Rain, Rain, Vattene!

Monday was a generally unpleasant day, with one notable exception...

Prosciutto, pecorino, and arugula. Worth staying awake through my classes for.

That, however, was an exceptionally difficult task considering we got back to Florence via taxi from Pisa at 2:30. More than once I had to physically struggle to keep my eyelids up. 

But enough of my whining. THE END IS NEAR!!! It is our last week of classes, then exams and then home! I'm still in a state of semi-denial about this whole' leaving Florence' situation. Let's not talk about it.

Let's talk about oats!

Mmm, chocolate-pineapple oats to be exact. Maybe it sounds weird, but really it makes sense - every chocolate fountain I've encountered is usually accompanied by strawberries, pound cake chunks, and pineapple! If you haven't tried this combo, you must - whip out that fondue pot collecting dust in your basement and get to it! Heck, just nuke some chocolate chips in a bowl and dip some pineapple in there. I am a chocolate+fruit fiend. Especially in terms of gelato combos...mmmmm....

It has yet to cease raining here since we've returned from our Spanish vacation. We're thinking Florence is sad we're leaving soon. Yup, that's definitely it.

Last night was our LAST Ethnic Tuesday! Che peccato! And what better way to do up our last one than with...pizza?

We actually discussed the interesting nature of pizza recently in my Food & Culture class. It has become an "archetype food," meaning a food with no specific identity and neutral characteristics. Think about it - we have Thai Chicken pizza, Hawaiian pizza, Mexican pizza...it crosses every ethnic boundary line! So really, it's the perfect choice for our final Ethnic Tuesday. It covers every ground!

We've had Gusta Pizza on the list for a while (and yes, I have an actual Excel spreadsheet of restaurants to go to) because it is rumored to be the best pizza in Florence. That certainly sounds like a challenge made for the ladies of The Palace! It was pouring down rain, and the restaurant was across the Arno - but we do not let Mother Nature stand in the way of pizza. We called a cab. Totally worth it.

There are only 7 different pizzas made (and a couple daily specials), which we all agreed was kind of nice - sometimes looong menus are just too overwhelming! After much debate, I went with the Napoli - tomato, mozzarella, capers, and anchovies. It was the anchovies that did it - Italy has made me an addict ;)

Melty mozzarella deliciousness :)

It was saltier than I would have liked - and before you say it, yes I know anchovies are capers are salty, but actually the anchovies I've had here haven't been overwhelmingly so. I still enjoyed it. How can you tell? I ate the entire thing. Crust and all. Yes, it was that good. And I don't regret a single bite.

Today the weather matched our mood...our LAST Wednesday lunch at Sergio's!!! WAAAAAH!!

Alaina's parents are coming next week and Alaina is taking them there on Monday for lunch and I'm tagging along (for blatantly obvious reasons), so it's not our true last lunch there, but it is the end of our Wednesday lunch date tradition, and that is sad. We all sat around with our pasta e fagioli with mournful looks on our faces between bites.

From this...

To this. No better tribute could be paid than that of an empty plate.

Tonight, LdM is hosting a farewell sit-down dinner for us - and where free food beckons, we follow. Until then, I'm getting my study on for the written part of my cooking final tomorrow. Antioxidants, phytochemicals, and homocysteine, oh my!

~Namaste~