Food Inspired by Films - Under the Tuscan Sun

Good morning everybody! Well, I did it, I did my first Food Inspired by Films dinner. And it was fabulous. Bellissimo! Bella! Che meraviglia! I chose Under the Tuscan Sun because it is one of my favourite films. And the book is fantastic! The book and film are however, nothing alike and yet they are both special to me. Just like my sports bra and push up bra. Totally different, but both very very special.

When I first watched the film it was just when I had moved to Vienna in 2004. I was thrilled to be back in Europe and this film cemented my decision to stay. I wanted a vineyard, and a three hundred year old house called Bramasole and I wanted to cook fabulous dinners and drink amazing wine! Well, for 10 years we lived in a 1970's apartment with brown carpeting. And it definitely did not have an official name... But now, 2014, we live in a 110 year old apartment, overlooking a park and I get to cook fabulous dinners and drink amazing wine. Three'ísh out of four ain't bad. I loved this film for its landscapes and music. I have always been in love with Italy - the architecture and the food and the people and the fashion. It is a type of philosophy that affects each aspect of life. Seeing Italian families sit around a table is not just about the meal but rather about life. I think we are in such a hurry that we forget to sit down and just enjoy. Yesterday I stumbled across this quote and it kind of sums it up for me: A tavola non si invecchia - You don't age while seated at a meal. Yes! The original Botox- family dinners!

I have been to Italy a few times; Bari, Venice, San Gmigignano (my fave), Siena, Florence and some small towns in Tuscany. My first Tuscan experience was with my parents. We rented out an apartment in a villa in the vineyards. It was like out of a film and I was smitten. It probably helped that there was a a young rider practicing bareback for the upcoming Palio di Siena. He would show up in the afternoons and I would wear my prettiest summer dress and sit on the sing and believed I looked pretty. Oh, look, there I am.

Call me, maybe?

My other Tuscan experience was just as magical but without the bareback rider. The Husband and I, just a few years ago, rented a little house in Tuscany and I kid you not, my cooking improved. At night we would sit outside with a bottle of Chianti, eat pasta and just enjoy the stillness. It was bliss. Every town I have visited in Italy has been magical and I hope that soon we can take another trip there. Mi manchi, Italia!

So anyway, back to the dinner. After work I headed to the market and picked up fresh ingredients. As I mentioned yesterday, my menu was tortellini with a sage and butter sauce, bruschetta with buffalo mozzarella and salad with a vinaigrette. I took a couple of pictures because, meh, pretty.

The ingredients:

The table (gotta have a sunflower):

The process:

The bruschetta:

The food was amahzing. When the Husband got home, I spoke a couple of romantice lines in Italian that I had found on ye olde Google. He responded with "How much wine have you had already?" to which I responded "I AM JUST TRYING TO BRING A LITTLE ROMANCE INTO OUR LIVES! Oh and by the way, the Kid's diarrhea has gotten better and can you open that second bottle?... WHAT?!"

We spent a good 45 minutes eating and talking... Well, trying to eat and talk while the Kid lay on the kitchen floor and bitched that we weren't playing with him. "ZIEH! ZIEH! MOMMY! ZIEH! MOMMY! ZIEH!".
There truly is something cathartic about cooking an Italian meal. I guess in my mind I kind of look like this - Gorgeous and bearing food.

In real life, I'm more a little like this.

I have to say that I truly enjoyed the experience and I can't wait for next week. Sure, the Kid just ate plain bread and biscuits but it didn't matter... It just meant more pasta for me. So as they say in Italy, buono giornata!