Plus, we will have a full new chapter moving the story forward.

Thank you, grazie, for standing by.

Xo,

Jennifer
Mary
E. Jean

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When E. Jean, Jen, and I embarked on this venture, we knew we wanted to create a world based on the idea of a story. There is, after all, something to be said for spontaneity—not having a completed manuscript ahead of time was part of the fun. Adding context and sharing extra-narrative details about our characters’ lives—the recipes and the knitting patterns—added to the excitement.

But we also wanted to make sure there was enough of a cushion to withstand any of the curves life throws at us sometimes. In other words, we planned to be far enough ahead of the game in order to account for the commitments, deadlines, illnesses, emergencies, or narrative mistakes that life and fiction can throw at you.

Well, at least we could try.

In addition to the usual intricacies of managing in these times, I’ve been sick for most of the summer (which is why, for those of you who listened, my podcast went on hiatus), Jen has been dealing with teaching commitments and personal family health issues, and E. Jean has been out there trying to save the world for the rest of us—and largely succeeding, I might add).

And then, of course, a problem that was a little harder to work around—I completely screwed up the timeline of the story unfolding in The Italian Lesson. Luckily, the chapters you’ve already read aren’t affected but setting everything right took a lot of unwriting, rewriting, and hair-pulling.

So, that’s been the less-than-ideal state of play. The good news, however, is that we, and Backstory Serial, will be back on track as of tomorrow when the action of Chapter Five resumes. Chapters Five and Six will be published over the next couple of weeks and then we will be all caught up. Plus, there will be a few extra features including a tour of Anne’s favorite place to visit in Florence, a recipe (with wine pairing!), and a new knitting pattern.

We have missed Calabresi almost as much as we’ve missed you. Thank you for your patience. And if, understandably, you have not been patient, thank you for not throwing things.

A presto!

Anastasia had never heard of olive oil cake before she met Isabella, and it soon became one of her favorite guilty pleasures. As she told her friend, it tasted like pound cake that had been dipped in ambrosia.

Despite how glorious it tastes, olive oil cake is extremely easy to make. The ingredients are simple—you probably already have most of them in your pantry.

Olive Oil Cake

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt

• 1 ¾ cups granulated white sugar

• 3 large eggs [room temperature]

• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus some to grease the pan

• 1 cup whole milk

• 1 tablespoon honey

• 2 tablespoons freshly grated lemon zest

• Confectioner’s (powdered) sugar for dusting [Optional]

A note on substitutions:

• I didn’t have any baking powder on hand so I used a teaspoon of vanilla instead. The cake still rose beautifully.

• You can use almond or oat milk if you prefer

• You can sub orange for lemon zest.

• Dusting the top of the cake is an aesthetic choice, but as for flavor, I think this cake speaks for itself.

Preparation

1. Set out eggs so they reach room temperature.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C—we’re in Italy :) ).

3. Line the bottom of a nine-inch cake pan with a round piece of parchment paper. Grease bottom and sides with olive oil.

4. Combine all dry ingredient—except sugar—in a bowl. Whisk to combine thoroughly.

5. In a second, larger bowl, combine eggs, sugar, olive oil, milk, honey, and lemon zest. Gradually add dry mix and whisk until the mixture is smooth.

6. Pour batter into cake pan. Gently lift pan and tap against counter to remove bubbles.

7. Bake for approximately 60 minutes. Use a toothpick to make sure the center has cooked through. With this recipe it’s better to undercook a little than overcook.

8. Let cool for 30 minutes, then use a knife to loosen the sides of the cake. Turn upside down onto plate, remove parchment paper. Cool completely before serving.

RASPBERRY COULIS [koo-LEE]

Again, this cake can absolutely stand on its own, but an Italian restaurant near me serves it with raspberry coulis and clotted cream (!) on the side and, well, that’s pretty amazing, too.

Making clotted cream from scratch is time-consuming and not necessary. It’s easy enough to find at a speciality market.

The Ingredients

All you need for this ultra-simple recipe is:

• Raspberries*: a pint and a half (approximately 3 cups)

• Confectioner’s (powdered) sugar: 1/4 cup plus extra in case the coulis needs to be a little sweeter.

• Lemon juice: 1 teaspoon

*It’s totally fine to use frozen raspberries. Just make sure you thaw them first.

Preparation

• Put the raspberries in a blender. You don’t want the coulis to be too sweet but rather let the sugar bring out the raspberries’ natural sweetness, so start with an 1/8 of a cup, blend thoroughly, and then continue to add more sugar in small increments to taste.

• Purée until the mixture is smooth.

• Place a sieve with a fine mesh over a small bowl and pour purée in. Press on the mixture to get as much juice out of it as possible.

• Add lemon juice and, if necessary, add more confectioner’s sugar to taste.

There is no fur in this olive oil cake.

Buon appetito!

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Italy goes quiet in August, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t adventures to be had and stories to be told.

What are your favorite experiences from summer 2023 and how are you getting ready for sweater weather?

The three of us sat down (by which we mean logged onto Zoom) a few weeks ago for an interview with Brooke Hauser, a journalist at The Boston Globe. Brooke was an absolute pleasure and hilarity ensued. To sum up, E. Jean made Mary blush, Jen knit (knitted?) Anastasia’s favorite old scarf the entire time without dropping a stitch, and Mary (once again) disappointed E. Jean’s expectations. Also, our awesome friend, Joyce Vance, made a cameo appearance.

You can check out the article here. This link should work, but if for some reason it’s behind a paywall and you’re interested in reading it, you can sign up for the Globe simply by giving them your email—no need to pay for anything. It’s a legitimately solid newspaper and well worth reading in general.

Beware—if you haven’t read past Chapter Two, there are spoilers.

It seems the Dog Days of summer have burst their boundaries and we’ve all been pulled in different directions—between travel, getting ready for the new semester, construction projects, and preparing ourselves for the next election cycle. But rest assured, regular posting will resume next week.

We hope you enjoy the article as much as we enjoyed participating in it. Let us know what you think!

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She looked at her phone. It was 6:00 in the evening an…

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Clea…

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It was indulgent to choose this to make the mistake rib scarf. For a direct link to the pattern, as featured here on the knit one page of Backstory Serial, link here: The Italian Lesson Knit Along.

Here’s a photo of the wrapper from around the hanks. The brand is “String” and the line is called Blossom. It comes in many colors, but I chose this one because it reminded me of an Irish fisherman’s sweater. Winter is far, far away, fortunately, but I do have this to look forward to wearing. Also, with two more balls of yarn left, I will have plenty to keep my hands busy and my mind focused during faculty meetings this fall.

How is your knitting coming? I’d love to see your progress on the knit-along or anything else you’re working on.

xo,

Jen

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At half-time, Anne made more popcorn the old-fashioned way, with olive oil and extra butter. She placed the bowl on the coffee table in front of Jas…

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The house and its four-acre plot were too big for the two of them but it suited him. He liked having a property that could accommodate a guest cottage, a putting green, and a swimming pool bigger than most people’s backyards. Besides, it gav…

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The first time I had stuffed zucchini blossoms was at a restaurant in Parma much like La Serratura, where Anastasia and Matteo have their first date. I’d never tasted anything like them.

Luckily, it turns out they’re fairly easy to make.

Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms

Before anything else, gently clean the blossoms, removing the stamen or pistil.

Ingredients

[yield: either 2 to 4 servings depending on whether you’re sharing them with Anastasia]

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The stuffing

• Cooking oil (amounts vary depending on the size of the pan—you’ll want at least ¼” of oil to fry the zucchini blossoms)

• 12-16 Zucchini Blossoms

• ½ cup whole milk Ricotta Cheese

• 1-ounce grated Pecorino Cheese

• 1-ounce mozzarella Cheese, shredded

• 1 egg

• Sea salt and black pepper

The batter

• 2 eggs

• ¼ cup flour (00 or all-purpose)

• ¾ cup sparkling water

• ¼ cup grated Pecorino

• 1 TBS chopped Italian parsley

Preparation

The stuffing

1. Lightly beat the egg and then mix all the ingredients together.

2. Place mixture into small pastry bag.

3. Squeeze approximately one teaspoon of the ricotta mixture into the blossom and gently seal, twisting the petals at the top. Remember, this is all about the blossoms—the purpose of the filling is to enhance, not overwhelm, their delicate taste. As tempting as it might be, do not use too much filling (even though it’s delicious on its own).

4. Refrigerate the blossoms while preparing the batter.

The batter

1. Lightly beat the eggs.

2. Mix in the milk, flour, cheese, and Italian parsley. The batter should have the consistency of pancake mix.

Cooking

1. Add enough oil to a large sauté pan so it’s about a ¼ inch deep.

2. Dip each blossom into the batter, allowing any excess to drip off. Add four or five to the oil when it reaches a temperature of 350°.

3. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown.

4. Remove from oil and drain blossoms on paper towel.

5. When ready to serve, add grated Pecorino, salt and pepper to taste (optional) and garnish with Italian parsley.

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Arugula Salad with Peas Shoots and Roasted Pine Nuts

The best salads are often those with the fewest ingredients. It goes without saying that these need to be as fresh as possible—preferably locally sourced. This is exactly the case with the arugula and pea shoot salad—add some roasted pine nuts and a delicate lemon-poppyseed dressing and the results are sublime. This salad tastes like spring in Tuscany.

[Nota Bene: Traditionally in Italy, salad is eaten after the main course. This isn’t as true as it used to be but La Serratura is a very old school restaurant.]

Pea shoots are microgreens which are simply young vegetable plants that are harvested while still seedlings. They’re the seedling of any pea plant like snap peas, snow peas, or English peas. They are tender, extremely nutritious, and have stronger flavor than sprouts.

[I couldn’t find pea shoots at the market near me and when I ordered them, I got bean sprouts instead—which are not at all the same thing. So I subbed the pea shoots with endive, which is fine but this is a much better salad, as well as one that pairs better with the lemon poppyseed dressing.]*

The hardest part of putting the salad together is roasting the pine nuts. You can either do this in a skillet or, if you have a lot of them, in the oven on a baking sheet. Either way, don’t use any oil.

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In a skillet:

• Place skillet over a medium flame and add the pine nights. Make sure to stir them with a wooden spoon frequently. It should take between two and three minutes for the nuts to become golden brown.

In the oven:

• Pre-heat oven to 350°. Place the pine nuts in a single layer on the baking sheet (no oil!). Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring half-way through.

Whichever method you choose, be aware that pine nuts can burn quickly, so keep an eye on them. In order to make sure they don’t overcook, remove from the heat as soon as they’re done. Burnt pine nuts do not taste good.

Lemon Poppyseed Dressing

Ingredients [yield: 6 servings]

• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1/8 cup honey

• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

• 1/2 tablespoon poppy seeds

• 1/8 cup diced red or Vidalia onion (optional)

The simplest way to make this delicious, light dressing is to leave out the onion. Place all of the ingredients in a Mason jar, and then shake until thoroughly combined.

If you do use the onion, blend all ingredients, except the poppyseeds, in a blender until smooth. Pour the dressing into a Mason jar, add poppyseeds, and shake. Either add directly to the salad or refrigerate for a few minutes.

*Speaking of pairing, both of these courses will go very well with a bottle of Pecorino wine (no relation to the cheese!) that is produced in the Abruzzo region.

Buon appetito!

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She tilted her head slightly and calculated that, as bad as it still looked, her foundation would …

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Thanks to everybody who joined us for the very first Italian Lesson Knitting Group! We had a blast. Due to technical difficulties, one session got cut short and some people never got the link to join, so there will be another group soon now that we’ve gotten everything sorted out. We’ll keep you posted.

In the meantime, some of you sent us some photos of your knitting projects and we wanted to share them here.

Catherine Roth: I am loving the mistake rib scarf, which is perfect to be able to knit while also watching my daughter's gymnastics practice.

Sue Larson: I’m knitting on beautiful Lake Lucerne in Wisconsin. Being on the lake helps me stay focused.  It’s a little hazy due to Canada fire smoke.  

This is my first ever knitting project.  It’s been a challenge but I think I have it after restarting at least 15 times.

Lorette: Mine is knit from deep stash. The yarn is 70% alpaca 30% silk from Black Wolf Fiber.

Sue Brown: This is my scarf so far . I plan to make this a charity knit for 

https://www.fc2success.org/programsmentoring-and-support/red-scarf-project/

Keeping with the Italian theme, I found my yarn online - Cariaggi Piuma - 100% cashmere sport weight.  Also I altered the size, casting on 43 stitches and moved to a size 5 needle.  

I loved the way it knits, and the pattern is just perfect.

Susan Cleaves: I did do a swatch of the mistake rib scarf and because it is so pretty, I just kept knitting because I have lots of yarn in the those colors. I'm attaching a pic. I haven't started the large scarf, but will share it later.

Lorraine Evanoff: Perfect timing, my supplies arrived yesterday from Purl Sohot!

Although I had wanted to do the two colored version, after hearing all the questions on the Zoom call and reading the pattern myself, I opted for the Mistake Rib Scarf.

It was still a little challenging, triple checking all the instructions, purling into the back of a knit slipped stitch was weird, but it seems to be going well.

Last night after casting on I knit about two inches just to get it started, so I'm on my way! 

I love the cashmere merino bloom yarn in dove gray heather! Très élégant!

Also, just a little background, having learned from my Norwegian-American roommate in Paris, I knit continental style.

And although I'm a neat freak, I am too lazy to wind each skein into a ball. 

So, I find convenient ways to keep the yarn from getting tangled, photo attached of it hanging on the back of a chair.

Laurie Hammons: Hello from Houston! (blue dot in a red state)

What a great project!  I looked at my local JoAnn’s for some unusual yarn to try out the pattern (before I bought some expensive yarn) and I tried bamboo yarn for the first time.  It’s a great yarn for summer knitting.  It’s kind of silky, which I think will make this a nice scarf, not too hot for in-between weather (or Houston “winters”).  I stepped down to size 5 bamboo circular needles due to my looser knitting style.

I think I didn’t pick colors far enough apart to really show a two-tone effect (I thought I was being subtle!), but if you look closely, you’ll see I’m not really getting the two-color vertical stripes pictured in the photos of the two-tone mistake rib scarf. It’s pretty obvious on mine that the yarn colors alternate within the vertical rib, so even if I had picked more contrasting colors, I don’t think I’d get the same vertical stripe as the sample. (I feel like I’m following the pattern very closely!) Maybe the designer’s photo got that effect from shadows in the photos? Or from fuzzier yarn or smaller needles?) Whatever! I’m loving it!  I’m having fun, and that’s all that matters!

Vicky: This is my meager start of the Mistake Rib Scarf. Up until 2 months ago, I was not a knitter.  My mom has been a knitter but stopped last winter as her dementia increased.  She threw out all her supplies.  With the inspiration of Joyce and the Backstory Serial,  I purchased needles and yarn and had my mom teach the basics.  She began knitting and has knitted one and a half panels for a baby blanket.

Kim Brown: How’s it going? Dropped stitches, mysteriously-acquired bonus stitches, and tangled yarn notwithstanding, I can safely say I haven’t had this much success creating a merino-blend clusterf*ck since I “helped” my mom with the afghan she was knitting when I was four.  Twice. 

I’m committed to revisiting, unraveling, detangling, and restarting (again) this weekend, and I eagerly and optimistically anticipate a completion date in early 2025.

Feel free to mark your calendars.

Ronda Cress: As you can see, I didn’t make it very far - but I am proud of myself for casting on after redoing several times! I have to redo again because I only cast on 57 stitches and the pattern calls for 67.  I also had trouble figuring out the slip stitch thing to start knitting, even though it’s supposed to be simple. I gave up prior to the zoom call and haven’t had a chance to revisit - hopefully this weekend with the assistance of YouTube. I am determined!

Question - what is the trick to getting the perfect stitch? Some of mine are too loose, some too tight, some just right. How to get consistent Goldilocks stitches (and I assume the same thing for the knitting rows)?

Kathy Phillips: I didn’t take the picture in a bright room and I’m not sure this picture does justice to my yarn. I am using two yarns on a size 5 needle. The solid is Machette Shop; hand dyed in the Poconos not too far from where I live. The variegated yarn is a Manos del Uruguay. The variegated is for a smaller needle, so I went down a size and it has a nice drape so far.

Nancy Thompson: I enjoyed the knitting group session. The Mistake Rib Scarf is a perfect project for me as someone who used to knit, but has not knitted anything for many years. I had to review how to knit again and it came back and I was knitting away -- and making lots of mistakes and somehow gaining extra stitches, so I tore it all out and started over and made some more mistakes and tore that out and realized that I needed to knit very slowly for now to make sure I'm getting it right, or mostly right. I might be the slowest knitter in the group for now, but I think I will eventually regain my normal speed, and I am happy to be knitting again.

Kathleen Raubacher: Well I unraveled mine twice, two different starts using different color combinations. I'm making the two-tone scarf and I tried contrasting colors but did not like either outcome. . So I am going to buy a different color combo to achieve the tonal look the pattern suggested.

I was so happy to learn of this knitting circle, it was just what I needed to get back into a few projects waiting patiently for me to complete. It's a long story but suffice to say I needed a kick. 

Vivian Fulgencio: So I started early and try to work on it every day. I have taken skeins out of my stash that are the same weight and work well together to knit my scarf. The stripes will be different lengths but I think it will make an interesting finished product.

Chris Opp: I did a ribbed crochet scarf instead, using hand-dyed yarn (bought, not dyed by me) that I'd been saving for something special. It's nice and soft, I love the colours, and I'll for sure use it in the winters.

Kate McDermott: Resting a whacked-out back and knitting. Not sure if I’m following the actual pattern but having a good time and that’s what matters.

Deborah Martin Shorter: So far, so good! I'm loving the gentle rhythm of the pattern, and the wonderful dimensionality it produces.

Cindy Bowker: Mine is mistake mistake mistake scarf. Tried the two color version but didn't like the circular needles, but kept it to make end more interesting. The black alpaca makes it a bit harder to see what you have just done and this is what I do watching baseball on TV. I do like doing it, thanks for the pattern. 

The mistakes show more in the photo it seems.

Shellie Anderson: I’ve kind-of gone off script here - slightly different stitch pattern, I-cord edgings and I’m making the scarf wider than the pattern calls for. I’m using my line of hand-dyed yarn, holding an extra fine merino fingering with a mohair/silk lace.

Thanks again, and stay tuned for the next knitting group!

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Calabresi receded into the distance, the stones of the fortification struck by the glancing…

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“Oh, no. That stuff is vile. I’ve never understood how an otherwise intelligent country can be fond of something that tastes like lighter fluid.”

“That is exactly the right answer,” I laughed. “Beatrice gave it to me—and she’s the only one who drinks it.”

“What else do you have?”

“Check in there,” …

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It may have been awhile or it may have been last night, but most of us have been on a first date or two. Some (perhaps most) we’d rather forget, but others we never will. What is the most fun—or unintentionally funniest—first date you’ve ever been on? And were cobblestones or cows involved?

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“Francesca, I have everything we need.”

She looked at me with mock pity and said, “No, you don’t.”

Francesca had an MFA in creative writing, had earned a Master’s i…

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