cucina povera

Cucina povera is Roman cooking, cucina on the cheap, tasty, filling and uses every bit of whatever you have. Much like the snout to tail cooking made popular by Fergus Henderson who runs St. John, Romans have been using offal as part of daily cooking. Yesterday for lunch, TH had trippa alla Romana - a tripe stew with tomatoes, tripe and pecorino cheese, which pronounced pretty decent. It is found on many menus here, along with cervelle (brains) and fegato (liver). I'm not a big fan, but I appreciate that its still simple, straightforward cooking that is still available and not elevated to superstar status.

Today I had a lovely lunch of carciofi alla giudia (deep fried whole artichokes), cacio e pepe and an insalata mista, TH had carpaccio con rughetta, a dish of guiancale e porcini pasta and we shared an tarte di ricotta e ciccolata. It was all delicious, it was at a restaurant suggested to me by our friend D, I can't remember the second recommendation, but this one was pretty darn fine. The weather was amazing, but alas, it was a scootch bit too cold for Romans to sit out and dine. The room was decorated most sweetly, without the typical over blown checked cloths of some trattorie/osterie or the smoker's pink that is found in some of the more bespoke restaurants in Rome.

I'm still not feeling at my tip topness even after all that Airborne, so we're laying low and just schelpping across the Campo for dinner at La Carbonara. Some think this place is overrated, me I am salivating over their antipasti and my saltimbocca alla romano. TH and I are becoming big fans of puntarelle, so we may have to get one to share.

Tomorrow afternoon, we schelp off to London to see Miss J. and then N &R. I will be sorry to leave here, but I know I'll be back sooner than later and that it will be as lovely as ever.

nm