We all have cooking tips and techniques learnt through personal experience or because someone else was kind enough to tell us.
Gala Placidia's activity
Questions Asked
 A fairly comprehensive list of words related to food and wine has been prepared by a few of us. It still needs revision, corrections, additions and you may be able to help as it is a Wiki.
Tue, 06/30/2009 - 04:31
 It is official, the old Casino in Bagni di Lucca is reopening its doors after many years; however, it is going to be a modern version, more "little Las Vegas" style than its elegant and exclusive predecessor.
Mon, 06/29/2009 - 09:04
A few weeks ago I started a thread in the old forum about this topic. I still think that it would be great if we could all share our favourite recipes which our families and friends enjoy.
Fri, 06/19/2009 - 05:29
 I think that there are quite a few members who have married overseas an ½ûÂþÌìÌà citizen; however, I am not quite certain whether they have registered their certificate of marriage before the nearest ½ûÂþÌìÌà Consulate.It is advisable to do this an
Tue, 06/16/2009 - 03:43
 It is most important, if you own a property, to have a clear description for it. That is possible through the "visura catastale" which gives you and confirms many facts regarding your title.
Sun, 06/14/2009 - 05:21
 Polenta is one of those ½ûÂþÌìÌà dishes that you either love or hate. Considered in the past as the poor people's staple diet it is nowadays served in the best restaurants.Â
Sat, 06/13/2009 - 17:53
I have just seen on TV some images regarding the Treviso tornado. I sincerely hope that any members in the area have not suffered from this disaster. Â
Sun, 06/07/2009 - 16:44
 The base for many ½ûÂþÌìÌà sauces and dishes is the "soffritto" (sofrit in French, sofrito in Spanish), a mixture of some diced vegetables which are cooked in a heavy pan with three tablespoons of olive oil (although some other kinds of oil and fa
Sat, 06/06/2009 - 05:37
 Hi everyone, this is a warm invitation to joint this group and discuss ½ûÂþÌìÌà food, wine, regional cooking, recipes, tips, cooking utensils, history of cooking and any related subject you may wish to talk about.And welcome, Mimosa, glad to see t
Fri, 06/05/2009 - 08:28
Comments posted
 "Il Buon Gustaio" (Bar Rudy) on Via Val di Lima (road to Abetone) is excellent and excellent value for money. They serve lunch menus for 9.50 euros. It is all homemade and their "gelato" is excellent. Also, "Il Cavallino Bianco" in Benabbio (they used to be in Boveglio). Â
I agree with Sprostoni, personal experiences, personal choices. What is right for one person may be wrong for the other. This is why we should not generalize. Italy has plenty of wonderful regions to choose from and, as I always say: Ubi bene, ibi patria. (Where I feel good, there is my home)
Here is some information from Trenitalia about what can go wrong with online payments:
Brian, you must be speaking about Emilia Romagna.... aren't you? Well, I like Modena, we usually go for a day visit to Modena or even Bologna.... but I would rather stay in Bagni di Lucca. Where else could you be 25 minutes from Lucca, 40 minutes from Pisa and just over an hour from Florence. And you can go to the coast (have you visited the Cinque Terre, Lerici, Porto Venere?) or to Abetone in winter if you like skiing. Backwards?...I do not understand what you mean by that. High prices? I must agree with Flip, change your favourite restaurant (I think that I know which one you are talking about....) and "rediscover" the area. P.S. By the way, when you mention "Correglia" are you talking about Coreglia Antelminelli? Should that be the case, I have news for you, it is located in Lucca Province, part of Tuscany.... Modena is Emilia Romagna.
Moderators, moderators.... do we really need them? Thank you for the compliment, Phillide, but I think that you are reminiscing Ancient History , also called the old forum, here... Sorry, I am also becoming a bit flippant, it must be old age crawling
 (These smileys are awful!!! Sorry Flip, I am disgressing, but I just noticed it)
An excellent article. recommended reading. Thanks Anne.
I would call this a "flippant" remark. No offence intended, of course...
This time, we purchased a TIM CHIAVETTA with a special offer. It was 59 euros for 3 months unlimited use, including the chiavetta.
We drive at least twice a year and it is a pleasant trip. Our home in Spain is in San Sebastian, so we go accross the Spanish/French border and drive on the E80 up to Montpellier and from there to Cannes or Antibes where we overnight. We stop several times on our way and sometimes we go to Carcasonne (absolutely beautiful)Â for lunch. Next day, to Bagni di Lucca but taking it easy and we may stop at Portofino or Santa Margherita for lunch. We have never taken the ferry as we travel with our little dog and she prefers to be all the time with us. If there are two people driving you could do the trip in one day, but we prefer it this way and take it as part of our holiday. If you need further information, just ask.
We have been regularly travelling to Italy from Spain and our car has Spanish plates. From our experience, police has never bothered about us, although my ½ûÂþÌìÌà neighbour warned me that they seem to be stopping more people for any reason... I would also say that this particular policeman was having a bad day.