Everything got on the dinner table last night, but we threw order to the wind and had tiny grilled lamb chops first, seasoned only with salt, and then once they are off the grill, a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil. We had them with a papa al pomodoro, or tomato, fresh basil and bread salad. Then we had two kinds of pasta, my favorite penne with fresh ricotta and mascarpone, tender arugula leaves, golden slivers of garlic, and parmigiano reggiano, then a spaghetti with lemon cream. Slowly reduce the heavy cream with whole cloves of garlic, a big piece of lemon peel (no pith) and a sprig of fresh thyme. Press the whole lot through a seive, and toss with the pasta. Add parmigiano reggiano, some finely chopped parsley, and a little extra zest.
We finished with vegetables. Deep purple artichokes picked down to the tender leaves above the heart, braised in water, a drizzle of olive oil, parsely, a little salt and thyme, then pulled from their bath and stuck in under the broiler for just a few minutes with another drizzle of our life lifting olive oil. Finish with a squeeze of lemon. Or almost finished. Dinner is not dinner without dessert. Panna Cotta with both crackling and creamy caramel.
We sat on the terrace and watched the sun go down behind the hills and ate and drank until we couldn’t keep our eyes open. The sky and I are drizzling this morning. I miss everyone already.