the new year in Turin

Ideally the Holidays in Turin should last at least 2 weeks from around December 21st to January 7th to have enough time to do some Christmas shopping and organizing some days. Always consider that on the holidays and national days, most Italian businesses and museums are closed 😟

As we have already given you a preview of our very own Turin Christmas this post is about the days that straddle the old and the new year with a link to La Befana day aka January 6th, nobody would want to miss her, right?

in a downtown 18th century palazzo courtyard

Turin Holidays

Up here in Torino we get into our understated 'Holiday mood' on November 1st when, since 1998, we light up our luci d'artista - the open air art installations made of lights designed by 25 local artists. Understatement is a key word here because the Turinese dread 'like plague' (yes, that bad!) the showing off and boasting of the nouveau riches 😳 that have no manners 😂

Piazza Castello, one of our Christmas markets is on  the left

Winter lights

Living in the Mediterranean area means that starting in November our day light hours get shorter and it gets dark earlier. Since 1998, in Turin, we have an artsy tradition to light up out streets and piazzas all around downtown: Luci d'Artista.

the Roman Palatine Doors or Porte Palatine in 2015: 'vento solare' or solar wind

pumpkin galore

October and November in Turin are the months of the pumpkin but no matter when pumpkin season is where you live, whether you celebrate Thanksgiving Day or you just like its flavor, do it like us and make one of these amazing recipes of ours. You'll surprise and entice your family and friends and most definitely, you'll gratify yourselves 😋

Porta Palazzo market: the farmers' section

galleria Lux

One of Milan's symbols is their one and only galleria near the Duomo, Turin on her hand can brag about her beautiful 3 super gallerias: Galleria Umberto I near the Porta Palazzo market, in the Roman Quadrilatero area, Galleria Subalpina in Piazza Castello between Caffé Mulassano and Caffé Baratti Milano, two royal coffee shops and Galleria San Federico in Via Roma!

Lucia Hannau, photo by Alberto Bonis

ginger carrot gnocchi

Fall is the best time to get back to the kitchen and cook, and what's more therapeutic than working with your hands? What gives you more satisfaction than something you can share with your family and friends and that you can make into a large batch and freeze to keep handy for any occasion and impromptu feast?

Our answer is gnocchi!! 🙆

Turin outside downtown

Abroad, it is always easy to wander in the city center, but what about daring to explore outside where the locals live? Here are 5 places in Turin where tourists don't dare to thread 😁

Casa La Fleur in the Cit Turin hood

August dolce vita

As summer 2019 officially called its end with a sudden storm that plummeted the temperatures and plunged Turin straight down into the Fall, we would like to take a moment to tell you the secret of the Italian dolce vita 😉

TurinEpi19 GRAZIE 1000

The 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital was by far the most successful 🙆 thanks to the people who made it possible!

T is for torrone

The 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital owes a big GRAZIE to Christina Conte author of Christina's Cucina and a TurinEpi friend and supporter for many years now. In fact, the idea of organizing a wine tour started from her and Kelly Leonardini of Italian At Heart, another TurinEpi supporter and guest.

Not only was TurinEpi19 the most successful edition but we all also got the chance to enjoy Christmas in July!! 

Why? Because Christina expressed the wish to visit a torrone maker while here in Piedmont!!

organic, soft nougat with Piedmont IGP hazelnuts by Giovanni Scalenghe

TurinEpi19 farewell

So how would you end an extended 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital, after some of the guests had the unique chance of getting up close and personal with the top wines and foods of the Langhe district for 2.5 days; after 3 days in Turin of talk-shows (1, 2, 3), cooking class, a natural 'hot' yoga class, a super cheese-tasting and lots of amazing delicious food and laughters?

Suspiciously smelling 'acqua e menta'- Americans think it tastes like Listerine but boy, the locals love it!
Photo by Alberto Bonis

TurinEpi19 talk-show 3

The third talk-show of the 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital had Jan Egan aka The Watchful Cook moderating Ulderica Masoni aka THE Turin fashion guru, Benedetta Oggero aka Miss Bee, Paola Pressi of Il Reale and Monica Buzio who is bringing back to life her great grandfather's liqueur recipes.

* Lucia Hannau presenting the third talk-show

A TurinEpi19 cheese tasting

Besides getting to share Turin with our guests and their online followers, every year there is another special reason to join the Turin Epicurean Capital bunch: 2019 was special as it had 2 big events and the cheese tasting at historic Latteria Bera was definitely one nobody could miss out on.

*Chiara Franzoso owner of Latteria Bera in Via San Tommaso 13

TurinEpi19 hot yoga

When we were planning the sixth edition of Turin Epicurean Capital, we imagined our guests might welcome a nice vinyasa to stretch and relax, what we couldn't imagine though was to get struck hard by the heat wave.

So basically, being outdoors was a hazard: the air blowing felt like an oven baking the pizza we had for lunch after the second talk-show.

Luckily, we could use a fresh lawn in the shade and enjoy the early evening breeze tunneled in the De La Salle Collegio San Giuseppe inner courtyard.

TurinEpi19 talk-show 2

On Thursday, June 27th at 11am took place the 2nd talk-show of the 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital. Dr Reine Bouton moderated Christina Conte, Cynthia McCloud Woodman and Annette Joseph in a quite lively chat where personal experiences and points of view were often similar but conveyed in different ways.

*Left to right: Cynthia McCloud Woodman, Reine Bouton, Lucia Hannau, Christina Conte and Annette Joseph

turinepi19: gnocchi park

As customary this 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital included a cooking class. However, this year, we decided to move outside the kitchen to show our guests a part of Turin, otherwise they would never get the chance to visit.

*Barbara of Orti In Piazza showing the urban garden

TurinEpi19 talk show 1

Time flies by so quickly when you have fun and, not only the days in the Langhe and Roero wine districts were packed with fun visits, food and wine but also the Turin days were full of food, fun and sighs.

*Lucia Hannau presenting the first talk show of this 6th edition

TurinEpi19: thank you

As this 6th extended edition of Turin Epicurean Capital is about to begin, we would like to take a minute to thank all the people that made it possible.

Torino 7, the Turin section of La Stampa newspaper with all the big events of the week to come

TurinEpi19 wine tour

Thanks to our collaboration with Incoming Experience, the sixth edition of Turin Epicurean Capital is extended and will last 6 days instead of our usual 3.

In June 2019, our guests get the opportunity to visit the beating heart of Piedmont: the Langhe wine district and a bit of Roero too 😉

Top Italian wine producing region and white truffle hub of the world, within Piemonte there are many wine districts and traditional food production areas; however only 3 made it to the Unesco World Heritage Site list: Langhe, Roero and Monferrato.

Despite being close to each other, their geographical and geological conformations are rather different as you eye and palate can intuitively tell you.

These territories are made of tiny medieval hamlets perched on the top of vineyard covered hills.

If Monferrato counts more castles than in the Loire Valley, in France, the Langhe area comprised between Alba and Asti has the highest concentration of Michelin starred restaurants in the whole world! 

And Roero is the Piedmont unique fruit and vegetable garden thanks to its many family owned farms, orchards and hazelnut groves 😋

A piazza wide garden

Despite its very long industrial tradition, like Lady Gaga and Rihanna, Turin has known how to change and renovate herself along the years. Many areas of the city have changed completely in the last 30 years, starting from downtown, the Lingotto area where  you can now visit Eataly - the very first one in the world! - and the Fiat factory turned into a shopping mall, to Piazza Risorgimento in the Campidoglio neighborhood.

We often describe Turin like the Italian MoTown thanks to the Fiat, but also as the Italian Philly because of its elegant 18th century architecture and most definitely, like the Italian Manhattan given the Roman grid our city was built on. Like many cities around the world though, Turin has also many artsy projects and neighborhoods that keep outside of the tourists' paths.

herbal alchimies in Turin

The 6th edition of Turin Epicurean Capital will see the participation of two women of the historic and world renown 'booze system' 😁: Monica Buzio and Paola Pressi.

Monica inside the distillery

Amanda Jack's Turin

We are happy to share a guest post by our Twitter and Instagram friend Amanda Jack 🙆

Amanda is a writer, student, wife, mother and Grandmother. Dividing her time between homes in the North east of Scotland and the Piedmont Region of Italy, she patiently awaits the day she can perfect the Italian language. Until then, she enjoys writing about her adventures and reviewing books, mainly those set in and around Italy. 

Read her blog: http://a-jack-in-a-box.simplesite.com

Enjoy her perspective on Turin and do like her: come over!!

Spring risotto

Despite the weather hasn't made up its mind yet, we are in the spring and some days are getting really warm. To enhance our spring mood we are sharing our lemon and ginger risotto recipe 😋 However we would like to underline how oranges, mandarins and lemons make for great all year long risottos!

By the way, this will be our Easter risotto 😜

galleria Subalpina

If the number of gallerias could define the cultural level of a city and its flair for art, no doubt Turin would always make the top of the list!

Galleria Subalpina in Piazza Castello

April in Turin

April always makes a great month to visit Turin: the days are longer and the weather is generous enough to allow you to eat out in the many cozy piazzas and pedestrian streets.

Besides our humongous Easter chocolate eggs, and the endless list of artisan chocolate makers, you should try before the chocolate season ends, there are also other events that make April a good month to visit Torino.

Most events of 2019 happen after Easter. So, if you are planning a visit in the first 3 weeks of April check our suggestions here.

If you tango: just imagine what an experience it is to dance inside the Venaria Royal Palace during the Tango days on April 19th-21st

The Royal Palace of Venaria is Turin's Versailles

green risotto

March means green and Saint Paddy's Day 💚 so we are sharing with you one of green rice based dishes: our staple risotto with peas and mint 🙆 

Easy and healthy, it will be feasible virtually everywhere you are in the world, as long as you have access to any kind of white rice, frozen or fresh peas and fresh mint leaves. 

In order to preserve the fresh aroma of the mint and the peas flavor, we recommend you use white wine but, in case you happen to have it handy, a mild white beer will do too... and if worse comes to worse, you can always omit it for a lighter flavor.

Galleria Umberto I

Turin is magic in many ways but first and foremost in our décor 😎 in fact, we have not only one beautiful Art Nouveau galleria but three!!

Today we are sharing the story of Galleria Umbero I in the Porta Palazzo market area.

Turin University

the historic university building from the 1700

Back in the 2006, a Winter Olympic Games TV ad said 'the whole world comes to Turin', and indeed many famous people have passed through Turin much earlier than 2006, fell in love with our city, chose it to spend a part of their lives and even study here!

Besides an airport - look up for TRN - Turin also has one of the oldest Italian, and of the world, universities!!

Founded in 1404, the current university structure, including the labs, the classrooms and all the offices are spread out from the 1700 Rectorate building, in downtown Via Po, to many mini campuses that reach out as far the Turin's suburb.

Unlike North American and British universities, Turin doesn't have just one whole area devoted to the university, because this one has grown over the centuries following the city's life and it urban developments.
Each school or college has its own library, located in its own building or mini campus; the university dorms are also spread out all over Turin to be located nearby the different schools or colleges.

Generally speaking, when referring to the University of Turin, the locals mean 2 institutions: the Liberal Arts School, located near Mole Antonelliana and Via Po and Politecnico where the Engineering and Architecture Schools have their administration.

aphrodisiac risotto

For this Valentine's Day we are sharing one of our risotto recipes: THE aphrodisiac risotto to help you friends get in the right mood 😉

Many of you already know about the benefits of ginger, a powerful root that has been used for centuries in China.
Being related to cardamom and turmeric, ginger has anti-inflammatory properties that make it an ideal natural remedy for nausea (during pregnancy and chemotherapy too), cold, flu and help digestion, thus stimulating appetite... 

It is also very good for people who regularly exercise because it reduces muscle pain. On top, it helps lowering blood sugars - making it a great anti-diabetic - and cholesterol, it is one of the oldest pain reliefs and it helps burning fats too!

According to some studies ginger protects the brain from Alzheimer and the body from infections.

pumpkin risotto

Despite all the differences that divide us, sometimes we are forcibly brought together by an external common circumstance like these days: the extreme cold weather!

As many areas of the world are going through some exceptionally freezing temperatures, we can only think about one thing to keep ourselves warm and happy:

Pumpkin Risotto 

with red ale ... optional

topped with (optional) crunchy bacon bites... 

  

our sweet emergency kit

During college, or studying abroad, or working far from home, raise up your hand, amici, if you haven't received at least one care package sent by a thoughtful relative or friend!

How soothing it was, wasn't it?

Well, as for us, besides being the happy recipients of a very much appreciated basic necessities bag put together by Chiara of Latteria Bera we were also awarded a sweet emergency kit 🙆

foodies' basic necessities

Some weeks ago we talked to you about Chiara and her nonna's dairy, Latteria Bera founded in Turin in 1958.

Now you may think that any dairy is the same and all you can get is just dairy based products. Sure, they may differ locally, but it's always cheese, butter, milk, eggs and yogurt, and that's basically it.

Well, that's not the case with this historic latteria that is more to be considered like a gourmet dairy and a small production specialty shop 😎 

Today we would like to share with you what Chiara's basic necessities bag contained for us... just in case you needed some culinary shopping ideas when in Turin 😉