La Dolce Vita

So many of my best memories revolve around food. That probably explains a lot about me, huh?

When we lived in Italy, we owned one vehicle and most of the time I was afraid to drive. My friend Heidi and I used to walk everywhere, or else we'd take the bus. On Thursday mornings we would walk to post (a few miles away) and take the bus to il centro, the "center of the city", in Vicenza, where they had the weekly open air market.

Thursdays were my favorite days. The market in Vicenza was a busy place where we found treasures and spent what little money we had on things like cheese, fresh olives, and dried figs. It helped us learn the language and exposed us to the local culture, which in turn was the best way to assimilate into this new environment. But it wasn't without comedy. My first time buying Asiago Dolce, my favorite cheese, the vendor asked me "Quanto?" The only unit of measurement I knew how to say in Italian was "kilo" (for kilogram) although I was unsure precisely how much that was. I thought one kilo sounded cheap, so I replied, "Vorrei due kilo, per favore." (I'd like two kilograms, please.) You should have seen the look on my face when the guy handed me four and a half pounds of cheese! Heidi said it was priceless.

Sometimes we bought frivolous articles of clothing...a pair of leather gloves, a scarf, a silk tie for Mitch, a lace handkerchief; a rose bush to plant; Florentine stationary; a hand-painted ceramic plate. It didn't matter. It was fun just going to the market, even those days I came home empty-handed.

One of my favorite things to do on the cold winter market days in Vicenza was to go to the cappuccino bar and order cioccolata con panna; that is, Italian hot chocolate with whipped cream. It was unlike any other hot cocoa I had ever tasted. This stuff was so rich and thick that my spoon could stand upright in it! It was served boiling hot, and we'd sit outside in the cool air and eat it with a spoon while watching all the interesting sights at the market.

November is always nostalgic for me. I think because it's the beginning of the holiday season, which reminds me of family far away. It is also my birthday month and that makes me reflect on the years I have lived and wonder where the time has gone. I think I am more nostalgic lately than I have ever been. The strangest memories hit me when I least expect them. Yesterday I had such a vivid flashback of sitting at that open air market in Vicenza with my mom when she came to visit me once. Like me, she loved the cioccolata con panna and will never forget it.

I found a recipe online and made it today. My kids loved it. It's not the same as Italy, but what good are memories unless we can share them with those we love?

Look how thick! This is not a treat for the faint of heart....

For true chocolate lovers only!

Ahhh....la dolce vita!