One thing that I will always do well in Italy is eat. Sure,
I eat well everywhere. However, the well I’m writing about is a quality not
quantity well. The food here is different because of the access to good
ingredients. I fortunately do not live in a food dessert, however most of the
year my fruits and veggies are picked early, sprayed with chemicals to look
ripe and are sold to me with little flavor. Not here. In Italy they’re picked
ripe and sold full flavored.
Yesterday was a great day food wise. For pranzo (lunch), I
made a local classic sauce, tonno e capperi (tuna and capers). I’m making the assumption
that the dish is local to this area as I’ve never seen it on a restaurant menu.
It’s very basic. Start by putting some olive oil in pot, then add a can of tuna
(if in water, drain it first). Let the tuna sizzle a little, then add a small, drained
jar of capers. Lit those cook together a bit, like 2 minutes stirring often.
Then add a bottle of pomodori passata (crushed tomatoes). Put in a small amount
of salt and about half of the bottle or can of water. Let the sauce come to a
boil, stirring it, then let it simmer while the pasta water heats and the pasta
cooks.
People who know the dish will probably think this is sacrilege,
but I put it over fusili pasta, not spaghetti. I’m not a long pasta fan,
besides fresh tagliatelle, so I figured it’s just a different shape. It might
have coated the pasta even better in this shape.
Last night, Zia and I headed into Termoli to walk around. It
was the last night I had the rental car, so we made the most of it. I left my
phone in the car, and realized when I was in the middle of the castle and
wanted to photograph the sunset. I only ate half of my sandwich last night, the
other half tonight so I snapped a photo today. I went back to Eattico and this
time got their Polponauta panini. This panini had polipo al vapore (steamed
octopus), patate al vapore (smashed, steamed potatoes), cedono (celery) and
salsa Eattico. The flavors may seem strange and not earthshaking, but this is my
favorite of the sandwiches they offer. I’m always surprised at how good the
celery is on the sandwich as it’s not a topping that I ever use.
