It Happened in Tuscany
Page 25
“I’m not an apparition.”
She pulled back her hand. “Yes, you are.”
“Sophie, I want to be with you. Always. It doesn’t have to be in Chicago. We could live outside the city, and I’ll commute. I’ll commute each week by plane if the entire state is off-limits.
“I decided—”
He pressed his fingertips against her lips. “Shh. Please wait. I have only a little more to say, and it will be your turn.”
“You don’t have to do this, Sophie, but the winery will hire you, too, if you want. They’re going to need new marketing and event planning people. They love you.”
“Even Isabella?”
He laughed. “Isabella’s father and I will persuade her.”
Sophie followed the planes of his face with her fingers.
Will did it. He changed the course of my life.
Sophie touched her lips against his. “I decided before I saw you, it’s time for me to go home. Home to Chicago. I’m going there with you.”
Acknowledgments
The Army 10th Mountain Division, the soldiers who fought on skis in World War II, has held my interest for years. Those of us who love the Colorado ski resorts can thank a few of these soldiers for creating, nurturing, and expanding the Rocky Mountain ski industry. My research for this novel included materials available on the Internet, books, articles, and in the stellar Western History Collection on the 10th Mountain Division in the Denver Public Library. The Allied victory in Italy would not have occurred when it did without the battles fought and won by the 10th Mountain Division soldiers.
It Happened in Tuscany is a work of fiction and the product of my imagination. Where real-life places and historical figures appear in this novel, the situations, incidents, and dialogues concerning those places and persons are fictional or are used fictitiously and are not intended to change the entirely fictional nature of this book. My imagination took Will Mills out of the Apennine Mountains and along the route through Italy where my story occurs.
My heartfelt thanks go to you, my readers, who make this possible. You have delighted me with your continued interest in my debut novel, To Tuscany with Love. I sincerely appreciate and am touched by and grateful for your excitement about and interest in It Happened in Tuscany.
Writers love reviews and ratings—they are how we spread the news about our work. Thank you for considering sharing good thoughts about my novel with your bookseller, or reviewing or rating my book on the online site where you purchased it, or on Goodreads.
My special thanks to Nick Zelinger, who created the beautiful, mysterious cover that raises a question about the soldier on skis as well as the lovely interior that transports us to Tuscany. My sincere gratitude to Michael Rudeen, copy editor, who not only kept me grammatical but wisely asked more questions and offered more comments than that function usually would dictate.
I sincerely thank the gracious, charming, and hospitable people of Tuscany for their warmth and kindness. Tuscany is my favorite place to visit, and I will return often.
I offer all of my friends and family, as well as those who watch and applaud from the next life, my immense gratitude for their love and constant support. I especially thank Brandon, Michelle, Nicolas, Gianna, Justin, Rachel, Avery, Nathan, Caitlin, Damian, and Courtenay for believing in me and understanding and encouraging me during the highs and lows of a writer’s life.
Most of all, I offer my profound, everlasting gratitude and love to my dear husband, Ray, best friend and soul mate, inexhaustible reader, unwavering cheerleader, and dedicated physician delivering compassionate care to women—including me—on their journey with breast cancer. You are my world.
Gail Mencini is the acclaimed author of It Happened in Tuscany and To Tuscany with Love, a Denver Post bestseller. Gail has received numerous awards for her writing, including winning the 2014 Beverly Hills International Book Award in the Chick-Lit Fiction category for To Tuscany with Love and being named the 2014 Top of the Town Readers’ Choice Author by 5280 Magazine.
Gail grew up in DeWitt, Nebraska, and graduated from Wartburg College with a BA in Accounting and Economics. She earned a master of taxation degree from the University of Denver. Gail began her career as a CPA specializing in tax law, which later transitioned to full-time mother to four boys. A frequent visitor to Tuscany and a homegrown gourmet cook, Gail has toured Italy by car, train, bus, Vespa, and foot. Gail lives in Colorado with her husband, where she loves entertaining her family and friends, traveling, and spending time outdoors. Gail is a breast cancer survivor and a passionate advocate of proactive breast healthcare and is grateful every day for her many blessings.
Visit Gail’s website to find It Happened in Tuscany and To Tuscany with Love companion recipes, reader discussion questions, and book club enhancement ideas. www.GailMencini.com
During my brief journey to Tuscany, I fell in love with the landscape, the people, the food, and the wine. And if you’ve read about my trip to Italy, you know about my experiences in a Tuscan kitchen. After I returned to the U.S., I wanted my home to resonate with the aromas and tastes of food that reminded me of the dishes that I loved in Italy.
Sophie’s Simple Italian is a collection of recipes my Italian friends taught me that are easy to prepare. They have a limited number of ingredients, and yet capture the tastes I quickly came to love in Tuscany.
You can find more of my recipes by visiting www.GailMencini.com.
Salute!
Sophie
Arugula and Speck Salad
Serves 2
This fresh salad is one of my favorites from Tuscany. Arugula is listed on Italian menus as “rucola” or “rocket.” In Italy, this salad is made with bresaola, an air-dried, salted beef. I adopted my recipe to use speck, a smoked, aged ham, which I find to be more readily available.
3 cups arugula
1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 1/2 teaspoon white balsamic vinegar
1 pinch of kosher salt
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, preferably
Parmigiano-Reggiano, shaved (see notes)
3/4 ounces speck, which is about
2 thinly-sliced pieces (see notes)
Wash the arugula and spin it dry in a salad spinner or blot it dry with paper towels. Cut the speck into strips that are 2 inches long and 1/4 inch wide. Mix the olive oil, white balsamic vinegar, and salt together.
Shortly before serving, toss the arugula with the dressing. Stir the speck matchsticks into the salad, and then gently fold in the shaved Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.
If you usually add freshly ground black pepper to your salads, I suggest you taste it first—the arugula can be quite peppery!
Notes:
If you are shaving the Parmesan yourself by hand, it is easier if you start with a 2- or 3-ounce chunk of cheese from which you shave off 1 ounce. My shavings, using a Y-shaped potato peeler, are irregularly-sized, thin curls approximating 1/2 inch wide and 1 inch long.
I buy speck in 3-ounce packages, which hold about 9 slices. I use 2 slices for this salad and serve the remainder with melon for an Italian breakfast or antipasto.
Spaghetti Carbonara
Serves 4
Spaghetti carbonara is a Roman dish. I wanted to learn how to make carbonara because it reminds me of Will. One story about its origin is that it was created during WWII when American troops advanced north through Italy. The American soldiers brought supplies of eggs and bacon to Rome. They asked the Italians to make these ingredients into a sauce. The key to a successful carbonara is to have your ingredients prepared and organized and to move quickly.
1 pound dry spaghetti
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces pancetta, cut into 1/4 inch slices
3 large egg yolks, in separate small dishes
5 tablespoons Pecorino Romano cheese, freshly grated
5 tablespoons Parmesan cheese,
preferably Parmigiano-Reggiano, freshly grated
Freshly ground pepper
Salt
Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Grate the Pecorino Romano and Parmesan cheese, preferably using the rough, raspy side of a box grater. Combine the two kinds of cheese and set aside for later.
Trim the large pockets of fat off the pancetta and discard. Chop the trimmed meat into a 1/4 inch dice. Combine the olive oil and diced pancetta in a skillet large enough to later hold the cooked spaghetti, and sauté over medium heat until the pancetta is mostly crisp, but not burnt. Remove the pancetta and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate. You should have no more than 2 tablespoons of fat remaining in the skillet. Spoon off and discard the excess fat, if any. Remove the skillet from the heat.
Cook the spaghetti for 2 minutes less than the package directions, reserving 1 1/2 cups of the cooking water. The spaghetti should be slightly less cooked than al dente. Return the skillet to medium heat.
Working quickly, add the drained pasta and reserved pasta water to the skillet. Turn the heat to low and use tongs to toss the pasta until it is heated through and cooked to al dente. Add the reserved pancetta to the pasta and mix.
Remove the skillet from the heat. Quickly add the yolks, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add the cheese to the pasta and toss vigorously. Add freshly ground pepper and salt to taste. Serve immediately.
Amaretti Cookies
Makes 24 - 30 Cookies
These small cookies are crunchy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. I love them with a cup of espresso! The cookies get crunchier each day and, whether served alongside or crumbled on top, can turn a sliced pear or cup of gelato into an elegant dessert.
2 1/2 cups of almond flour
1 1/4 cup of superfine sugar, also called baker’s sugar
3 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of almond extract
Parchment paper
Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Pulse the almond flour and sugar together in a food processor. (See note below.) Mix in the vanilla and almond extracts by pulsing for a few seconds. Add one egg white at a time and pulse between each addition to mix the eggs into the dough. Process the dough after the last egg has been added, stopping when it is smooth.
Wet your hands with water. Form the cookies by lightly rolling and patting teaspoon-sized amounts of dough between your damp hands, creating a smooth ball. Place the balls on your parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 300°F for 22 – 24 minutes, or until the tops are starting to turn golden brown at the edges. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container once they are cool.
Note:
If you don’t have a food processor, you can make this dough using a spoon. It will be easier, however, if you use an electric mixer or food processor to add in the egg whites.