May 17, 2023: A Day in Corciano

I woke up in the morning ready to experience my first Italian breakfast. I had a flaky croissant with a sweet glaze on top. It was so light in comparison to an American croissant. I never felt bloated or sick after consuming it. I also had yogurt, a hard boiled egg, a piece of the fruit cake and espresso. 

The yogurt was much more sour than sweet compared to American yogurt. I loved how there was an alert on the container to store at 4 degrees Celsius. A proper food safety measure is to store cold food items at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, so this aligns with that principle and informs the general public on how to store this item properly so that they don't acquire a foodborne illness. 

The hard boiled egg did not initially come with any sort of seasoning. I am usually not a huge fan of hard boiled eggs due to their texture, however, I felt that other than the yogurt, there weren't many sources of protein available and wanted to add more protein sources into my breakfast. I was able to take a couple of bites, but could not get myself to eat the whole thing. That was probably my least favorite aspect of Italian breakfast, and Italian food in general, is that is contains a lot of simple carbohydrates which does keep one full, but not enough protein sources. Though every meal did contain protein, I never felt that it was enough or as much as I was use to eating back home. 

We then had our first Italian language class with our instructor ("professoressa"), Catia. It was Catia's birthday coincidently, so we tried our best to sing "Happy Birthday" to her in Italian. We learned many common and useful phrases to help us cover the basics. My personal favorite was "Mi dispiace, non lo sol" which translates to "I'm sorry, I don't." I felt that it could be very useful being a person who speaks little ("pocco") Italian. 

Next, we had a roundtable discussion with Marialucia Luongo who is a professional chef. She gave us a couple of handouts and told us a little about the history of Italian food. The takeaway was "less is more". Italian food is complex in taste but simple in its' ingredients. One is meant to use the least amount of items, but having those items be of great quality. She also highlighted on the importance of using the proper pan, using foods in season and tasting while one cooks. 

She brought copies of her book, Cucinaria: Lettere dalla cucina (Letters from the Kitchen) for us to buy if we wished. She not only included her own recipes but recipes from women she loves and admires. There are hand written letters as well as recipe lists in both Italian and English. Obviously, I felt that buying her book was a given. I thought about sharing these recipes with the people I love and admire and asked her if she could sign my book. 

She wrote, "To Meredith, with my love...try your recipes and remember your Italian feasts" - Marie

Our lunch was a flavorful penne pasta with tomato sauce and tomato slices. I could not get over how amazing Italian tomatoes are. The flavor is truly night and day to American tomatoes. Most American tomatoes can sometimes appear mushy or bland, but in Italy, they are much more complex in flavor. The way I would describe it would be more zesty. 

The second course involved a tuna fish salad. I am not the biggest fan of canned tuna fish, but recently reintroduced it back into my diet and can tolerate it depending on how it is prepared. The salad also had red cabbage and tomatoes. I did wish that there was red onion or some other item to mask the fishiness, but it was still palatable. 

After lunch, we met back up with Catia where she helped prepare us to order gelato. I learned to say, "Vorrei un gelato per favore" which means, "I would like an ice-cream please". I also learned many different ice cream flavors. 

Later, we walked up a long hill to get to Corciano. Corciano is a commune in Umbria. Umbria is a part of the province of Perugia. Basically, Corciano is a "suburb" of Umbria. 

On our way up the hill, Catia discovered an asparagus in the soil. She picked it up and gave it to me to try. I asked Mateo and Catia if it was okay for me to eat it. In the United States, you are always wary of eating plants or berries in fear of them being poisonous. They laughed and told me, "yes". The asparagus was incredibly fresh and definitely had an earthy taste to it, but was great. 

Once we got to the top, we immediately went to order our gelato. I had pistachio and "nocciola" (hazelnut) gelato. The hazelnut gelato was extraordinarily nutty and tasted very similar to peanut butter. American ice cream can sometimes have an icy disposition and it is not always luscious and creamy. The gelato had almost a buttery consistency because it was so smooth. It was truly a once in a lifetime experience trying it. 

Catia then had us tour around the town. She spoke about the history of the limestone and why certain buildings looked the way that they did. She said how the triangular shape of a certain building is due to the mix between old foundation and "new" which happened due to the war. She also took us through an arch way which use to have a gate blocking the entrance to the city. She further elaborated on the war in Perugia. The exiles had come to Perugia and they placed their sentinels at the top of Monte della Trinita and then tried to make their way into the city. I loved hearing about the history of the city and how Italians have tried their best to preserve the architecture involved in it. 

We had a little time to roam around the city, but ended the night at Il Convento which is a restaurant that use to be a Franciscan convent. 

Our dinner consisted of a special round ravioli with spinach and ricotta cheese and then a pork dish with seasoned potatoes. The wines included were a Chardonnay and a Sangiovese. All of the dishes were exceptional and the wines paired perfectly with the dishes. 

I then had a panna cotta for dessert. There was a decadent chocolate drizzle on top. The texture and initial taste reminded me of chocolate pudding, however, there was no artificial after taste or any after taste for that matter. It was splendidly gelatinous and absolutely delicious. I paired it with an espresso. 

I walked home to a beautiful dark blue sky excited for the next day! I was reminded of the importance of food safety, food sustainability and innovation. All of these are so valuable to consider within the field of dietetics. Focusing on quality over quantity when advising food to future patients will ensure optimal health for them.