Tropea on the Tyrrhenian Sea’s Costa degli Dei (Coast of the Gods) is Calabria’s most famous resort town. It is also the current holder of the title of Italy’s most beautiful village and it is easy to see why. Tropea has miles of pristine white beaches. It also has so much more! It surprises me that I don’t see more British visitors here. It’s still t-shirt weather in October. There’s also an international airport just up the road in Lamezia Terme. Tropea is home to Santa Maria dell’Isola, which features on every postcard in the region. It is a Benedictine sanctuary set high above Tropea’s be ..read more

Italy is renowned across the world for its food. A meal is not complete in Italy without some bread. Anyone who is a regular reader of this blog knows how passionately I feel about “real bread.” One of my favourites is Pane di Altamura – Altamura bread. Pane di Altamura Altamura, is about 45km southwest of Bari is known as the ‘city of bread.’ Its bread making traditions and reputation has existed for centuries. The locals revere the bread so much here that when McDonalds opened a restaurant, they had to close after two years. The locals only wanted their bread, not some flabby American imita ..read more

Diamante is a charming fishing village on the Tyrrhenian Sea known for its mural-lined streets. A visit any time of year is advisable, but if you plan your trip for its annual Peperoncino Festival you’re in for an especially spicy treat! Peperoncini (literally “little peppers”) are the chili peppers that add a kick to many Calabrian dishes. You’ll know them better as chilli peppers. History Of The Festival The original festival started in 1992, and was going to be a one off. Genova celebrated the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus discovering America. However, they didn’t celebrate the ..read more

To debunk the myth, in Italy, meatballs are NOT normally served with spaghetti or any other type of pasta! The American Italian families started this tradition when they emigrated as they found they had more money for meat.  They therefore made them more often and to keep traditions alive, served them with pasta.  In Italy, however, meatballs (or polpette) are served as a ‘secondi’ meaning a main course, usually with a side of vegetables or just some crusty bread. If you don’t have the time or inclination to make them from scratch, use shop-bought meatballs. They won’t be as tender ..read more

We’re constantly surprised about the amazing people that have agreed to appear on our podcast. Today’s podcast guest is the king of sourdough Dan Lepard. Dan Lepard started his adult life treading the boards. His career then moved into fashion photography. A chance encounter meant he then shifted careers to work as a pastry chef. During his career he has worked with Alastair Little, Sami Tamimi, Yotam Ottolenghi, Fergus Henderson, John Torode, Jeremy Lee and Giorgio Locatelli. Today, he’s famous for being an authority on bread and baking. He’s the author of several groundbreaking cookbooks suc ..read more

We’ve had some fabulous guests on our podcast, where we talk to people who love Italy as much as us. Today’s equally fabulous guest is Gino De Blasio. Gino is a proud Neapolitan, who moved to England with his family at the age of four. He is fiercely proud of his Italian heritage, and is a fountain of knowledge on the history of Italian food. Gino has written articles for several magazines and websites. So settle back, and listen to us talk about childhood memories, beautiful Italian food and Yorkshire Puddings! The post Podcast – Interview With Gino De Blasio appeared first on Our Lives In I ..read more

Pizzo is a seaside town in the north of Calabria. It is also home to the most delectable ice cream dessert, the tartufo. The History Of Tartufo Legend has it that tartufo was invented in 1952. A manager of a local gelateria was serving guests at the wedding of some wealthy locals in town. He realised with horror that he did not have enough cups left to serve gelato to all the guests. At that moment he had a stroke of genius and he made a ball of hazelnut gelato and covered it with a layer of chocolate gelato. He then put melted chocolate in the middle, wrapped it up and refroze it. Hey presto ..read more

As you know we’ve started a podcast where we talk to people who adore Italy as much as us. Today’s guest is Miranda Gore Browne, finalist in the first series of Great British Bake Off. Since the Bake Off Miranda has been busy creating her own website and cooking school and has worked with Kenwood, Aga and the Fairtrade campaign. She’s also preparing to launch her own podcast. She also jointly runs The Mindful Kitchen Company. This invites people to bake and cook together, eat together and learn simple breathing meditation techniques. So sit back and relax while talk about Bake Off secrets, hol ..read more

‘Nduja is a soft, spicy and hot spreadable salami. It is one of the most famous, if not the most famous, of typical Calabrian foods. As you know I like to eat local food! It originates from Spilinga, a town in the north of Calabria, where they have an annual ‘Nduja festival. More of that later! If you like your food spicy, this is for you. For every 2kg of meat, you need 1kg of Calabrian chillies! In Calabria, chillies are not only an ingredient, they are much more. Chillies represent tradition, culture and history. After adding the chillies, the only other ingredient is salt. The very liberal ..read more

As you know we’ve started a podcast where we talk to people who adore Italy as much as us. Our guest today is Jo MacKay of bookingsforyou.com. Her love of Italy caused her to change her career completely and start up her own holiday lettings business bookingsforyou.com. In 2006, Jo MacKay and her family purchased a holiday home on Lake Maggiore in Italy. Jo quickly developed a passion for all things Italian and a few years later, Bookings For You was founded. The company initially focused on offering holiday villas and apartments in the Italian Lakes. However Bookings For You quickly spread t ..read more