Vacation Eats: Take-Out, Lecce Style

This is a post in my "Vacation Eats" series. I'm posting about various eating and drinking experiences I had on our 2011 Vacation Extravaganza -- Pittsburgh, Boston, Italy, Paris, Pittsburgh. A link to all posts so far is available here. The idea is to lose all the pounds I gained by the time I'm finished with this posting series!

On our last night in Lecce, we had pizza for dinner, delivered!  I don't know how common this is in Puglia, but we've never had it with hubby's family over in Calabria.  But Lecce has a lot more American influence.  There's a McDonald's and lots of military personnel, so maybe the pizza delivery industry is driven by that.

My pizza (above) was 4 formaggi.  4 cheese.  Very, very yummy!

Vacation Eats: Ristorante Alle due Corti in Lecce

This is a post in my "Vacation Eats" series. I'm posting about various eating and drinking experiences I had on our 2011 Vacation Extravaganza -- Pittsburgh, Boston, Italy, Paris, Pittsburgh. A link to all posts so far is available here. The idea is to lose all the pounds I gained by the time I'm finished with this posting series!

We went out to eat for lunch one day in Lecce, at a restaurant that had been written up a few years ago in the New York Times, Ristorante Alle due Corti.

The restaurant's sign, attached to one of those typical Lecce walls of limestone.

A portion of the menu.  Hopefully you can click to enlarge.  Yes, it features horse meat and baby goat entrails... I got the second option listed (artichokes) and hubby got horse.  Oh, I hate thinking about it.  Usually I'm so happy to know that he's not officially a vegetarian, but that he eats meat free a lot (though he does seafood pretty often) and he really won't eat beef or pork unless we're at someone's house and that's what's offered (and that's rare since they'll usually have veggie options for me).  I was thoroughly appalled when he mentioned he was considering horse, but I bit my tongue -- it's his choice.  I can just withhold kisses saying I don't want to taste horse! 

We got all the vegetarian antipasti (except the stuffed mushrooms at the very front of this pic had meat in them).  I especially loved the beets, on the left in this pic.

My first plate of antipasto.

Our pasta course.  It was house-made tagliatelle with a special tomato-based sauce.

My friend Anna's entree -- eggplant.  She didn't love it.  Too much sauce, it overwhelmed the eggplant.

Hubby's entree -- the horse.  Ugh.

My entree, the artichokes.  Very good.

Just walked after the meal and eventually got some gelato for dessert.  An amazing lunch at a restaurant I'd highly recommend!  

Vacation Eats: A less over-the-top meal

This is a post in my "Vacation Eats" series. I'm posting about various eating and drinking experiences I had on our 2011 Vacation Extravaganza -- Pittsburgh, Boston, Italy, Paris, Pittsburgh. A link to all posts so far is available here. The idea is to lose all the pounds I gained by the time I'm finished with this posting series!

Continuing the vacation meal recaps, here's a dinner "in casa" in Lecce.  Again, the meal was made especially for me -- all meat-free!

Above, to start, brocoli rabe?  Rapini?  Lost in translation.

Followed by peas, fresh mozzarella, olives, and an olive-bread.  Oh, and I ate about 10x what's shown on my plate. 

Dessert was fruit and whipped cream.

I chose pears, kiwi, oranges, strawberries and whipped cream.

Another Easter cake, home-made.  I couldn't eat it b/c it contained almonds.  But I was full enough!

 The Easter lamb cake after several portions were cut out!

The wine we had with dinner.  Different from in Calabria where they drink wine that isn't sold in stores.  Not sure if it's a regional difference, or just different families do different things (like some Calabrians maybe buy bottled wine?  Or some Pugliese drink homemade wine?). 

All in all, another completely amazing meal, probably the healthiest of the trip...

Vacation Eats: Santa Maria de Leuca Restaurant

This is a post in my "Vacation Eats" series. I'm posting about various eating and drinking experiences I had on our 2011 Vacation Extravaganza -- Pittsburgh, Boston, Italy, Paris, Pittsburgh. A link to all posts so far is available here. The idea is to lose all the pounds I gained by the time I'm finished with this posting series!

Another restaurant post where I can't include the name.  We were just north-east along the coast from Santa Maria de Leuca, but it was getting very late in the day, and these beach-side downs are largely deserted anyway this time of year, so we stopped for lunch in what seemed to be a hotel restaurant.  My favorite part was probably the dessert.

First, a few pictures from the drive from Lecce, down to the coast, to Santa Maria de Leuca. 

And then some pictures from Santa Maria de Leuca.  This is where the Ionian and Adriatic seas meet, essentially the tip of the heel of the Italian boot.

And finally, lunch.

Hubby's calamari, which he enjoyed.  I had a salad I think.

My pasta with red sauce.  Good but couldn't compare to what I'd eaten in homes on this trip.

Dessert.  Warm pineapple, topped with vanilla ice cream or gelato, and then a fruit sauce.

After lunch, we went to Gallipoli.  Not the famous WWI Gallipoli, but Italian Gallipoli.  A fun food pic from the parking lot there -- seafood being sold on the street.