Things were much more laid back today, which was good for me. The extra super bonus was the awesome sleep I got last night! We had our second Italian cuisine class today, and being in a kitchen working with food inevitably soothes me.

This is the kitchen we work in. Quite a bit smaller than most of the restaurant kitchens in Vegas, (though I have worked in smaller) but with a homey, Nonna-around-the-corner-with-a-rolling-pin vibe. I particularly enjoy it because of the wide screen door that allows the fresh Umbrian air to circulate inside, it's not hot or stuffy at all, even with all (lol only six) burners blazing.

Above is the lovely courtyard, the planters in the background are overflowing with fresh herbs and fragrant laurel trees.

Our first course (antipasti) for lunch was this little slice of pizza, with some red pepper sauce on top. It may not look like much, in fact all the food is sublimely simple to make, but the quality and freshness of the ingredients make everything taste heavenly.

Our second course (segundi) at lunch (pranzo) was gnocci with a tomato sauce and some pecorino cheese. Quite nice, the sauce had a certain umami to it, given by ground pork, and a nice kick from red pepper flakes.

Our third course at lunch (yeah, I know, ouch! But, I limit myself to a few bites of each, which keeps the calories in check but still satisfies) is sauteed slices of eggplant, bound together with mozzarella cheese and some roma tomatoes, with a yellow pepper, herb, and cheese sauce. The cabbage in the background was... the most over salted thing I've ever had, but hey, the students are there to learn, right? (As long as I'm not the one messing up I'll tolerate it)

Just in case looking at these pictures hasn't caused you to loosen your belt a notch, here's a ricotta and chocolate chip tart with cinnamon-chocolate gelato. I will happily show you how to make this...

For dinner (my group's production) we startes with panzanella, a bread salad with mirepoix, tomatoes, olives, and herbs. This version was a bit different than other panzanellas I've had, and it was pleasant, but I've had better. I think it was the decision to let it set in molds- I personally prefer to toss everything together last minute and plate it loosely, but it was still good. The sauce to the side was mozzarella cheese, milk, herbs, olive oil and garlic, and I enjoyed that immensely.

Now this... this was awesome. Spaghetti with a creamy mushroom sauce. I could have easily eaten the whole plate, but for my waistline's sake stopped before I did something I'd regret. But seriously, wow.

And just in case you thought spaghetti was a simple pasta, this is how it's made by hand, in the super traditional manner. The pasta dough is made, then allowed to rest, and small pieces (look in the foreground) are rolled by hand into the long noodles (hence the noodle size irregularity in the prior picture- students). Of course, store bought noodles are pressed through a die, but the texture of these was just unbelievable, more similar to the slightly chewy, toothsome udon noodles from Japan.

I really should have taken another picture of this after cutting through the red cabbage, because it's filled with really tasty beef slow cooked with sundried tomatoes, onions, and red wine. It. Was. Awesome. (Er, maybe I'm biased because it was my dish). The bread next to it was great too, it's a potato bread that was light and fluffy inside and crisp on the exterior, and that's a dried cherry in the center of the roll. I will defininetly be making this beef dish again, as it was super easy, and something that could be tossed in a slow cooker and left for a while.

This dessert will definetly remain in my repertoire, Ricotta mousse with a red wine reduction and a drizzle of chocolate sauce. My roommate made this, and I'm for sure going to keep in touch with her, she did an excellent job on it.

In other news, apparently Alitalia has my bag, but wasn't going to deliver it until next Tuesday (Martedi) wich Chef Pollegri found quite unacceptable and immedeately tore up his frequent flyer card after insulting thier mothers over the phone (man I love that guy!!). But, after our moring activities he's having one of his cooks drive me to Rome to pick it up. I'm really hopeful that it will be there, but at this point I'm kind of skeptical about it. When I get it in my hand I will be quite overjoyed.

I'm also glad my accomadations are with the other three older ladies (yeah, I'm one of the old ones) at the B & B, not at the hotel with the younger girls, as they're a... bit too excited about the lack of a drinking age (if there is one you really couldn't tell, I've never felt so old at a bar!) and have gotton themselves into some troubles, as have the younger guys. Apparently, someone drank far too much and made a spectacle of himself in front of some townies, who all know Chef Pollegri and he was given a stern talking to about it. Along with that, someone in the guy's quarters either lost 400 euro, or had it stolen from him, and sadly, they suspect another student, the aforementioned drunkard, because as I'm told by some of the girls he's spent 800 euro in the last three days, mostly on alcohol, which would be super impressive (booze is quite cheap here) were it not for the really terrible aspect of the situation. It pains me to know that kids like this are out there, giving a very bad impression of Americans to the rest of the world. At the same time, I really think the U.S.A. needs to revisit it's drinking age policy, as the 14 year old Italian and German kids I've met are far more responsible with thier drinking.

But fortunately, my roomates continue to be great. We are all much more chill, and are happy sitting in our common room sharing wine and generally being relaxed and enjoying the good life. I really feel as though all three of them will be my good friends for years to come.

Ah, that's them returning now! Buena notte all, ciao.