I Was In A Comedy Dinner For Six | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

29 Oct 2012 Leave a Comment

by Valentina Author in Culinary Items, Design, Dinner Table Design, Social Issues Tags: , , , ,

It’s Friday evening, I am dressed to the teeth, ready to enjoy a formal elegant dinner in a private home. In the casual Californian atmosphere, I am already wondering how was this formal dinner conceived, nobody organizes formal and sitting down dinners anymore. As I was approaching a highly decorated home for Halloween, I was expecting to see a herd of children, but only a mature couple, husband and wife lived there.
For this occasion, the wife was the chef, the husband was the waiter dressed in total black with a white napkins neatly  folded over his right arm, playing the part to the letter. Did he learn that in Italy?

The dinner table was elegantly made in a 1930s style, crystal glasses, silver tableware, embroidered tablecloth and fabric napkins. I counted the plates and there were six places set, but we were eight counting the hosts. There is something wrong with this picture, I started to ask myself. The small cup style champagne glasses really caught my eyes, so dainty, well etched, so different from today’s fluted glasses and so short, one sip and the champagne was gone. And so was the mind of some of the guests.
It took only a few bubbles to lose composure. Oh dear, non-senses were already being spoken and we were only at the hors-d’oeuvres, what was going to happen until the end of the dinner?

The hosts invited us to sit down and I soon noticed the missing keynote people, them, the hosts. The host offered this dinner for six at a charitable event. One of the women in the group won the ticket and chose five people of her liking to appear in this charade dinner. I didn’t know anyone in the group and was excited to meet new people, neither did the hosts know anyone. Apparently in this type of style dinner, the hosts cannot sit with the guests, only serve them.
I truly felt awkward being served by an older couple and not having the pleasure to converse with them at the table. In Italy, my native country this will never happen.

Seven courses were waiting to be consumed, mind you, the portions were very small, but some of the women felt intimidated, when they heard about several courses coming and fell stuffed before even trying them.
In one of the many forums I belong, it was said that seven courses is too much to offer, considering that people don’t eat that much any more, but then, how do we explain so many overweight people in our society? Yes, people do eat large quantities mindlessly. These women in the group were no small examples either.

(Shoe off from Carla Coulson.com)

Did I see a pair of shoes loose under the chair of the woman on my left? Oh my, this is really promising! The woman directly across from me, an artist, asked the hostess in which order she should have used the flatware. Clearly, she eats with plastics everyday.
Then, like in a film, I incredulously saw everyone turning the plates over to see the trademark and where the dishes came from. I tried to stop them by talking about the design in the front of the dishes, it seemed very much a John Sanderson’s design, neo-classic fretwork of the middle 1700s. Well, the two women on both sides of me, just came out with a simple “really?” and still looked at the back side of the dishes, the rest of the guests were in their own “cookie wonderland“. Hard to make conversation with shallow people.


After the first course, a starter of small baked pumpkin filled with mozzarella cheese, the woman next to my left, started to unravel some of her clothes layers. She would have taken off her bra, she admitted. I asked her what she does in restaurants, but I received no answer.
I was envisioning this dinner as the same version of the funny film Hollywood Party with Peter Seller. I don’t know if I was amused or disgusted. I could not get up and leave, I was beyond being offended already, so I observed in silence, thinking of it as a good subject for my blog.

The highlight of the dinner was the changing of wines with each course. Strange as it sounds, I like this old fashion way of pairing wines with food, but the women, not being wine connoisseurs, could only flash heat waves on their skin, with increasing bawdy attitude and loud talking. To think they all started the conversation in a softly and lady-like manners. What happened to their initial genteelness?

In the next scene, one woman tipped the wine glass full of white wine over the embroidered tablecloth and another one pinned her long hair up with a huge clip looking as she just came out of the shower. This disaster dinner is really getting good!

The palate cleanser arrived, a well-balanced peach sorbet. Oh yes, some of them thought we were having a dessert and questioned where did the rest of the courses go.

The conversation was boring, I was a spectator in pain and amused at the same time. Dinner was simply prepared, even though sounded heavy and complicated. It went on as the host planned it, I enjoyed every bite, appreciated the host’s culinary efforts and did not exclaim “no food for me for the next three days”. This movie was winding down with the doggy bag shocker scene. You heard it right. A few of these classy women asked for a doggy bag for their leftovers. Clearly they had mistaken a private home for a restaurant. Once people learn bad habits, they repeat them to nth power.

The women present at this dinner were not professional actresses, they just made their own funny and impromptu comedy. I would have liked to record it for my divertissement later.

Lesson learned:

1. Never go out to dinner with unknown people, unless you make an effort to get to know them before the event, which is not always possible.

2. If you are hosting a sit down dinner party, never serve more than four courses. Not a good idea to keep guests as prisoners attached to the chairs, forced to listen to unpleasant shallow people.
No more than 1500 calories should be served, all together through the entire dinner.

3. Wines do not need to be paired with each course. Find a red for meat and white for fish and vegetables, or find one that can be served interchangeably with all the food.

4. Offer food in the right quantity, previously tasted and appreciated to avoid the “doggy bag” situation.

5. If you can, distract guests from turning over the plates, with a talk on the special dishes designs, or table setting decorations.
Witty conversations are of great help in keeping the attention of guests and drive them to a more proper behavior.

6. Keep some windows open to recirculate fresh air.

There is so much to learn when sitting at a dinner table with people, I hope to have amused you.
To me, breaking bread with people is an honor, having good manners at the table shows respect towards the host, the guests and the food so prepared well. Ciao,
Valentina
Designs http://www.Valentinadesigns.com
Blog: http://valentinadesigns.wordpress.com

Copyright © 2012 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

Valentina Cirasola has been a lifetime designer in fashion and interiors. Her extensive knowledge of colors and materials led her in both directions successfully.
She was featured on Vogue Italy as the guru of staging in the theatrical way. Among designing and remodeling homes, designing custom-made furniture and writing books, Valentina is now teaching etiquette, table manners, table setting and life style.
Her new book on the subject of colors is published. Red-A Voyage Into Colors in available here on this site on the Books Page and on
Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/9agl5v9
Barnes&Nobles: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/valentina-cirasola

Roll In The Cheese | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

06 Oct 2012 3 Comments

by Valentina Author in Culinary Items, Holiday Food, Italian Culture Tags: , , , ,

Hello everyone,
I am back after one month of vacation and preparation of the launch for my book #3 , just published last weekend.

(Find cheese utensils at: MyHabit.com)
(Find cheese markers at http://www.napastyle.com/home.jsp)

It is so vivid in my mind how many times I have eaten cheese at the end of each lunch and dinner in this last trip back home to Europe.
Europeans eat cheese with ease because they walk a lot, thus burn those calorie day by day. Cheese is not seen as something to entertain with, but something to enjoy everyday with a glass of wine.
We serve it without any pretense, we take cheese out of the refrigerator, while we are preparing dinner and we leave it at room temperature to bring out the full bloom of each taste. The same is valid  when serving cheeses at parties.

(Find cheese pots and boards at: MyHabit.com)
Many serving utensils are part of the ritual of putting cheese on the table, from knives, cleavers, marker signs to fondue pots, raclette grill and cheese cart.
There is nothing sophisticated about serving cheese, as it is a product, which comes from the milk of an animal and often kept in rustic stone cellars, or left to ferment for months.
I can’t wait to have a bunch of boisterous friends sitting around a fondue pot tasting the latest cheese I brought from Europe. I have a Canestrato Pugliese, aged in caves for a year, with a hard rind and dark yellow interior color.  The mature version is savory and aromatic. Best paired with a red Primitivo from Manduria, a wine with a lot of round body.

The vessels needed to serve any cheese are slate stones, wooden boards, marble slabs, or clay platters, the rougher the better. It is good to mark each cheese with the proper marker fork to distinguish goat cheese from, cow or sheep milk products and in the absence of these small markers, a hand written tag placed near each specialty will suffice. The basic cutlery is simple: a cleaver and a semi-heart shaped knife will cut hard and semi-hard cheeses; a thin blade knife will cut a semi-soft cheeses and a round knife will be the spreader for soft cheeses; a shaver will help shaving the cheese, although this utensil is more used at the table to shave a hard cheese directly over the plate. If you want to get fancy and make a good presentation add grape scissors to all cheese cutleries.
One of my favorite cutters is the Swiss scraper “Girolle” used with “Tête de Moine” or Monk’s Head, a cheese from switzerland. The Girolle will shave the ”Tête de Moine” cheese in small florettes. It is an expensive cheese, but it is worth it.

I have seen cheese paired with jelly, grapes, edible flowers or other extravagant food. My favorite accompaniments are raw celery or fennel slivers, olives, nuts, or chicory heads to cut the sharp smell and balance the flavors. Don’t be afraid of serving smelly cheeses. The fermented cheeses at the end of a dinner are good to help the digestion. Mamma mia, what a kick in flavor and in the presentation, if you add truffle sliced paper-thin over any soft cheese.

Stores are filling up with all kinds of food and table accessories. This is the right time to get some of these fun utensils and make your food look really good for the holidays.
Once they are in your kitchen repertoire, you will find that it is easier to treat yourself everyday, rather than waiting for the holiday to roll around to use these them again.

Cheeses are a good source of calcium and protein. Don’t be afraid of having small bites everyday. Visit my Pinterest board for  food inspiration.  Ciao.
Valentina
http://www.valentinadesigns.com
http://pinterest.com/vcvalentina/food-with-character

Copyright © 2012 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved


Valentina Cirasola has been a lifetime designer in fashion and interiors. Her extensive knowledge of colors and materials led her in both directions successfully. She was featured on Vogue Italy as the guru of staging in the theatrical way. Among designing and remodeling homes, designing custom-made furniture and writing books, Valentina is now teaching etiquette, table manners, table setting and life style. Her new book on the subject of colors is published.  Find Red-A Voyage Into Colors and all Valentina’s books on

Amazon: http://tinyurl.com/9agl5v9

Barnes&Nobles: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/c/valentina-cirasola

Easter Breads | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

06 Apr 2012 2 Comments

by Valentina Author in Culinary Items, Design, Italian Food, Italian Life Style Tags: , , , , ,

Two more days to Easter Sunday and in Puglia, my land in the Southern Italy everyone will eat “Scarcella”, typical Easter bread. Scarcella is slightly sweet bread type, just enough to give a sweet taste but not enough to make anybody fat. Usually in Puglia we make it in a round shape, as we all know the round shape is the most harmonious of all the shapes and in most cultures is regarded as the shape of fortune. Many shapes and designs also characterize the Scarcella to please the eyes of the receiver. If it is made for kids, the shape might be a small doll, a purse, a car, or an animal shape, just to be playful.

Scarcella goes back to a very remote past, in fact it originated in the Roman Empire, enclosing in itself all the pagan and Christian symbols of Easter.

The raw eggs on top of the bread dough symbolize rebirth and the return to life. The eggs might fill the dough up to 21. Odd numbers are considered propitiatory, thus it’s important to place the eggs in an odd number. Bake the bread full of colorful confetti on top and lemon zest mixed in with the dough to aromatise it. Powdered sugar will cover the Scarcella after the baking to give it a veil of sweetness.

The tradition says that any daughter-in-law will give one Scarcella as a gift to the mother-in-law. More eggs the Scarcella has on it, more are the things the daughter-in-law is asking to be forgiven for. Well, that was in the old days, I am not even sure the new generations of Italians even know what Scarcella is, or if they care to ask for forgiveness through food symbolism. If anybody out there wants to try it here is the recipe:

Scarcella
Mix with 10.5 oz. 00 flour (super-soft flour used for pizza dough) 2 eggs, 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 3.5 oz. of sugar, a little milk (use a little at a time to make the dough pliable).
Add a pinch of salt and grated lemon peel while working on the dough.
Spread the dough thus prepared to ½ inch in height.
Cut out the shapes you want, keeping the scraps of dough.
On one end of the Scarcella place 1 egg raw with the shell on, or you can spread an odd number of eggs around on the dough.
Cut the scraps of dough into strips and place them in a cross fashion over each egg to help them staying on the dough during baking.
Sprinkle the colored confetti and bake on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake it until golden brown.
If you like, add powder sugar after the bread has cooled down.

This Easter specialty is in my book Sins Of A Queen, on Amazon: http://tiny.cc/pkoo0
Another fun Easter bread and typical in the South of Italy made for this occasion is the “Casatiello”. The procedure of making this bread is the same as any other bread, the only difference is the stuffing.
Mixed in the raw dough there are chopped hard-boiled eggs, various chopped cold cuts meats and cheeses of many types. The quantities for the stuffing are up to your taste.
Taste will improve accordingly, I make mine very happy.

A Pink Moon will characterize this Easter. I just learned about it this morning when I read this article.

http://news.yahoo.com/moon-affects-date-easter-131202555.html

I am here to help you with your kitchen design and all the challenges that come with it, but I am here also to design your palate.
Remember that designing a table with colorful food is necessary for the soul and for the eyes just as much as a beautifully designed kitchen.
My next book on the subject of colors: RED-A Voyage Into Colors is in the printing and will be out on the market very soon. Stay tuned for the launch.

If you celebrate it, have a fun and rejuvenated Easter.  Ciao,
Valentina

Copyright © 2012 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

 

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking.
She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially loves to design kitchens and wine grottos, outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms, great rooms and entertainment rooms.
Check out her books on this site on the BOOKS page  and on Amazon: http://tiny.cc/pkoo0

Evolving Taste | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

27 Mar 2012 Leave a Comment

by Valentina Author in Culinary Items, Italian Food, Italian Life Style, Kitchen Design Tags: , , , ,

I thought I would have never said this but Italian taste for food is changing.

It has been over a decade that new emigrants are flocking to Italy as if it was the new land of opportunities bringing with them their culinary background and their culture.
Italians are now eating pizza with pineapple and cheese, or fried rice in place of risotto. Well, not everyone, fortunately food is one thing Italians are keeping away from corruption, but younger people, traveling to foreign countries more than the past generations are willing to try new food ideas.

I just could not help noticing the change in some of the original and traditional recipes. Cheese and fish cooked together was an absurd combination, it was viewed with skepticism and those people who attempted to do it were always criticized as not having a refined palate.


This is exactly was I observed in a restaurant on the Amalfi coast in Italy, a plate of fried anchovies sandwiched together stuffed with cheese and prosciutto in the middle. The waiter disregarding my dislike of anchovies paired with cheese went on and on trying to convince me that it was a good food and I had to try. I was up for the challenge. The food arrived piping hot and smelled really appetizing.

I must admit fried anchovies stuffed with mozzarella and prosciutto was good and new.

However, I still believe if you want the taste the sea in the seafood, keep it simple and do not mix it with other food. Dairy products have a strong taste, no matter how light the product is, milk is milk. To me, milk fights with the delicate fish taste and leaves an after taste. The recipe of fried anchovies stuffed with mozzarella and prosciutto is really easy, it’s up to you to try it and decide to like it or not.

Long live the blue fish, which is affordable and low in price, rich in calcium and omega 3 fatty acids.

To make stuffed fried anchovies all you need is:
10.5 oz of flour seasoned with thyme
10.5 breadcrumbs seasoned with thyme
3 whole eggs beaten
1 mozzarella chopped small
a few slices of Italian prosciutto
salt, black pepper to your liking
lemon juice
vegetable oil to fry

Keep each ingredients separate in various bowls. Add fresh thyme in the flour and breadcrumbs for an extra flavor.
Remove the interiors from the anchovies, wash and clean thoroughly.
Once the anchovies are butterflies (see my photo) place on the belly of each anchovy one thin piece of mozzarella and prosciutto and then close it with another anchovy belly down. Repeat until all the anchovies are paired up.
Pass the anchovy sandwiches in flour, than in the egg and finally in the breadcrumbs.
Fry in the hot vegetable oil. Season the anchovies with salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Otherwise, the simplest way to fry anchovies is to butterfly them, pass in the flour, then in the beaten eggs and finally in the breadcrumbs. I eat fried food every 4-5 months and I use a good vegetable oil that I discard afterwards.
Once in a blue moon is good, the metabolism needs a good slap every so often.

My two books are filled with easy fish recipes along with other Mediterranean diet recipes.
They are a super source if you want to stay off the mortal diets and want to eat healthy while you are enjoying food.
Please check them out in this site on my Books section.
They are also available on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles: http://tiny.cc/pkoo0

Yes, I do design kitchens, wine cellars and other rooms, but I also design your palate. Love to hear from you. Ciao,
Valentina

http://www.Valentinadesigns.com

Copyright © 2012 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking. She operates in the USA and Europe.
She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially loves to design kitchens and wine grottos, outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms, great rooms and entertainment rooms.
She is a speaker and a book author. Her new book on the subject of colors: RED – A Voyage Into Colors  is in production at this time and will be released very soon. Stay tuned for the launch. 

Natural Shells For Elegant Décor | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

30 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment

by Valentina Author in Art, Design, Design Tips, Italian-Table-Customs, Kitchen Design, Painting Tags: , , , , ,

Looking through resources for my interior designing need, I found beautiful accessories for the table at One King’s Lane.  Two sets of salt and pepper vessels made of seashells on silver really striked my fancy. 
They are dainty, the coloration is beautiful, and I am thinking a voiles or chiffon tablecloth will be perfect to stage a table. Each plate will have a shell as place card holder, one large shell for bread, a mother of pearl champagne bucket and some nautilus votive scattered on the table should set an inviting dinner scene. 

Looking at the shape of the shells comes to mind their original function: to conceal a living matter inside of them and to keep the secret of the marine abysses. When we go to the seaside to catch shells, it’s almost a compulsory gesture to bring a shell to the ear. We hear the sea waves moving and we immediately imagine stories of navigation and far away lands. We think it is all so mysterious because a romantic explanation at time is better than a scientific one, but in reality the shape of the shell and the limestone material that makes it, promote the echoing sound of the sea. (photos of shell items from One King’s Lane)

The relation between shells and sea is very strong as it is associated with the feminine element of fertility, in fact the word shell comes from the Latin word conchilium meaning to conceal in a shell. Venus, the goddess of love was generated from the sea inside of a shell. Italian painter Botticelli painted her in his masterpiece of the XIV century. We are born in water too in our mother’s womb, our shell. In other words the source of life is to be found in the water and the woman is its vehicle.

Shells keep the secrets of oceans and earth, shipwrecks, lives lost, earthquakes, moon influence, sun’s scorching heat and people’s touches transferring feelings and sicknesses with their hands. Some people think once shells have found a new place in a house décor will communicate to the household all the secrets they keep, bringing in the good and the bad luck, regardless of their beauty. Legend? I don’t know, but I heard it from an astrologer.

In history shells became an important symbol to mark properties, to indicate social casts, family crests and coats of arms. The shell became the symbol of the Italian Renaissance, a rebirth in the fields of arts, architecture, music, literature and scientific discoveries after the dark age of the Medieval era. In Europe shell symbols are found on important building as churches, cathedrals and political establishments.

I was attracted by the colors of these superb tableware and the elegant simplicity they enclose. Knowing the history and legends attached to shells would make an interesting conversation topic with the guests.

Let me help you decorating and staging your next dinner party with unusual object d’art. Please leave your name in the box below. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Copyright © 2012 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

Valentina Cirasola transforms and creates spaces realizing people’s dreams in homes, offices, interiors and exteriors. She infuses your everyday living with a certain luxury without taking away a comfortable living. 
As an interior designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking she loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially loves to design kitchens and wine grottos.

She is the author of RED-A Voyage Into Colors, the forthcoming book on the subject of colors, in publication at this time. Check out her two published books on Italian regional cuisine, available on this site on the Books page and on Amazon.
http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna

http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen

Waiting For New Year | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

02 Jan 2012 Leave a Comment

by Valentina Author in Design, Holiday Decorations, Italian Culture, Italian-Table-Customs Tags: , , , ,

One of the pleasures of entertaining family or friends is the setting of the table process. Food of course should be the focus of the table. A well-decorated table with poorly prepared food does very little for the spirit and I would say for the stomach too.
Once I was asked to describe bad food and my answer was “food haphazardly scrambled together but presented well”.

Having a theme in mind is one of the important elements when styling a table. Creating light, dark, shadow and silhouettes are super ways to illuminate the space around the dining table.  Repeat the same trick on the table with the decorations.

If a chandelier is over the table and candles on the table, you might want to create an ambience by turning the chandelier on dimmer and let the candles cast a warm shadow.
Recessed down lighting over the dining table is a bit tricky. If a down lighting is not placed properly, all the people sitting at the dining table will have a dark shadow under the eyes and everyone will look a bit more aged than they really are.

Inside of a theme, select the season, texture and the colors you want to assemble. The solutions are endless as you can imagine. You have the choice of keeping every thing in the same coloration or texture, which gives the table a calming effect. You also have the choice of making a creative or funky arrangement.

Let’s take a few colors as samples.
If you want to create a tablescape with the sea in mind, the underwater world includes all the blues from the darkest ocean to blue sky but also includes all the blue-green tonalities of the underwater garden vegetation.
For a nature inspired table setting, the green beauties will include all the variation of foliage colors to olive greens.
A fall arrangement will have a riot of colors to choose from. You can select the reds with an undertone of orange and pink; the oranges that lean towards pink, the purples with a red base, or you can mix browns bleeding into shades of grays.
If the colors of natural gems inspire you, add some metal texture to the tablescape. Gems and metals are both two elements formed in nature; they combine well with the drinking glasses and fabric cloth, two other kinds of texture.

Tablecloth and napkins must not be necessarily of the same set and colors.  Actually if they don’t match is even better, will make the table an interesting canvas to look at.

In my arrangement of the end of the year I did not want the usual red cloth most people use for festivities. Instead, I chose to use dark colors on the table illuminated by metal candle lanterns to emulate the dark winter night, the light of the stars over buildings and the new spiritual light that will infuse the night turning into a new year.

The year 2012 has been described as the year of the Aquarius, not as the ‘60s movies, but as a very spiritual year, a new era of rebirth and enlightenment. Colors will take inspirations from nature, but the exciting part is that we can create a mysterious combination with the undertone of each color and use it in a new way to set the mood, or create high contrast never done before.

This year let me help you projecting your personal image, your home image, or your party tables into new modern, graphic colors that will speak about you and your personality. The current millennium loves colors! Happy New Year, make it great, make it fun. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Copyright © 2012 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer and former Fashion Designer, working in the USA and Europe since 1990. She blends well fashion with interior and colors the world of her clients. She has been described as “the colorist” and loves to create the unusual.
She is the author of  RED the forthcoming book on the subject of colors. She is also a published author of two Italian regional cuisine books available here on this site on the Books page and in various other locations.  

http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna
http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen

When In Rome…. | By: Valentina Cirasola | Author and Designer

26 Oct 2011 4 Comments

by Valentina Author in Culinary Items, Culinary Trips, Design, Holiday Decorations, Italian Culture, Italian Food, Italian-Table-Customs Tags: , , , , , , ,

People seem to think that Italy being an artistic country is also a free spirit nation. This might be true to a certain extent, but underneath a layer of free spirit living there are a few rules that you might want to learn before embarking in a trip to Italy. One of the most important elements in Italian life is food, being seated at a dining table with the locals is one of the things you want to learn, not because your way of eating is wrong, but it is better to blend in when in a foreign country. “When in Rome do as the Romans” will only make your life easier.

In the English language the word table remains table, but in Italian language the table has two genders. It takes a masculine gender “Il Tavolo” when Italians use it for various tasks, such as paying bills, schoolwork, or discuss things. It takes a feminine gender “La Tavola” when Italians eat at the table.

This means that the table is always dressed for dinner, like a woman invited out to dinner. Just as the Italian woman gets dressed with class and very little fuss, a simple jewelry over a stunning mise,  or vice versa expensive shoes/accessories with a simple dress, so does the table. Italian table is all about elegance and simplicity. Home décor, table setting, fashion and all the aspects of Italian expressions follow the classic order and classic elegance found in Italian architecture .

Italian table setting is elegant in its characteristic way, no fussy decorations, only the essentials. Food takes the stage, because is the element that will make us feel good. Atmosphere and ambience contribute to our feeling good, but food gives us expectation.

Dressing The Table
A tablecloth is the first thing that goes on and it is not just for the holidays. Italians eat with tablecloth and fabric napkins every day of the week. It’s about respect for food and for themselves. Holidays deserve a more expensive tablecloth. Napkins are generally the same color of the tablecloth, but you might want to take the color of the dishes as an inspiration to match napkins.

Setting places is easy, there are only two plates in front of each guest: a shallow plate goes on the bottom and a large bowl goes on top, usually the two dishes are of the same colors, but this is not a rule. The bottom plate can be colored and the top plate hand painted, or in a contrasting colors. There is a new trend to add a charger plate underneath all, but only for special occasions and I must say this is custom monkeyed from foreign countries.

Silverware are kept at a minimum: two forks on the left of the same size, spoon and knife on the right, smaller fork or smaller spoon in front of the plates for dessert. Smaller forks are not used for salads, only dessert. To the right of the plates, we place two glassware, one for water and the other for wine whichever it might be, if you see a third glass is because the wine will change during the dinner.

In the middle of the table there is no decoration, but you might see a small low flower arrangement to allow guests to converse from across the table, or a couple of candles on each end of the table.
In the center of the table there is only a water carafe, or a bottle of mineral water, a wine bottle and breadbasket.

In the middle of the table there is no food either. Each plate comes filled from the kitchen and nobody will pass dishes around at the table.  Italians do not fill one plate with the entire dinner, we like to keep flavors separate in separate dishes, thus when we change  courses, we change plates.

No bread and butter dish and no saucer with olive oil and balsamic vinegar will ever be seen on an Italian table. Between courses, while we are waiting for the next dish, we entertain ourselves with raw fennel to help the digestion. Dipping bread in olive oil and balsamic vinegar is never been an Italian custom. There is no salt and pepper shaker either, the cook of the family knows how to balance flavors. Try not to ask for one and avoid offending the cook.

The hosts, or the older persons of the family, usually grandparents sit at both ends of the table and the most important guests sit on their right side.

Time For An Apéritif
Now the table is set, let’s go for an apéritif. On Sunday and holidays, before lunch or dinner, Italian treats themselves with an apéritif. Aperitif usually happens an hour before the meal starts. It is a moment to get acquainted with guests who don’t know each other, or to catch up with people we know and haven’t seen for a while. It is also a transition time to allow food to cook to perfection and to finish up the table with the last touch. Aperitif consists of a variety of appetizers, almost like tapas in Spain, served with a sparkling wine, prosecco or champagne. Often on Sunday, Italians go to downtown coffee shops to have an apéritif in style and meet some friends before lunch.

Succession Of Courses
It starts, after the apéritif time is over. Courses come marching in the dining room from the kitchen and take place in front of each guest. Italian portions are small. The first dish is always a plate of pasta or “risotto” and this is our entrée. No more than 2 or 2-1/2 oz. of pasta per person, plus condiments, it makes a satisfying dish light in calories. The pasta docer or scales are our gauges. 
Second plate consists of meat or fish with two or three vegetables. One of the vegetables might be a salad, otherwise salad  goes in between courses as a palate cleanser.  The only condiment used on salads is olive oil and lemon or balsamic vinegar. Salad dressing, just as butter on bread does not exist in the Mediterranean diet.

A fish specialty is de-boned in the kitchen and brought to the table cleaned, otherwise shell-fish or mollusks will be served in a soup, over rice or pasta, or baked, in which cases no cheese will ever be required. I say this because I often spot someone in restaurants asking for cheese over pasta with seafood. You want to smell and taste the aroma of the sea and not the dairy. After serving a fish specialty, it is very proper to pass a warm towel to let the guests refresh their hands, just as airlines do.

In Italy to cut food with the proper gesture is very important. The fork is kept in the left hand and knife on the right. Fork never changes hand to bring the bite to the mouth. At the end, when the plate is empty, crisscross the silverware in the plate to indicate that you have finished. The space you occupy when eating with fork and knife is only the space your body occupies, your arm shouldn’t go out of your space to touch the guests sitting next to you. During dinner, let’s say you are eating a soup, the hand that is not using any silverware  show rest on the table not on your lap. You don’t want to give the impression to have something to hide.

What To Avoid
I know by now how much you are enjoying eating Italian food, but it is important to pace yourself.  Finishing before the other guests, means you have enjoyed food so much that encourages the host to fill up your plate again. See what other people are doing, go at their speed and finish at the same time. In restaurant is OK to finish first; restaurants will never serve you the same dish twice unless you are ready to pay twice.

“Scarpetta”: it is not OK to clean the plate with a piece of bread in your hand. In restaurant is definitively a bad custom, just as much if you are a guest in someone’s home. In a family home is OK to attach a piece of bread to the fork and go around the plate one time.

You might want to keep a couple of rules in mind:
1. when pouring wines or water, the bottle should point forward into the glass, never you should pour with your hand tilted backwards. It is not elegant and actually Italians see it as an offensive gesture. If you are in an Italian restaurant where wine is poured backwards, for sure you have landed in a non-authentic Italian restaurant;
2. if you need to leave the table for any reason, put the napkin on the table and not on the chair, that is also considered offensive.

The End Of  Dinner

After the salad, we give the stomach time to settle down with “pinzimonio”, which is a combination of raw vegetables to dip in olive oil and  S&P.
This interlude will give time to prepare the end of the dinner with an array of cheeses paired with dry nuts and lot of fresh fruit.

Italian meals end with desserts, cakes, or ice cream followed with espresso coffee, digestive drinks or some type of alcohol, but never latte, cappuccino, latte macchiato, or similar drinks with milk in it. Digestive drinks have the property of cleansing and detoxifying, help digestion, eliminate toxins and at times help with reflux problems.  Natural herbs, roots, tree barks and spices, infused in a base of alcohol are the magic of all digestives. Latte or cappuccino after you have ingested a meal full of oils, wines or citrus condiments will only help the fermentation in the stomach and create a reflux.

If you are a traveler in Italy, you don’t have to worry about ordering a 3 – 4 course meal any more as it was in the past, restaurateurs understand that foreigners eat in a different way. Eat what you like, in the order you like and please know that “pane e coperto” is a surcharge for tablecloth and bread, always present on the bill. Often when the tip is included in the bill you don’t have to pay a 15%. Ask the waiter, if the bill is not clear, but don’t forget to ask for a receipt. Outside the restaurant one of the “guardia di finanza” might stop you to ask for a receipt and you could be fined if you can’t produce one.

I hope this information has been helpful.  As the professional who is always ready, I shall be prompt and ready to help you with any of your needs, whether it will be decorating, designing, remodeling, or designing your “mise en place” Italian style. Ciao,
Valentina
www.Valentinadesigns.com

Copyright © 2011 Valentina Cirasola, All Rights Reserved

Valentina Cirasola is an Italian Interior Designer with a passion for kitchens and cooking. She operates in the USA and Europe. She loves to remodel homes and loves to turn unattractive spaces into castles, but especially loves to design kitchens and wine grottos, outdoor kitchens and outdoor rooms, great rooms and entertainment rooms. She is the author of two Italian regional cuisine books available here on the Books page and in various other locations: 

http://outskirtspress.com/ComeMiaNonna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnq8baaAq0M

http://outskirtspress.com/SinsOfAQueen


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