Yum, yummy, yummiest!

My favorite snacks are polpette di melanzane, the most amazing eggplant fritters. They taste so good that you can't stop eating! Especially the polpette of  beach club La Fontelina nearby the Faraglioni... I've heard they are Capri's yummiest. Anyway, this is my mother-in-law's recipe, equally yummy of course! 


Ingredients
1 kilo eggplant cut in pieces (4 large and long ones)
4 eggs
half cup freshly grated pecorino
half cup freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1 finely chopped garlic clove
1 cup white bread crumbs
3 tablespoons fresh chopped (flat leaf) parsley
extra vergine olive oil also for frying
pepper
salt

Preparation

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the clean eggplant pieces and boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the eggplant is tender. Drain the pieces on a paper towel and squeeze out the excess liquid. Roughly chop the eggplant and put in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add 2 eggs, the cheese, garlic, parsley and 3/4 of the bread crumbs and mix until moist. Make sure the mixture isn't too liquid! Otherwise add more bread crumbs. Beat 2 eggs in a bowl. Add some extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Shape the eggplant mixture into small balls.  Roll each ball in the egg mixture and then in the bread crumbs. Let the polpette rest for 15 minutes before you fry them. Fill a large pan halfway with olive oil. Heat the oil over medium heat and fry the polpette until crisp and golden brown. Buonissime!!!!

Love at first bite...

Funny Valentine

Not romantic but definitely funny... I love you but.

This also made me laugh... Romance in Venice.

Happy Valentine's day everyone!

Almost San Valentino...

I wonder how their story ended. I don't know what's worse though... Saying something and wishing you had not or saying nothing and wishing you had?  How do you tell someone you like him/her? Definitely not by chat or sms... that would take the romance right out of Valentine's.

My most memorable Valentine's day was 5 years ago. We had the most perfect romantic night at our friend Luigi's place Villa Brunella in Capri. That place oozes romance! Candle light, great music, good wine, the most delicious pasta con gamberi e zucchine (a must eat) and the most spectacular view ever... A night to remember.

Buon weekend a tutti!

My little chef

We had a nice laid-back weekend. The sun finally came out! Besides enjoying the great weather Jack and I baked this amazing torta caprese which we devoured in like 10 minutes. He really helped me out in the kitchen. Look how proud he is of his masterpiece...

Laughter is wanted

With less than 3 weeks before the big move (omg) I tend to stress out... Today is such a day. You look around  and realize that there's so much to do. So what I need today is positivity. These made my day already much more brighter...  First up, how funny is the trailer of "l'Imperatore di Capri" below?

Totò is the key to quick stress relief, he's the best!  Too bad for those who don't understand... I'll do my best to find one with subtitles. Here's some more laughing material. Ever seen the coolest dog on the planet? Hilarious! And what about this commercial?


Have a fun and crazy weekend everyone! Baci

Almost there...

It's really going to happen... We're moving to Capri! So many boxes to fill, so much to organize. To take my mind off these stressful things I was daydreaming over these gorgeous photo's of Enrico Desiderio... Already imagining myself waking up in paradise every day... I can't wait!


P.S. He's such a talented photographer don't you think? 
P.P.S. For more pretty photo's of Capri visit Enrico's website.

The Russian revolution a piece of cake

Rumour has it that the story behind the well-known mouth-watering "Torta Caprese" has actually everything to do with Maxim Gorky, the Russian writer and revolutionary... at least this is what my mother-in-law told me. During his stay on the isle of Capri (1906-1913) he took on a local cook. Gorky ordered him to make a cake with butter, eggs, almonds and chocolate. Except for the name not a typical mediterranean torta. In fact a lemon cake would have been more appropriate. But that doesn't matter, that is history... the famous Torta Caprese was born. The same goes for the Russian revolution, they say. According to tradition it was in Capri where the revolution was planned... during a game of chess between Gorky and Lenin... Or maybe over a cappuccino and a piece of Torta Caprese? Food can be very inspiring...

Torta Caprese


Ingredients
400 gr chopped almonds
270 gr butter
350 gr sugar
7 eggs
200 gr dark chocolate


Preparation
Mix the butter and the sugar until creamy. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites. Add the egg yolks to the butter mixture (one at a time) and stir well. Melt the chocolate au bain-marie. Add the almonds and and the melted chocolate to the egg and butter mixture. Whip the egg whites and gently fold the mixtures together. Pour it  into a greased and floured cake tin and bake in the oven for 45 minutes at 160 °C. Cover with powdered sugar.

Buonissima with a scoop 
of vanilla ice cream... heaven!!!

Crazy Napoli - part 1

It's like the wild west, there are no laws. I mean there are, but Neapolitans have there own interpretation of the law and that can lead to hilarious situations. At least for a Dutch girl it can be quite shocking visiting Napoli for the first time. The traffic especially is crazy... In fact, my first time in a Neapolitan taxi was something to remember. Imagine "The Fast and the Furious" in a wrecked Punto with a fearless taxidriver who's on the phone with his mother (not handsfree of course), not minding traffic lights, crossovers, speed limits, surrounded by other bumper cars competing in the same "race"... It was pretty nerve-racking, to say the least. Anyway, we survived and of course there are taxi drivers who respect the rules.

Not only the road users but also the traffic signs cause confusion. They only seem to make sense to Neapolitans. So if you're planning a roadtrip to Naples be prepared ;). And another thing, make sure your car is not brand new and fully optioned...

"There is no stereo, 
there's nothing."

"Closed street, it's

useless to enter!!!"