WHAZHOT · MADE IN FLO' · ONLY IN FLO' · DISCOUNT COUPONS
sections
Booking
.
culture
.
the italian way Food Shopping
[Dolores Maria Jimenez]
Firstly we need to go food shopping. This could well seem a banal task, but on second thoughts, if we put our reputation at stake with the grocer downstairs on day eleven, the rest of our delightful stay here could just as well turn into a living nightmare. So let’s settle for a goal within our reach: we’ll try to equip ourselves for an undemanding Italian weekday meal. Our chosen hunting ground should be one of those small food shops which still abound in the center of Florence, selling a variety of goods ranging from washing powders to fruit and vegetables: here we shall easily be able to find all we require.
Let’s practice a little before trying our hand at real food shopping – for instance, we could simply buy a couple of bottles of mineral water and make the most of our visit to the shop to select a good model and watch her closely. Ideally she will be a smiling and somewhat overweight housewife with a natural bent for chatting. Of course we don’t stand a chance of reaching her expertise in sampling a sliver of pecorino cheese or choosing the best prosciutto cut, but with some impersonation skills we will certainly learn the basics and play our little part in the shop pantomime.
After all, our task is fairly simple: we need to purchase half a kilo of pasta, otto pomodori maturi (eight ripe tomatoes) of the San Marzano variety, un mazzetto di basilico (basil), una testa d'aglio (garlic) and olio d’oliva (olive oil) to make pasta al pomodoro as a first course. some prosciutto toscano and a nice big mozzarella campana di bufala (buffalo mozzarella from Campania) will make a quick and tasty main course, so there is nothing else we need except a bottle of Chianti Gallo Nero to crown our meal and half a kilo of pane casalingo (home-made bread). By the way, you should not forget to make a fuss over the baking degree of the bread: if the hue of the crust doesn’t seem golden enough, the shopkeeper will feel obliged to squeeze the loaf and let you hear its fragrance: don’t be surprised, in Tuscany bread buying requires a trained ear!
MORE