kelly at the Rome airport before flying south to Brindisi and driving to Lecce and then Torre dell'Orso, where we stayed in my cousin's house. We swam everyday in the crystal-clear waters of the Adriatic Sea in various places, including Torre dell'Orso, Roca, and Porto Badisco.

 

The "torre" of Torre dell'Orso

View of the beach from the torre

View of the Due Sorelle (the "two sisters") from the beach at T. dell'Orso

 

View of the Due Sorelle from the cliff above

 

 

The Due Sorelle and the coastline from the cliff

With Uncle Bob at Roca

The day we swam at Porto Badisco, we also walked around the beautiful town of 

Otranto, including inside the walls of its old castle.

 

Everywhere we went we had gelato and Mom's new favorite, the pasticciotto typical of Lecce: a short-crust pastry stuffed with vanilla custard cream.

 

Mom worshipping Santo Pasticciotto, the "patron saint of the Salento"

We also spent a morning in Calimera, Grandma Pina's hometown, to carry out the main purpose of our trip, which was reuniting Grandma Pina and Grandpa Guy:

At the cemtery with Uncle Bob and our zio Brizio

Before flying home, we spent one last night in Rome’s Best Western hotel, where I scoped out my dream bathroom:

All in all, it would have been impossible to have planned out a better trip (and I haven’t even mentioned the Serie A soccer game between Lecce and Monza that a cousin took Brad, Uncle Bob, and me to for one of the best birthday presents ever!).

 

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Here is something I've had in my files to make for over a year and finally got around to this weekend. It's quite simple and well worth the minimal effort involved. Mom has already added it to her list of dishes she could "eat everyday." For the vegetarians, Brad skipped the prosciutto and still had three helpings, so it's not a necessary element.

Charred Red Pepper and White Bean Salad

Adapted from Cook’s Country (June/July 2021)

Time: ~50 minutes (25 minutes active)

Brad liked this without the prosciutto; if you’re serving this dish to a mixed crowd of vegetarians and omnivores, the prosciutto can be added at the table.

35 grams (¼ cup) whole almonds

5 tablespoons (66 grams) extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1½ tablespoons (23 grams) fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, divided
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 (15.5-ounce) can cannellini or other white beans, drained and rinsed

3 red bell peppers (~8 ounces/225 grams each)

30 grams pecorino Romano cheese
40 grams prosciutto (see note)
~¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
Freshly ground black pepper

    1. Toast the almonds in a 300-degree oven until fragrant and lightly darkened in color, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool for a few minutes, then chop coarsely.

    2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together ¼ cup (53 grams) of the oil, the lemon juice, ½ teaspoon salt, paprika, and cayenne. Stir in the beans.

    3. Stem and seed the peppers, then slice them into approximately 2-by-½-inch strips.

    4. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the bell pepper strips and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring only every 2 minutes, until the pepper strips are tender and charred in places, about 8 to 10 minutes. Stir into the large bowl with the bean mixture; let sit for 30 minutes. (You can store the bean-pepper mixture in the fridge for up to 2 days before continuing with the recipe; bring the mixture to room temperature before serving.)

    5. Using a vegetable peeler, shave the pecorino Romano into strips.

    6. Tear the prosciutto into bite-sized pieces.
    7. Just before serving, stir the chopped almonds, shaved pecorino, torn prosciutto, and parsley into the large bowl with the bean-pepper mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4.