What's Bobici, anyway .. ?

Someone wrote ( Hi Paul ... ! ) and reminded me I haven't yet fully explained the name of this blog. Right on, so here we are with a full explanation.

I have lived in Texas for almost 17 years, and I adore barbecue. Right now my family and I are living in Trieste, north.eastern corner of Italy, and that's the city I grew up in. Bobici is to Istria and Trieste what Barbecue is to Texans....

Let's talk about Barbecue: If you do not know what this is, well, I am so sorry for you, looks like your "gastronomic" life is not complete just yet.
There is a solution: run, don't walk, to Cooper's in Llano, Texas, ask for forgiveness, and let them introduce you to one of the gifts of Texas. After all, Texas Monthly wrote in 2001:

( If you are not a Texan, there is still hope. Just go to Cooper's and they will take care of you )

"50 Things Every Texan Should Do:

1. Read William Barret Travis's famous letter while inside the Alamo.
2. Raft down the Rio Grand through Big Bend's Santa Elena Canyon.
3. Pick your own piece of meat from the giant pit at Cooper's Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que in Llano."

Now, for the Bobici, part. That is *my* heritage ...
Bobici is a delicious soup typical of the Istria Region, in the North-West of Croatia, or, if you prefere, in the North East of Italy...
My birth place, my home, and a beautiful place to see....
Bobici is a soup made of corn, beans, and, well, just have a look:

* 50 g, (2 oz.) young corn from the cob
* 300 g, (10 oz,) beans
* 600 g, (l lb. 5 oz.) potatoes
* 100 g, (4 oz.) smoked bacon
* 100 g, (4 oz.) smoked meat or prosciutto
* 3 cloves garlic
* 1 bunch of parsley and celery
* 50 ml, (2 fl. oz.) olive oil
* salt and pepper

Clean the beans and set to soak 24 hours before required. Wash the smoked meat or prosciutto. Then make the pesto - finely chop the bacon, garlic and parsley to a paste-like consistency. Chop the celery leaf. Peel and slice (or dice) the potatoes. Place the beans and smoked meat in water to cook. As soon as the water boils add the prepared pest. When half cooked, add the corn, chopped celery , potatoes, oil, salt, pepper
Continue cooking until all ingredients are soft. Let it "rest" for 10 minutes, serve, eat, enjoy.

The corn *must* be young at the point that if you press on the kernel with your fingernail, it will "bleed" its milky juice.

Here you have it, from Texas to Trieste and Istria, or if you like, from Barbecue to Bobici ...

See you next time.

Bolina Stretta.

Thursday Challenge

Thursday Challenge: Red.

August 2007, Trieste, Barcola Park.

Angelina's red dress. Simply red.

The Photographers 1st Post...

This is one of my more artistic pictures, over our balcony. I missed a great opportunity, as a mom in a black coat was walking her small child home, who was wearing a bright red coat. the photo was so perfect, yet our camera so slow, I almost felt like yelling at them to 'please don't move for a second!' ... I'm sure you can think of many reasons for me not to do that.
Well, I would like to introduce myself. I am the...er... semi-official photographer for the family blog.

(this is me and yes, the headphones are always there, 'music, my daily medicine'...more like my hourly medicine. I can't get enough music. And my dad will affirm that.)

Me and my dad will sign our posts so you know who is who. Anyway, as already mentioned, mom got back yesterday and I made dinner that evening... Please don't ever let me in a kitchen again. =) It was nice to eat a mom meal again today. Heh.

Anyway, TTFN,
Frankie.

We are back ...

Sorry for disappearing from cyberspace for almost two weeks ...
My wife had to leave in a hurry to go back to the US, for a week or so, and I really did not have time to blog, caught between managing a house with 4 kids, their schooling, cleaning, my work, and all that jazz ... She came back yesterday, so we are back to a full house, laundry is caught up, and the kids finally ate a "mommy-cooked meal" so the house is a huge smile today ! ;)
I know how to cook, however, I also know my limitations. It's nice to have her back with us.



In the meantime, Angelina's new glasses came in , and she started to wear them. The first few times it was NOT an easy thing to do, on top of that she has to wear an eye patch for 3 hours a day, and she especially doesn't like that... Here are some pictures of her first two days with her new set of glasses .
















Hugs to all of you from all of us ...

Cousins.

Isacco and Angelina, cousins from one side of the Ocean to the other. Isacco is my oldest of 4 nephews, 19 years of age, just graduated from High School in Trieste. He is staying with us, for a few days, while he finds a new apartment for himself. We feel fortunate to have the opportunity to share our apartment and our lives with him for a few weeks.
He and Angelina, one evening on the couch, and she got him to read some stories to her. It was the sweetest thing... Francesca could not resist from quietly taking some pictures. Isacco got a job last September, 2 months from his High School graduation day, and in Italy, in this economy, that is a big thing, considering that the job itself is in his field of studies, and it is a full time, permanent position.


Isacco graduated from the Technical Nautical Institute of Trieste. 5 years of grueling 38 to 40 hours/week nautical school that prepares the students to be "Ship Captains" and other highly specialized professions in the nautical / marine industry. He now works as an "Agente Marittimo" ( Ship Agent / Port Agent ) Basically , whenever a freighter comes in, he goes aboard to inspect the ship and make sure all documentation is OK, and does other administrative duties related to a ship's arrival. He loves it, even when he has to go aboard at 3:00AM, in the middle of winter ... in the middle of the Trieste Bay.
He is a good kid, with a great heart, and we love him.

Angelina's Eyes.

Today was an interesting day. We finally took little Angelina to the pediatrician, since her left eye had been crossing a little too much. Surprise ! The pediatrician told us we had to take her *immediately* to the local Children Hospital ( one of the best in Italy) for an eye specialist to see her right away.

So off we went, and after two buses, we managed to arrive. It all went rather smooth, if it wasn't for Angelina not really enjoying getting the "drops" in her eyes, an she had a dislike for the doctor and for what he was doing to her eyes, and she let him KNOW about it...

After 15 minutes of screams, she calmed down, and the doctor told us she needed glasses ( isn't that ... wonderful ... ) How on earth are we going to keep GLASSES on *her*, I really do not know. Oh, well. She also needs to have the "good" eye with a patch for 3 hours a day, and after 4 months, another checkup visit.
Another two ( or was it three ? ) buses and we got home, just on time for lunch....

See ya tomorrow !.

What to do, what to say ... ?

Oh, my .. It is mid-November, already, and this is the first post.

I promised to have this thing up and running sometime in August, a whooping 3 months ago. You all must think Italy gobbled us up, and we disappeared in a black hole, somewhere.

Nope, we are still here. Thanks to the "customer-disservice" of the main Italian phone company, Telecom, we have been waiting since August the 11th for a DSL line to be installed, but so far, nothing, nada, niente.

Internet Points in town are few, expensive, and sometime with weird hours or even weirder customers... Anyway, the local city library finally got up to the 21st century, got a sweet wi-fi "reading room", just acroos the streeet from a local old-timer snack place ( more will follow, and it is worth it, trust me...)

So, here we are, back in cyberspace from Trieste (Italy) , the town I grew up in, trying to spend some (quality) time in the old-continent...

More tomorrow, for real!