Puglia Archive

Church of Santa Maria de Finibus Terrae, Santa Maria di Leuca.

I always hesitate to do these wrap ups because they force me to reflect on the obscene amount of food I am capable of eating. I especially overdid on a three day trip to Puglia recently. It is my favorite Italian region for food and it would be a shame to (more…)

Rustico – adj: Rustic; rural; of or relating to the country. noun: a baked savory snack made from puff pastry stuffed with bechamel, bits of mozzarella, black pepper, and a hint of tomato; the quintessential snack in southern Puglia. (more…)

If there is one place on earth where eating copious amounts of fat all day long gives me no remorse, it’s Lecce. The whole place is swarming with sweet and savory temptations heavy on the olive oil (pizzi), besciamel (rustico), cream (more…)

Have you ever ordered something at a cafe and totally thought you knew what you were getting but then got something totally different and were incredibly happy to be served that something that you didn’t even know you wanted? That is exactly (more…)

On Friday afternoon, the American Academy in Rome served lunch in the courtyard for the first time this spring. Among the dishes served was purè di fave e cicoria, mashed fava beans with sauteed chicory on top. This dish hails from Puglia, but the (more…)

I love Puglia and I love Monti, so, theoretically, I should love Pugliamonti, an organic vegetarian restaurant that opened in my neighborhood last summer 2009. I visited in late March with Mamma Parla and my friend Jessica and, while there were (more…)

I shared this triad of creamy burrata goodness with Mamma Parla and my friend Jessica at Pugliamonti, the vegetarian-organic-pugliese (another trinity!) restaurant that opened in September 2009 on Via Urbana in Rome. Stay tuned for a (more…)

Spring has almost sprung which means ricci season is almost over. Some like their sea urchin roe tossed with spaghetti, but I much prefer to scoop out the tiny eggs with a spoon or piece of bread. Obviously, the best place to eat ricci is at (more…)

Today, the premier issue of Southern Flourish Magazine, a digital publication all about life and culture in the American South, went live. When the editor asked me to contribute a piece about the Italian south, I naturally wrote about eating (more…)

For me, the artichoke has always conjured up the idea of Italy. Much to the dismay of the Lega Nord, almost all artichokes grown in Italy (around 40% of the world’s production) are cultivated in the south, especially in the regions (more…)