January Turin style

We happily greeted 2023 and welcome the year of the rabbit / cat and now we are enjoying Carnival - our Mardi Gras season here in Turin, munching on fritters and sipping hot chocolate.

As it feels that our BC or before Covid19 life was a century ago, to read what our old normal click here.

 

Like every year the elves with Santa and his wife have been vacationing in Turin (Italian short story about them here) and taking advantage of our Carnival fritters in all their versions: filled with custard and jam, or coated with chocolate, or dusted with sugar.

The weather has been rather cold, at some point in mid-January we almost had snow but ended up with rain instead. So these are the days we usually devote to two things: the winter sales - as in Italy sales are regulated by the government and take place only twice a year - and cooking.

Artichokes, pumpkin and mushrooms, together with cheeses, nuts and oranges are among the top ingredients on our Piedmont tables. 

Did you know Italians are the world's top consumers of artichokes in the world? They are a favorite all over the boot but up here we sautée them as a side to our slow braised roasts, we serve them thinly sliced on top of our extra-lean raw beef with parmigiano scales; we naturally make pasta and risotto dishes as well as quiches.

our artichoke and cheddar galette

As artichokes have a distinct flavor people either love them or hate them but they are packed with iron and very rich in fibers and as they are available only during the winter, Italians always take full advantage and even make fried chips!

Risottos are like cookies and can be made with everything so if you have access to these winter staple ingredients you can easily add them all and make a delish pumpkin artichoke risotto with some goat cheese or any cheese you like.

A Turin must these days is our dense and velvety hot chocolate topped with a generous dollop of whipped cream. Everyday is certainly good for gelato but sometimes the temperatures are just too cold and we opt for our historical favorite drink.

There are also days when we can't survive without a gelato scoop and we enjoy an affogato... in Turin, food is always a great excuse to catch up with friends and family.

our artichoke and seed quiche

Yet, everyday we enjoy that one minute of extra light we are gifted, it gives us hope the spring will come soon. So far, we don't seem to have the usual Covid19 wave, in fact, our newspapers have declared Covid19 is over 😂 Definitely, as many other countries, Italy too is lacking medical professionals.

On the good side, it's already almost February, light hours are stretching, the orange battle in Ivrea has resumed and sooner than we know it will be March!

So we are looking forward to V-day, Mardi Gras, many Turineses go skiing up in the many Alpine villages here in Piedmont, just one hour away by car.

Turin is waiting for you!!

To reserve your walking tour of Turin, with tastings, Italian classes, cooking classes and yoga/pilates and fusion classes too, or do them online 👉 email Lucia: turinepi@gmail.com