Cefalicchio Country Home in Puglia, Italy

I don't even know where to begin with writing about the incredible experience, peace and food at Cefalicchio Country Home.  I spent the month of July until the middle of August working on a dreamy villa, vineyard,  and restaurant in the region of Puglia in Southern Italy. I spent most of the days working in the restaurant and learning a lot about Puglian cuisine which is amazing. I fell in love with Southern Italy...actually all of Italy. The Cefalicchio Country Home had a massive garden where all our produce came from. There was a farm with hens providing the eggs too! Every day was a bit of an adventure and I learned so much from all the wonderful people who worked there. I had many INCREDIBLE photos of the area, its surroundings and all the amazing food but unfortunately my little computer was stolen. So whoever stole the computer has many pictures of amazing Italian food and good looking Italian men. The photo above was taken by a lovely lady named Kim who also came to work at Cefalicchio for two weeks. It is a picture of the front entrance to the villa where all the guest rooms are. In addition, I had a couple of photos still on my camera, so I will be able to share those. Below is a photograph of the back side of the country home. Every where you turn is a stunning display of flowers, vines, and brightly colored plants.

Most my time was spent in the kitchen with Head Chef Elena (below center) and her assistant Anca (left of  Elena). I am far right. The guy next to me was a visiting chef for a special event and the guy on the far left was Elena's son and he occasionally came to help out. Elena was wonderful, Anca was a bit moody.

On occasion we would have special events on our outdoor patio. If it wasn't a casual fish grill out, it was a glamed up one year old's birthday or a university graduation party. Behind the kitchen was a gem of a location, it had an uninterrupted view of land and sky. Here is a picture taken before the event of the evening set up:

Nonna Cecia and Sicilian Cannoli!

Two of my favorite things about Sicily: Julietta's Nonna Cecia (Grandma Cecia) and the cannoli. Nonna Cecia is one of the kindest and warmest individuals I've ever met. She welcomed me into her home as though I was one of her own family members. Every evening we had dinner with Nonna Cecia at her home and she always prepared a delicious meal of lightly seasoned cooked vegetables, grilled meats, and fresh bread. The meals were simple because the natural flavors of the ingredients spoke for themselves. Here is a picture of me with Nonna Cecia:

On my last evening in Sicily, she bought some traditional Sicilian cannoli from the local pasticceria. After having these cannoli, I feel it would be an injustice to eat another cannolo from anywhere else. I should point out that cannolo is singular for cannoli. I guess we always have referred to them in plural, as cannoli, because it is impossible to eat just one. These were beyond delicious. The crust was perfectly fried to the right crispness without tasting oily. The cheese was delicious thick ricotta with pieces of chopped dark chocolate and chopped pistachio. Each end of the cannoli had a piece of candied dried orange. The blend of the flavors and the mixture of textures made this one of my top three desserts of my life. Here is another close up of these bits of heaven:

Should you find yourself in Siculiana here is all the information you will need to find these cannoli and have them for yourself!
Pastocceria Pinzarrone
Via Puccini, 10
Tel. 0922.815689
Siculiana (AG), Sicily

Sicilia! Beautiful People and Places!

I fell in love with Sicily. It is a truly special place that I hope to return to again and again. To me, Sicily felt almost like a country of its own. The landscape, climate, and cuisine was very different from the rest of Italy, but now I am understanding that every region within Italy stands on its own with a completely separate history and cultural attributes that make traveling through  Italy so exciting. Julietta's family lives in a small town in southern Sicily called Siculiana. It is a situated on a hill with fertile pastures for cattle grazing every morning! We stayed with Julietta's Zia Asunta (Aunt Asunta) who's balcony provided sweeping views of the town on the hill and the cattle during their morning grazing. Here is a picture of Asunta's back  balcony:

It is difficult to convey the sense of peace and tranquility of Siculiana and Sicily through pictures. Something about the fresh air, the ease of the people, the social aspects revolving around meals, and the changing colors of the sky and landscape throughout the day...it was all so peaceful and so different than anything I was used to in my day to day life.

Evert Wednesday there is a traveling market that arrives in Siculiana and all the people meet at the market to purchase goods ranging from nail polish and clothing to local cheeses and fresh fruit. Here is a picture of Julietta with her Aunt Asunta infront of the formaggi truck:

We always had fresh bread with lunch and dinner that was very soft. It all came from the same local baker pictured below:

There is a castle that is perched on top of Siculiana and here Julietta and I are at the top with gorgeous vistas. You cannot see it from the picture but someone had spray painted "Hollywood" in white on the hill in the background.

Here is a picture of Julietta's uncle Giacomo and Aunt Marie Theresa with their youngest son, Flavio.