Foraging Fun!
Scheduled for today was a foraging hike. I'm not the biggest nature gal out there, but I surprised myself at how much I enjoyed searching for plants! It was very educational and although the heat was ridiculous, the woman who came to teach us how to forage for edible plants made the experience bearable. Ms. Caterina Cardia was very engaging and clearly had a lot of experience in this field (ha, no pun intended). The job she choose has a very narrow and specific career path, but she obviously does well considering that she works for some renowned chefs of restaurants like Cibreo. An interesting pointer that she taught us and the one that was the most memorable was to look for plants that grow in a circle. If their leaves don't follow that structure, then they are not edible. We didn't find much at Poggio because of the dry condition of the land; however, Caterina brought some fresh ingredients from other's fields so we were in good shape.
When we got back inside, we all divided and conquered to prepare lunch. Some of us worked with the greens that Caterina had brought for the salad while other worked on making the pizza dough. Other tasks included making the spreads for the crostinis (Fresh Cugusi ricotta with wild herbs and caper flowers and wild finocchio (fennel) pesto with toasted almonds, two cheeses, and oil oil), slicing tomatoes and mozzarella for the caprese, and preparing the lavender ricotta dessert.
The pizza was the main attraction for sure as we all gathered outside around the 300 year old brick oven. It was so hot outside that the dough was actually beginning to bake on the top from the sun. This meant that we had to hustle and assembly line those pizzas. Typical ingredients like mozzarella, marinara sauce, pepperoni, and sausage were set up for us to make our lunch but there were also some unique options available like sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts.
This activity was just a ton of fun and really allowed us to use our imagination while cooking. Everyone had their own task which gave us each a sense of satisfaction seeing that we made a contribution to the meal.
As far as the quality of the food, there was something for everyone to enjoy. The salad had a unique taste and a very natural, earthy flavor. The best way I can explain it is to compare it to the taste of arugula. This vegetable has a very distinct taste and the greens that we used reflected this type of potency. The crostinis were incredible, but I think I enjoyed the pesto and garlic one the most. Everything else was pretty traditional in Italian cooking, like the caprese, and tasted like it should.
As dinner time neared, we would head to Villa Ambra for a biscotti lesson and buffet dinner. Here we learned how to make two different types of cookies- cantucci toscani and biscotti all'olio di oliva e uvetta. The first one that I've listed was more like the traditional biscotti you think of as a hard coffee cookie with almonds. The second one was more like an actual cookie as far as shape, texture, and flavor. It had a sweeter taste and raisins incorporated into the dessert. Once we had finished making the cookies and tasting them, we headed off to the vineyard for a wine tasting.
When we got back from exploring the area, we had a buffet style dinner. This was quite the memorable way to end our stay in Montepulciano. The good ole family style buffet was truly a hit and food was good too.
Menu:
For our appetizer, we could self serve ourselves. I had potato soup, watermelon, and a small salad. It was all very comforting because it reminded me of Sunday lunch at the golf club (not to the same stature but similar feel). Next, we were served lasagna and at this point I was beginning to ward off all pastas, but I toughed it out and ate a few bites. For the main dish, chicken and steak were served with roasted potatoes. We'd had something like this before, but I wasn't complaining because I seriously had been missing chicken in my diet. Finally, we had a strawberry gelatin dessert again. It reminded me of what we had tasted at Podere il Casale with the same chilled, creamy, texture and flavor.
Tonight would mark our last night at Poggio Etrusco and in Italy. We would begin a new journey in Greece and although it was bittersweet moment, we were ready for a change in cuisine and culture. Ciao Italy, arrivederci!
