Author Archives: Nancy Hampton

The Raccolto – harvest

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OK guys, I’m officially old. Luther and I went and helped our friends with the harvest. I am proud to say we did five trees ourselves. But it did take it out of us. Still we really enjoy participating. I think of the millennia of people who went before us doing the exact same thing. Tradition.

To top it off it was one of the most spectacular days EVER. And I thank my friends Joanne and Mark for letting us enjoy the sun and perfect temperature at their beautiful home. They live in the mountains.

To understand our area is to understand that we are in the Tiber valley. The chains of mountains run up on either side. So for us to go just about anywhere we have to cross over mountains. Our friends live in the mountains but also across quite a long small road with a ton of switchbacks and hairpin turns. In the morning, in our valley in the fall and winter, it is always socked in with fog. A bit dreary. It burns off at different times but usually by eleven. So this morning we left in the fog. At 9am. As we drove up into the heights, we crossed through the clouds and then…the fog disappeared. 💚

It really is a beautiful drive. We could look down on the valleys and the clouds filling them. The road eventually runs along the spine of the mountains and you get views for kilometers in both directions.

So, back to the harvest. When we got there it was quite chilly but sunny, because they are up fairly high. They live in a former monastery from around 1300. It was a ruin when they bought it and brought it back to life over time. Here is a picture of the view. You can see the white cloud in the lower areas in the distance.

This is the olive grove. I think they have maybe a hundred trees. Perhaps a little less. There were eight of us doing the picking. Plus a two man crew who do this for a fee. They bring the equipment used to shake the olives from the tops of the trees. We rake the olives from the lower branches. We picked from 9:30 to 1:15 and then we had a fortifying lunch of hamburgers and grilled wursts, along with hummus, salad, and fruit salad for dessert. Thanks Joanne and Mark!

The helpers, who know olives, said they would probably get about 650 kilos of olives. I know from a few years of harvesting that the trees were heavily laden. It remains to be seen how much oil will come from this haul.

This was a good distraction for us today. I don’t talk politics here, but I’m sure you know how I roll. And needless to say, I’m disappointed today. But, it is what it is.

Election day

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I don’t know about you, but I’ll be glad with this thing is over. I am sure it is a LOT worse for those of you who are living in the U.S. what with all the robocalls and political ads. I am sure it is relentless. At least that part will be over after today! Here I watch the news, in the evening only, on Sky which has most of the U.S. non-network channels. It is scary. And stressful!

I am happy I will be distracted Wednesday because we are going to help friends with the raccolto — olive harvest. It is a huge deal in Umbria. Just about everyone has an olive grove of their own if they have any land. And they are happy to let their friends help them. The region is known for having some of the highest rated oil anywhere. It is bright green and grassy with a distinct peppery taste in the throat. The new oil is just incredible. Unlike anything I had ever had before moving here. Here is a picture from the mill where I watched the pressing process in 2018.

So today we harvested our tree! We too have an olive tree on the terrace! I think you all know this. And is loaded with olives this year. I don’t want them to go to waste so we harvested them today and will donate them to our friends tomorrow and their harvest. It will kind of be cool to know that a wee bit of our own olives are in the oil we will get. 🙂

Last night we had a delicious cannellini bean soup with cavolo nero (black kale). It was delicious.

Hang in there everyone. Try to distract yourselves. Meditate. Do yoga. Take a Xanax 😉

🩵💙🩵

Giorno di tutti i santi – All Saints’ Day

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Today is a holiday, and so is tomorrow. Everyone goes to the cemetery to visit with lost loved ones and bring them flowers. It’s pretty quiet in the hood. Monte Acuto greeted me this morning. Looking good!

Last night was Halloween. It is becoming more popular here and the kids go around to all the shopkeepers to collect candy. They don’t normally come to homes. But that didn’t matter to me because I have always been all about Halloween. I walked down to a nearby store and bought some candy. The afternoon was beautiful. I love the autumn sunlight slanting in and making great shadows.

The citrus are arriving from the south.

I carved a small pumpkin and carried him down to the lobby of our building. I set him on a stool with a basket of candy.

My thinking was the kids could see him through the window and then ring a bell, (maybe ours?) to come in. But we got no bell rings. 😞 So, a couple hours later I went down to retrieve him and the stool and basket. Big surprise. Almost all the candy was gone! Maybe the two girls in our building, maybe, another neighbor let kids in. Doesn’t matter. I’m glad.

It is getting to be chili weather. Pun intended. So I’m deciding which kind to make first. Hopefully next week we will be helping our friends with the raccolta – harvesting of the olives. A centuries old occupation around here. I love being a small link in the chain. 🫒 🫒 🫒

Happy November to all. 🍁 🍂 🦃

Tartufi bianchi!

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Final thoughts on the kitchen. Then I’ll shut up. The only thing I cannot do on the present cooktop is sear food. I am afraid to get it that hot. They said I shouldn’t use my cast iron skillets either. They were my mom’s pans. As a work around I am thinking of buying a one burner portable induction unit for the counter. I can store it in the cabinet. I can get it very hot and use the cast iron on it. This will give me back the capacity to sear and brown food. I will also continue to use my own nice pots and pans. They still work on this cooktop and I see no need to replace them. I just need to start with a lower temperature and then raise it. These adaptations will make this cooktop work.

Induction is a great cooking method. My experience is out of the normal because of the thickness of the counter between the pan and the heat source. This is an unusual design. I still love the look and easy cleanup 🙂
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We went to Calagrana for a rare dinner out. We usually like to eat lunch out, not dinner. But this was a special dinner. White truffles. They are in season now. Umbria is known for it’s truffles. They are abundant. All year round there are truffles, in summer, black truffles, in winter, white truffles. They are expensive but not as expensive as the famous ones from the Piedmonte region up north. Ours are less famous, and slightly less expensive, but taste the same. You’ll notice cooks almost always pair the truffles with a mild flavored food. Favorites are risotto, tagliatelle or eggs.

I forgot to photograph the first course. It was incredible. A poached egg in a Parmesan “cappuccino” with pancetta, croutons and white truffles.

Next was the risotto. Creamy and generously topped with tartufi bianchi shaved right at our table. The aroma of the truffles was intoxicating.

Finally, the secondo was a mouth-wateringly tender veal filet sliced and served with button mushrooms, chestnuts and roasted winter squash (zucca in Italian). Topped, of course, with truffles. I loved this dish but the truffles on it were a waste. The dish had strong flavors which overpowered the truffles. Delizioso, how could it not be?!

Finally, a rare photo of mio marito! Luther, aka Luigi.

Enjoy your week. Our weather is perfetto right now!

Kitchen summit

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Back to the new cooktop. My architect, Irma, wrote a pretty scathing letter to the sellers of the cooktop. She noted they wouldn’t come to test without charging, that they said only some cookware would work, which they don’t publish anywhere, etc. She also said she wouldn’t recommend their product to any new clients. This seems to have lit a fire under everyone. So she told me they were coming to test the cooktop and explain its limitations. And there are limitations.

Tuesday the meeting was between us and Lapitec Chef, the cooktop sellers, and Abed of Archetipo who fabricated the counters and installed them along with the cooktop. The Lapitec people came from Rome. There were two. I only got Adriana’s name. The meeting was typically hilarious. There was much shouting and gesticulation.

They proceeded to take out their own two pots which they brought. They were noticeably lighter than mine. They started heating water. They checked the installation which was fine, asked about how many kilowatts we have in our house, which was sufficient. They said my pots were too heavy. They explained that there was a 12mm thick countertop and a 4mm thick cooking mat between the pots and the heat. This is significant because most induction cooktops only have a thin glass sheet between the pot and the heat source. It would have been good to know this before I bought it.

My pot is on the right, theirs is on the left. Much lighter and not as good quality as mine.

I guess in the end I got the idea. That my cast iron pots were bad. That all the pots and pans I bought specifically for this were bad, that I couldn’t use high heat. This really crimps my style as a cook. I guess I have the fallback of the gas stove downstairs. But to be honest this cooktop is not meant for a serious cook, which I consider myself.

I still plan to use my cast iron. I will be careful of the heat. I use it for simmering mostly anyway. I will use the skillets which he said were not good, but they are made for inductions and not heavy 🤷‍♀️. Abed is supposed to bring a set of the cheap lightweight pots and pans. Ok. I think it is more a matter of figuring out how to manage everything. I can make do.

Tonight we turn our clocks back to go on standard time. 😞 I went to the market today and bought some beautiful looking apples from just nearby, and a jaunty pumpkin. I’ll be working with his tilt when I carve him! I think he’s cute!

Ciao y’all!

Message to help new Visa holders

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Hi everyone. I think this message will be helpful for those wanting to move here. I know most of my readers won’t care, or won’t need to know, but you might still be interested in the process.

I am primarily writing this to help the new bunch of people trying to come to live here who are seeking/or already have the Digital Nomad Visa. I hope they think of it as information sharing, not negativity. Seems they are not getting the information about the things they need to do to stay in Italy legally. This information is the same for all Visas. And if a person wants a path to staying long term, this information is vital (see last paragraph).

I know Nomads are by definition moving around, but in Italy the nature of the Visa means you’ll need at least a years lease before you come. You need to stay put at your leased address until you’ve gotten through all the paperwork. It is a fact of life here. Some people are fine with that and want to stay long term. If so they need to plan ahead.

There are a number of things to do once you arrive in Italy to live after you receive your Visa.

Step 1. First and foremost is apply for the Permesso di Soggiorno (PdS) which is your permit to stay. The Visa is your ticket in, the PdS is your permit to stay. You must apply for this within 8 days of arrival. Your Visa never needs renewing, but the PdS is an annual or bi-annual renewal. Depends on your region .

To get this permit, you go to the Poste Italiene and pick up the yellow packet for stranieri (foreigners). Fill it in (Google that) buy a €16 tax stamp (bollo) at your local tabaccheria and go back to the Poste with copies of all the documentation you used to get the Visa. You will pay a fee to have this packet processed and a postal fee. Google that for amount. You will receive a receipt for this — DO NOT LOSE IT. You may get an appointment at the Questura then, but probably not. You’ll review it by SMS (you’ll need an Italian number) or mail. This appointment can be a year away.

You must go to the appointment. Bring copies of your documents and the receipt. Also photos. And be prepared to be fingerprinted. Then you wait for notification the card is ready. This can be a few months.

As you can see, things move slowly here.

Step 2. Once you’ve got the PdS then you can become a resident. You’ll do this in the Anagrafe in your Comune. You will get a visit by the police to ascertain you live there.

I am telling you all this so you’ll be informed how to get the Permanent Residency (Permesso di soggiorno UE per soggiornanti di lungo periodo) after five years here if you want. This is if you plan to live here long term. You will have needed to prepare for this over the previous five years. You will apply just like you do to renew your PdS but you’ll need to check a box for this Permesso. Most important you’ll need to prove you have been paying your income taxes to Italy. You will also need to pass the A2 certification of Italian proficiency. During these five years you cannot have traveled outside of Italy for more that ten months total. There are several other qualifications but they are obtainable when you’re ready to apply. The aforementioned must be done over time.

I hope any new Visa holders, or those pursuing a Visa, find this useful information!

In Boca al Lupo!

We voted!

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I want to encourage everyone to vote in this significant and important election. We mailed our ballots in this week using DHL because we wanted to be sure they got there safely and on time.

We had a beautiful Sunday today. Upper 60s and sunny. So lovely. And the sunset was spectacular! October has not been normal. Wetter and cooler than normal.

Finally tonight for dinner I made an Italian recipe, ragù di coniglio. Rabbit ragu. Rabbit is not a meat much used in the U.S., but it is very common here. I used to source it before we moved here at a specialty market. Now it is available right near the chicken in the regular supermarket. It’s not the cute bunny you think of. These are farmed just like chicken. The ragu.

Final dish.

It was good. But fussy to make. I hope your Sunday was nice! Buona domenica!

Recap of upstairs new “dream” kitchen

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I have been using the new kitchen for just over six months now so I thought I would write down my thoughts and feelings about this kitchen.

Over all, I love it. I am very happy with Nicoletti, the well known falegname (cabinet maker) in our town. And I adore the color I picked for the cabinets. I love the drawers and pull out cabinets. Even more I love the walnut island and wine rack. And the display shelves on the front of the island. I also adore the floor we got. It works well with the other floors already here. I am happy with the dishwasher, the wall oven and the humongous LG refrigerator with the much coveted ice maker. I like the countertops.

That all said, I am not at all happy with the fancy, cool looking cooktop, nor the vendor. On our recent Ireland trip I had the opportunity to use an induction cooktop that actually works. This was eye opening. Compared to mine it was worlds better.

The Vendor who sold us this cooktop and counter (Archetipo – see below) has been contacted. He will not even come and test it unless I pay €130 for the test. He tells me I need to buy specific pots and pans. Specifically from IKEA. I bought a good set of WMF cookware made for induction cooktops, and yet this is not good enough he says. Of course, he didn’t bother to tell me this when we bought the appliance. In my opinion it is all excuses and poor customer service.

So if you are thinking of a renovation here in Italy I definitely do not recommend:

Archetipo.
via adriatica 115 ponte san giovanni
06087 Perugia (PG), Italia

The cooktop itself is a Lapitec Chef. I would say for a cook who doesn’t expect high heat this would be fine. For me, it is not optimal. In hindsight, I should have gotten a gas cooktop. But I am adapting and figuring out work-arounds so it will do. It IS very cool looking!

I would add that my Architect, Irma de Arrascaeta Studio A, is excellent. Not too costly, loves her work, is fun to work with, very reliable and has her own group of workers who also are very reliable and talented.

Bathroom renovation

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We said farewell to our friends with a lunch on Lago Trasimeno. Our big, beautiful lake. We chose Sottovento. All seafood. A good lunch. We had storms brewing and much wind. When we left the restaurant, it was beautiful sunshine and also storm clouds.

We are now home for the foreseeable future. Time to do all those things we have been putting off. Like doctor appointments and checkups. I also have about a bazillion pieces of art that I want to frame, not to mention decide where to hang them. I bought a new cordless drill and a set of bits that I can use on these masonry walls. Hanging pictures is no easy feat here. I managed to hang a small coat rack as my first try at the drill thing. And golly! I did it!


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Today I met up with Irma, our architect for coffee at Vivo, a coffee, pastry, pizza, and restaurant next to the river. Big space. Nice. We are beginning our adventure to renovate our guest bathroom.

All of the bathrooms here, there are three, are — can I say horrible? Yes they are horrible. Old, dated, with many parts that no longer work. Tiny showers with plastic doors. Or worse, no shower at all, as in our main bath…just a tub and squirter which, to use, you need a set of pliers to switch the water from squirter to faucet. 😳 All have toilets with tanks up above your head which either shout at you when you flush, or you have to stand next to them to be sure they won’t keep running. Faucets that don’t work. Garish tiles. I could go on!

So off we went to visit a store with all the toilets, sinks etc. Also the tiles and stone for the walls and floor. So many choices! Actually too many. I am a person who wants to make the decisions and get it done. No looking back. So if you present me with too many, it makes me crazy. But then, there is the pleasure of looking at the beautiful Italian design. People all over the world buy Italian designed and made things. I am so lucky to live right here among them.

So, we decided on the suspended toilet. The kind where you can clean under them and you see the whole floor. They also have toilets where the seats slowly lower themselves. I have to have that! We picked brushed steel faucets, shower, etc. I also picked the color of my fixtures. I decided the walls and floors will be neutral (but with textures) and the fixtures will be the focal point. I won’t tell you the color yet…you have to be surprised!

Next we walked around the corner to a place that cuts and polishes stone for kitchens, baths, and more I’m sure. Giuseppe was the owner. All the people, artisans really, that I met were just so proud of their work. Their products. Giuseppe showed us pictures of a kitchen he did in London…a mega kitchen. It was as if he was showing us pictures of his grand children 🤣 His place was incredible.

The stones were beautiful. So many textures and hues. Marble, travertine, granite, etc. I guess he networks all over the world. Look at some of these beauties!

This one is natural stone but I could hardly believe that it was.

I was leery of the cost. I don’t want this to be a showcase bath, I just want it pleasing to look at and functional. And not cost too much. Irma assures me it is comparable in price to the manufactured stuff. I am skeptical. If it is I would be happy to have some in the bath, in combination with man-made stuff. Irma will make some more drawings and show some ideas for these different finishes.

As we walked back, we were right next to the famous Rometti Ceramics factory so we said, what the hey, let’s go in. There is history here. Many of the pieces are displayed in galleries in Milano. It is that kind of famous. And it is here, in Umbertide of all places. The modern ceramics are designed by individual designers. They are all very different. There isn’t a brand per se. The second picture below is really the closest there is to a brand. The black and white, sometimes with an additional color. Very 1930s art deco.

Then we were invited into the back room which is the factory. There were many workers smoothing the unfinished pieces, painting, glazing etc. We met some of the artisans and again, so proud of their work.

Irma and I both saw together, a bowl and urn that we loved. A rich green with a bamboo looking rim. So beautiful. We learned that some of the ceramics are inspired by haute couture in Milano. Or maybe vice versa. I wasn’t sure. We saw the beautiful green gown to which these pieces were similar. I told Luther, should he want to get me a gift, one of these would be it.

It was a productive morning. I will continue to post about it as we move forward.

Buon fine settimana a tutti!

Friends visiting!

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October arrived with some kind-of crappy weather. A lot of rain, cooler temperatures and gray skies. But sometimes, the beautiful, washed clean world after the storm is worth the wait. Such clarity!

Unfortunately for our friends Eunice and Mark, the change in the weather coincided with their visit here. I see it will improve going forward. They like Montone, our nearby hill town. They are staying in the hotel in town this time and it is getting mixed reviews from them. They liked the restaurant but the hotel, not so much. They also tried some other places to eat in town and loved L’Antica Osteria in the main square in Montone. It is one of our favorites too.

They came to our house for Sunday Pranzo. We had a simple lunch of a big antipasto plate with cheeses, meats, roasted veggies, and caprese salad. Last of the summer tomatoes, alas! Then we had pasta with my own version of bolognese ragu. There is no accepted “quintessential “ recipe for bolognese. It is hotly argued all over Italy. So that’s why I call it my own. I use meats (veal, pork, sausage, or beef or a combination) this time, beef and sausage, diced carrots, an onion, some garlic and one 15oz can of tomatoes (this would be the controversial bit). I sautéed the meats and then added the carrots, onion and garlic and last, the tomatoes. At this time I begin adding milk. A half-cup at a time. Quite a lot over time. I would say 2+ cups. Simmer and let it cook down and thicken. The longer it is cooked the better. And letting it sit overnight is good too. Anyway, everyone liked it. It is a standby for me.

We encouraged them to do a day on their own on Monday and we met up for a wonderful wine tasting and lunch at Vineria delle Carmine on Tuesday. This is one of the closer vineyards to us. Being in northern Umbria we are away from the big wine areas. Nonetheless this winery has nice wines.

It was a horrible day weather wise. Pouring rain and windy. But we persevered. Once there, and inside it was cozy. We had the Classic lunch which had several courses, but all small portions. We tasted six wines along with the meal. Two whites, a rosé and a light Merlot, and last, two robust reds. They all went well with the courses with which they were paired. Here are some pictures of our lunch.

A rose and a Merlot
After the bread sticks and focaccia this polenta course was beautiful to look at and delicious.
After the polenta an unusual dish, slightly crunchy cooked greens and also had pumpkin seeds. Two sauces.
Two reds. Blends of Merlot , Cabernet Sauvignon and Sagrantino in differing percentages.
Pasta with a delicious Cinghiale Ragu.

The red wines, which were quite big and robust, paired perfectly with the wild boar pasta dish. Very delicious. We all had fun. While we sat there, we watched from our cozy seats, the wild rain and wind storms outside. Thankfully they let up for our walk to the car.