A good time to set about on new adventures
Last year’s Christmas preparations were some way different from most. I was in Naples, staying with Irene and her family, accompanied by two Canadians (Aaron and John) whom we had met while WWOOFing in San Fantino and encouraged to come to Noto. All of us brought something to the Christmas table and day. Aaron set about making egg nog, I was making glogg and pepparkakor, John was downloading the Christmas edition of South Park, the Muppets and other tv gems. Each of us had our own traditions that we wanted to live and share. We also all brought a greater understanding of food, how it is produced and how it can be enjoyed.
Italy, and southern Italy (I’m totally biased but after three months of WWOOFing in Campania, Puglia and Sicily, I think it’s justified) is definitely a great place to develop this. One thing I was struck by was the vibrant food culture, and how appropriate the Slow Food Movement is to Italy. There are so many recipes that are particular to seasons and regions and families. We discovered the ferocity of the secret recipes after roasting kilos of chestnuts to find out they hadn’t given us the right quantities.
But Christmas time at Irene’s was different. Her mother worked so hard and produced this incredible meals that seemed to last for days. One of the dishes I particularly remember is this amazing salad, insalata di rinforzo, with lots of different vegetables that are pickled over the autumn and then eaten at Christmas. I love the flavours, colours, textures and also the concept. Impossible to reproduce because the varieties of peppers and olives are from Naples.
This plus many more pieces inspired me to set about imbuing my next Christmas with more meaning. I decided I would set about preserving something seasonal for every month of the year to then be eaten at Christmas. What follows are the tales of that adventure.