Ciao a tutti!
I just logged onto this account for the first time since Dec 2008 when I was last at Finocchio Verde. I'm shocked and flattered at how many views my humble little blog has racked up while I've been neglecting it. Thanks for stopping by! I'm sorry that I haven't been available to answer your many wonderful questions. But do not despair interwebs! I am currently AGAIN visiting Finocchio Verde (What are the odds?! I must be a lucky girl) among other farms in Europe and am keeping another blog which you are more than welcome to follow:
http://katievoneurope.wordpress.com
If you have any questions, it would be best for you to direct them to me via the comments on the wordpress blog, as it directs them to my email so I'll actually be able to respond.
In the meanwhile, I wish you all the very best! Finocchio Verde vi saluta, come sempre.
A presto,
Katie
Friday, November 11, 2011
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Blizzards, biscotti, and improvised entertainment
As per the starred note on the post below, two days ago we had a storm of EPIC proportions. About 1-2 meters of snow in one day!! Plus, there was thunder and lighting and everything...very strange for December. The storm has left us without power for the past two days, which has actually been surprisingly easy to deal with. We can still cook using the gas stove/oven and the wood-fired oven outside, read/play dice by candlelight, and crowd around the wood stove for heat.
I've quickly adjusted back to life at finocchio verde. There are two long-term wwoofers about my age staying here until at least spring. Andrea (26-ish) and Dimitri (20) make life really entertaining around here, though I have to guard myself from snowballs and being thrown face-first into snowbanks. They're good fun, and have taught me lots of italian profanity (which will come in handy for Italian 202, I'm sure). It's a good deal. Both boys have horses, one of which is due to give birth in late-January.
Each morning and evening, Dimitri and I go to the barn to feed the sheep and goats. While they eat, my job is to make sure all of the lambs get enough to drink from the lactating sheep...which is SO much fun. They've all grown attached to me, especially one beautiful little guy (who I've named Hercules) that comes running when I call his name. Strangely, they love my boots and my pants, nibbling away at them as I try to get them to drink from their mom's udders. No baby goats yet, but I'm hoping one will come soon. One more lamb was born last night, and I got to see it in it's first moments. What a beautiful thing to watch! I'll put up pictures later.
To entertain ourselves in the snow, we invented a new game involving cars, snowy roads, and sleds. Fun stuff! Lots of shoveling snow too, which can be fun as well. Andrea has been teaching us how to juggle too, but I need a lot more practice. Maybe we'll make an igloo too? Who knows.
Until later,
K
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Il fino del viaggio lungissimo.
***Sidenote: I'm posting both of these today due to lack of power for the last few days, and i didn't want to make one big blog entry. SO, enjoy!
Ciao a tutti!
I've arrived safely back at the farm, after an unnesessarily long, cold trip (every form of Italian transportation I took was at least a half an hour late, if not an hour and a half). Plus, I had a little mishap in the airport due to stupidly leaving my passport on the plant somehow...don't ask. Either way, I definately got to practice my Italian. It didn't surprise me at all that I slept soundly until 4 in the afternoon the following morning.
What a winter wonderland! There's about 3-4 feet of fresh, untouched snow everywhere. I could probably ski anywhere I wanted to. But it's not too cold, which is nice as well. SO GORGEOUS!
Lots of lambs too! 5 males and 3 females, plus one female born the morning after I arrived. She's been here as long as I have!
Also new to the farm is the cutest kitten ever (named Fortunella), who loves to jump on my shoulder and ride around while rubbing my face and purring crazily. She also enjoys snuggling up with the lambs for a nice nap. Obama and Hillary (the two cats who were kittens when I first arrived this past summer) are also just as sweet as ever, though a little on the chubby side.
We've been eating well also. For lunch today, antipasti di peppers in bagnocaldo (sauce with anchovies and garlic), prociutto made by a friend, and salami made here, minestrone of pasta and borlotti beans (YUM), and formaggio (of course). Sweet, juicy oranges from Sicilia and fresh almonds from france per dolce. And the wine...oh god...the fruitiest, most delicious dolcetto ever from Michele, a friend. We got a big 25 liter tank-like object full of it and distilled it directly into bottles for lunch.
Even though its winter, we still find fun things to do here. More to come later.
Baci! <3
K
PS. Buon compleanno Nick!! (though a little late...)
Ciao a tutti!
I've arrived safely back at the farm, after an unnesessarily long, cold trip (every form of Italian transportation I took was at least a half an hour late, if not an hour and a half). Plus, I had a little mishap in the airport due to stupidly leaving my passport on the plant somehow...don't ask. Either way, I definately got to practice my Italian. It didn't surprise me at all that I slept soundly until 4 in the afternoon the following morning.
What a winter wonderland! There's about 3-4 feet of fresh, untouched snow everywhere. I could probably ski anywhere I wanted to. But it's not too cold, which is nice as well. SO GORGEOUS!
Lots of lambs too! 5 males and 3 females, plus one female born the morning after I arrived. She's been here as long as I have!
Also new to the farm is the cutest kitten ever (named Fortunella), who loves to jump on my shoulder and ride around while rubbing my face and purring crazily. She also enjoys snuggling up with the lambs for a nice nap. Obama and Hillary (the two cats who were kittens when I first arrived this past summer) are also just as sweet as ever, though a little on the chubby side.
We've been eating well also. For lunch today, antipasti di peppers in bagnocaldo (sauce with anchovies and garlic), prociutto made by a friend, and salami made here, minestrone of pasta and borlotti beans (YUM), and formaggio (of course). Sweet, juicy oranges from Sicilia and fresh almonds from france per dolce. And the wine...oh god...the fruitiest, most delicious dolcetto ever from Michele, a friend. We got a big 25 liter tank-like object full of it and distilled it directly into bottles for lunch.
Even though its winter, we still find fun things to do here. More to come later.
Baci! <3
K
PS. Buon compleanno Nick!! (though a little late...)
Monday, September 1, 2008
Ballando in the Alps
This past week has been full of festivals and parties: wine, food/drink, dancing, singing, and overall great fun. On Sunday was the Passagiando de Murrazzano, a walking tour through my town to checkpoints that coincided with different courses and foods of a "typical Langhe" meal. There were 12 different stops, and our station served segundi and contorni: 2,000+ arrosticini de pecore (sort of like a sheep kabob...) and ensalada. My job, along with Marco (a friend of Mario and Isa's) and my Theta friend, Lauren, was to chop lots and lots of tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions to keep the salad going. All the ingredients were fresh out of our garden, and we were able to feed 750 or more people with what we had (the garden still has a lot more coming). It was a lot of fun, especially seeing the little cheerleading squad perform a routine. Absolutely hilarious. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures from this festival because I left my camera at home. Perhaps one of the other wwoofers will donate some for me to post later on.
The Allegre Pastorelli, the group of shepherds that we belong to, hosted the next major party in Murrazzano: una cena d'Allevatore (roughly translating to "the dinner of the breeders"). Think sheep. For about 80 people, we served a big dinner in a covered piazza: antipasti of crema di formaggio (a very good creamy sheep cheese), junca (a fresh sheep cheese), sheep salami, and sheep liver pate; primo of pasta with sheep ragu; segundo of arrosticini of sheep and ensalada de pomodori; lots of aged sheep cheese; dolce of gelato alla crema e cioccolato made with sheep milk served along with a sheep-ricotta dessert; caffe; grappa and vino from a local vineyard; and pane made by one of the allegre pastorelli. A delicious success!
Fabrizio and Giovanna preparing antipasti for la cena.
The next day, the sheep festival continued in Murrazzano with a sheep show (yes, we washed our sheep to make them pretty...and this took Isa and I ALL DAY. It is not as easy as it sounds). We didn't win any prizes, but a few allegre pastorelli did. There was also a market and a lunch for the people who organized the cena d'allevatore. Not as good as the food we eat here, but still a nice get-together.
A newborn lamb at the sheep show.
Two other allegre pastorelli (Marco and Serena) with their trophies and sheep.
A succulent plant stand at the market
A bread and pasta stand at the Market. Alessandro is the Allegre Pastorello waving in the background.
Finally, this past Sunday Mario, Isa, and I ventured westward toward the French/Italian border in the Alps for a HUGE Occitano celebration(I don't know the english equivalent...something like Occitan? It's the culture and ex-country of south France, North Spain, and NorthWest Italy). We arrived on foot to reach a small town called Becceto, where the party had been going on nonstop since Friday. Traditional Occitan music, dancing, food, and overall revelry made it an absolute blast. Plus, I didn't realize how gorgeous this area of Italy actually is. Simply breathtaking! And the architecture is really different too: hand laid stone houses with wood trimmings and stone slab roofs. Although I didn't know the dances in the first place, they were pretty easy to learn and I got the hang of them (more or less) pretty quickly. By the end of the day, I had danced with more than six different guys, who were eager to show off their moves and pride for Occitan culture.
A pretty field on our hike to Becceto.
Isa and Mario on the trail.
The fountain in the town square. Multi-purpose: water source and refrigerator for wine, refreshments, etc. Notice the large watermelon floating in the background.
Mario attempting to slice the large chunk of bread that I brought along for our picnic with a pocked knife.
Traditional House
Becceto
Occitan dancing
The Allegre Pastorelli, the group of shepherds that we belong to, hosted the next major party in Murrazzano: una cena d'Allevatore (roughly translating to "the dinner of the breeders"). Think sheep. For about 80 people, we served a big dinner in a covered piazza: antipasti of crema di formaggio (a very good creamy sheep cheese), junca (a fresh sheep cheese), sheep salami, and sheep liver pate; primo of pasta with sheep ragu; segundo of arrosticini of sheep and ensalada de pomodori; lots of aged sheep cheese; dolce of gelato alla crema e cioccolato made with sheep milk served along with a sheep-ricotta dessert; caffe; grappa and vino from a local vineyard; and pane made by one of the allegre pastorelli. A delicious success!
Fabrizio and Giovanna preparing antipasti for la cena.
The next day, the sheep festival continued in Murrazzano with a sheep show (yes, we washed our sheep to make them pretty...and this took Isa and I ALL DAY. It is not as easy as it sounds). We didn't win any prizes, but a few allegre pastorelli did. There was also a market and a lunch for the people who organized the cena d'allevatore. Not as good as the food we eat here, but still a nice get-together.
A newborn lamb at the sheep show.
Two other allegre pastorelli (Marco and Serena) with their trophies and sheep.
A succulent plant stand at the market
A bread and pasta stand at the Market. Alessandro is the Allegre Pastorello waving in the background.
Finally, this past Sunday Mario, Isa, and I ventured westward toward the French/Italian border in the Alps for a HUGE Occitano celebration(I don't know the english equivalent...something like Occitan? It's the culture and ex-country of south France, North Spain, and NorthWest Italy). We arrived on foot to reach a small town called Becceto, where the party had been going on nonstop since Friday. Traditional Occitan music, dancing, food, and overall revelry made it an absolute blast. Plus, I didn't realize how gorgeous this area of Italy actually is. Simply breathtaking! And the architecture is really different too: hand laid stone houses with wood trimmings and stone slab roofs. Although I didn't know the dances in the first place, they were pretty easy to learn and I got the hang of them (more or less) pretty quickly. By the end of the day, I had danced with more than six different guys, who were eager to show off their moves and pride for Occitan culture.
A pretty field on our hike to Becceto.
Isa and Mario on the trail.
The fountain in the town square. Multi-purpose: water source and refrigerator for wine, refreshments, etc. Notice the large watermelon floating in the background.
Mario attempting to slice the large chunk of bread that I brought along for our picnic with a pocked knife. 
Traditional House
Becceto
Occitan dancing
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Parties Parties Parties
With summer being as gorgeous as it is over here, it has been perfect weather to host a plethora of get-togethers at the farm. It seems like every night we have people over, which is awesome as I get to try all sort of foods and meet many different people. I will focus on two main family parties in this post.
Gala and de Caria Families
Two weekends ago, we had a sampling of both Mario and Isa's families over for a big lunch. Isa's brother and sister-in-law, her French cousin (and his wife and a couple of their French friends), and Mario's sister's family and his mother were in attendance. It was a lot of fun to meet the fam and practice my French and Italian. Isa's cousin ended up taking me on a thrill ride on the back of his very nice "moto" through the countryside. So much fun!
A picture of me getting ready for the moto ride
Hanging in la cucina L -> R: Errmana (the elderly lady staying with us for the summer), Me (a very bad picture of me, might I add), and Isa)
Isa's Side of the Family (minus her brother): Two French friends, Michel's wife, Michel, and Isa's sister in law.
Gala Family Gala
Yesterday, for the Italian National Holiday of Madonna's ascension into heaven (not that we are religious here at all), Mario's entire family came over for a lunch extravaganza. Very fun. I especially enjoyed talking with "nonna," Mario's head-strong mother. After dessert, she taught me how to make Orechiette pasta from scratch! It's a lot quicker and easier to make than I thought it was, but still requires practice to get right.
The Orechiette that Nonna made for our meal
Mario's sister-in-law helping make Mario's speciality appetizer: Grilled eggplant rolled with fresh ricotta and topped with chopped tomatoes and basil
The antipasti: Eggplant doodads, raw beef with olive oil and grated sheep cheese, zucchini sauteed with mint and olive oil, sauteed eggplant, and young pecorino cheese
Nonna's pasta plate: Orechiette with tomato/capretto sauce (baby goat from our farm)
I dont' have a picture of the meat plate, but it was a preperation of turkey with pesto and fagiolini (green beans). Dolce was gelato from Murazzano, apricot tart, and pesche ripieni. Yum!
Nonna demonstrating the art of pasta making
Nonna is a star
My Orechiette! And my thumb.
There was a huge thunderstorm going on during dinner. Thunder, lightning, hail, rain, etc. Made for an extremely muddy and slippery pasture experience afterward
Bellisimo!
Gala and de Caria Families
Two weekends ago, we had a sampling of both Mario and Isa's families over for a big lunch. Isa's brother and sister-in-law, her French cousin (and his wife and a couple of their French friends), and Mario's sister's family and his mother were in attendance. It was a lot of fun to meet the fam and practice my French and Italian. Isa's cousin ended up taking me on a thrill ride on the back of his very nice "moto" through the countryside. So much fun!
A picture of me getting ready for the moto ride
Hanging in la cucina L -> R: Errmana (the elderly lady staying with us for the summer), Me (a very bad picture of me, might I add), and Isa)
Isa's Side of the Family (minus her brother): Two French friends, Michel's wife, Michel, and Isa's sister in law.Gala Family Gala
Yesterday, for the Italian National Holiday of Madonna's ascension into heaven (not that we are religious here at all), Mario's entire family came over for a lunch extravaganza. Very fun. I especially enjoyed talking with "nonna," Mario's head-strong mother. After dessert, she taught me how to make Orechiette pasta from scratch! It's a lot quicker and easier to make than I thought it was, but still requires practice to get right.
The Orechiette that Nonna made for our meal
Mario's sister-in-law helping make Mario's speciality appetizer: Grilled eggplant rolled with fresh ricotta and topped with chopped tomatoes and basil
The antipasti: Eggplant doodads, raw beef with olive oil and grated sheep cheese, zucchini sauteed with mint and olive oil, sauteed eggplant, and young pecorino cheese
Nonna's pasta plate: Orechiette with tomato/capretto sauce (baby goat from our farm)I dont' have a picture of the meat plate, but it was a preperation of turkey with pesto and fagiolini (green beans). Dolce was gelato from Murazzano, apricot tart, and pesche ripieni. Yum!
Nonna demonstrating the art of pasta making
Nonna is a star
My Orechiette! And my thumb.
There was a huge thunderstorm going on during dinner. Thunder, lightning, hail, rain, etc. Made for an extremely muddy and slippery pasture experience afterward
Bellisimo!
Saturday, August 2, 2008
I'm back!
So to briefly condense the happenings in the past few days: Silvio's farm did not work out for me. So, I'm back in Piedmonte at Finocchio Verde! :) And very happy about my decision to leave.
Today we have 23 people coming over for dinner (como ristorante) and four French agritourism guests arrriving for dinner and staying for a few days. Busy, busy, busy! Right now Isa is busy preparing a crostata con ricotta (i'll try to copy down the recipe) for dolce and Mario is dry grilling thinly sliced eggplant with salt to make antipasti of rolled eggplant filled with fresh ricotta and topped with a salsa of tomatoes, olive oil, basil, salt, pepper, and garlic. Got to go!
Today we have 23 people coming over for dinner (como ristorante) and four French agritourism guests arrriving for dinner and staying for a few days. Busy, busy, busy! Right now Isa is busy preparing a crostata con ricotta (i'll try to copy down the recipe) for dolce and Mario is dry grilling thinly sliced eggplant with salt to make antipasti of rolled eggplant filled with fresh ricotta and topped with a salsa of tomatoes, olive oil, basil, salt, pepper, and garlic. Got to go!
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Last Day...Kind of
Well, today was officially my last day at Finocchio Verde after a whole month. Tomorrow, I take a train from Torino to Forli' to move on to my last farm, owned by Silvio and his family. There, I hope to learn about cows, pigs, and bio-dynamic farming. I'll be there for two weeks...but the catch is that I'm not coming back to Seattle afterwards! That's right, I've extended my stay in Italy until the 16th of September. I will either stay a week or two longer at Silvio's farm and then come back to Finocchio Verde, or just come back to FV after the two weeks are up. Or maybe I'll travel a little. Either way, I'm coming back to Seattle just before UW starts in the fall. :)
Here are a few flora pictures from Finocchio Verde that I've been really late in adding...
Perennial Sweet Peas (They're everywhere, and the goats love them!)
Meliloto (fantastic fragrance and flavor)
Clematis (All over the forest, apparently the only native vine to Europe)
And I'm not exactly sure what these are...
(Calceolaria maybe?)
Here are a few flora pictures from Finocchio Verde that I've been really late in adding...
Perennial Sweet Peas (They're everywhere, and the goats love them!)
Meliloto (fantastic fragrance and flavor)
Clematis (All over the forest, apparently the only native vine to Europe)
And I'm not exactly sure what these are...
(Calceolaria maybe?)
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