Colomba di Pasqua
- At March 29, 2021
- By Zia Lucy
- In lifestyle in Positano, Positano
- 0
A Special Easter Pastry
Colomba di Pasqua, literally translated as Easter Dove, is a traditional Italian dessert we eat at Easter. We love to call it the Sister of Panettone as their recipes are similar. The classic recipe is filled with candied fruit, which on the Amalfi Coast is mostly candied orange zest, and studded with almonds and sugar pearls. During the centuries its recipe has changed a lot and many are the legends surrounding this sweet.
Origins
All the legends start in Northern Italy so we all agree that Colomba is a typical Northern Italian dessert.
People from southern Italy won’t complain as we are very competitive about pastries and we have invented the Easter Pastiera which is a must to have on our tables! But, let’s talk about the legends…
The Battle of Legnano: in 1176, during a battle between the Lombardy and the Holy Roman Empire, the leader of the Lombard League saw two doves flying and he interpreted it as a sign of victory. He later ordered the cooks to prepare a dove-shaped bread with Yeats, Flour and Eggs.
The Legend of King Alboino: during 572 BC, King Alboino of the Lombards finally entered in Pavia, after years of siege and this happened three days before Easter. A baker offered the King a dessert with a shape of dove. According to the legend, the King liked this pastry so much to promise the peace.
Queen Teodolina and the Irish Abbot: this legend talks about a group of pilgrims and the Irish Abbot “San Colombano” who arrived in Lombardy in 612 BC. The King and the Queen offered to pilgrims a delicious meal full of meat but San Colombano declined the invitation as it was time of Lent. In change, San Colombano turned the meal into a Dove shaped bread.
How Colomba became popular all over Italy
The Dessert we know nowadays is recent and its recipe is completely different from the original which is similar to bread or more simple in the ingredients.
Angelo Motta, a baker from Milan, in 1930’s had the great idea of making the Colomba the dessert that everybody should have eaten at Easter. As He was already popular for a Christmas dessert, called Panettone, He decided to use the same recipe but He changed its shape. So, Colomba was spread all over Italy by the most popular Italian Brand for Industrial Bakery.
Ingredients and preparation
I love eating Easter Desserts but I am terrible in cooking them. That’s the reason why I asked Giosuè from Bar Paradise in Positano to show me how He makes the Colomba, and I also made a video.
The ingredients are simple but its preparation is complex and it requires almost 2 days.
The base ingredient is sourdough which rises for 4 hours.
Later, the dough is mixed with ingredients such as sugar, butter and eggs and rests for 12-15 hours.
Then the dough is mixed with other ingredients and is left to rise for about 2 hours.
After this long time, the pastry chef creates the shape of a dove and leaves it to rise for another 5 hours, adds a glaze and bakes it. After baking, the Colomba cools upside down and finally it’s ready to eat!
There are different varieties of our Colomba di Pasqua. My favourite one is the one with white chocolate and pistachio glaze.
Look at my video:
Vali Myers and her magic world of femininity
- At November 16, 2020
- By Zia Lucy
- In lifestyle in Positano, Positano
- 0
Vali Myers, a unique character of the authentic Amalfi Coast lifestyle in the 60s.
Vali Myers was not only an artist who refused a lifestyle scheme imposed by modern society. She represents an inner conception of connections between the femenine world and Mother Nature.
I remember when I was a little girls and I used to watch her on the pier, catching the small boat with a red fish sign which used to bring her at Adolfo’s restaurant. I was fascinated by her tattoos, her long skirts and her beautiful and wild red hair. She was the lady who inspired me for loving art and nature. At that time, lots of artists who created that unique cultural soul of Positano died or had gone. I only had the possibility to see Vali, Nureyev and Zeffirelli walking on the streets of Positano at a time when our beautiful Positano was becoming an international Jet Set place.
Many people at tat time were wondering if She was popular…
I don’t think She cared and for sure we didn’t care. It was important what she represented for us: a free soul, a pagan spirit, a woman who taught us how to deeply connect with Nature.
Who was She?
In 1952, Vali left Paris, together with her companion Rudy Rappold, after a hard period of life. They arrived in Capri but, as it happened with many artists who were looking for a simpler life, they moved to Positano. Here they restored an old wreck sited outside the town centre, and area called Vallone Porto which nowadays is a protected Natural Reserve, unique for its microclimate and flora.
Surrounded by an incredible vegetation, sheep, dogs, frogs and her beloved Foxy (a Fox Vali saved and adopted), Vali and Rudi embraced an ecological lifestyle that anticipates the hippie search of ascetic and ancestral life where man speaks the same language of Nature!
With her eclectic paintings representing the feminine world through a mystic trance, Vali became muse of Francesco Scavullo, Patti Smith and Marianne Faithfull.
Between all, Vali inspired Gianni Menichetti, an important artist for Positano, who still lives in Vallone Porto and protects this hidden corner of Positano:
Gianni first arrived at Vallone Porto when he was 18. Not long after his arrival, Gianni became Vali’s lover and willing slave, and she, his Goddess, mentor and muse. With Vali as his teacher, Gianni learnt fluent English, a wealth of poetry and literature, hundreds of songs, and a charming collection of colloquial Australian sayings:
http://www.giannimenichetti.com
Vali never had kids, She once wrote:
“I use the mythical Madonna figure a lot in my art. The center of life is female – we all come from our mothers. I’ve always drawn women or female spirits. I feel deeply about this – who gives a damn about some guy on a cross? My mother’s creativity was smothered after she married and raised a family, but she was supportive of me – even my father expected me to carry on in her footsteps. I prefer to have no kids but lots of animals.”
and here’s what she wrote about Marianne Faithful:
“Marianne Faithful turned up one day with her boyfriend to see some of my work. I thought, who is this scrawny little guy, so I said to him, what is it you do Micky? How would I know who the bloody hell Mick Jagger was? – I wasn’t interested in Mick Jagger, I was always into Marianne. She was a real fighter.”
For extra info, you can visit the following websites:
https://www.valimyerstrust.com/about-vali-myers/
https://www.rocaille.it/vali-myers-the-witch-of-positano/
Fashion in Positano
- At March 18, 2017
- By Zia Lucy
- In Positano, walking tour
- 0
During my walking tours of Positano I use to stop into small boutiques to show fashion in Positano, the so called Moda Positano.
When you think of centers of fashion, Positano may not be your first choice, but trust me, it should definitely be high on your list. You may want to visit Positano anyway because it is a picturesque cliffside village on the southern Italian Amalfi Coast with a pebble beach and ancient winding streets, but it is also a mecca of boutiques and eateries.
The fashion in Positano, or Moda Positano, is made here by extremely talented tailors and artisan shoemakers who have passed their secrets down through generations. One of the first dressmakers in Positano was my grandmother who also worked for The Fontana Sisters and taught to many people how to make beautiful dresses with natural fabrics. Between all the students who learned the art of sewing I cannot forget Ivan’s grandma, nonna Anna.
Ivan is one of my close friends and his family has a beautiful store in the center of Positano, Via dei Mulini. Nonna Anna started tailoring when she was 15 years old and the art of sewing was continued by her son in law Raffaele (Ivan’s father). Raffaele decided to open a fashion boutique in 1980 and they soon became popular all over Europe.
Nowadays all the family works together and the 80s style is revisited by the beautiful hands of Cristiana, the young designer as well as Ivan’s sister. Ivan and his other sister Ambra work as sellers, they are friendly and love to suggest the dress that better suits you.
I always stop in Via dei Mulini Store to meet my friend Ivan, not only because I love talking with all the family but also for buying their dresses, shirts, skirts, shorts….
Read more»Enchanted Towers of Positano, where dreams come true!
When you arrive to the Amalfi Coast you soon notice some towers.
Besides their historical function (lookout against invasions), some of the towers hide incredible and charming stories to be discovered.
They are also large and complex projects made on men’s dreams and hopes.
In 1909 Gilbert Clavel bought the Torre di Fornillo, inspired by the unique shape of that fortress, and had the idea (considered crazy by local people) to convert it into his private residence, into a place where he could relax and create. Clavel was a little great man, an artist, a writer, a genius who suffered from tuberculosis and had several phisical problems. He chose the Torre di Fornillo to avoid places which for him were considered crowded, for example Capri.
“Everything began with a dream: a man from Switzerland fell in love with a watching tower and decided to create his great escape there!”
After many years and difficulties, his dream was almost complete: a beautiful, mazy building where he met his guests and inspired their poems, art, music. Clavel was the connection between artists such as Prampolini, Depero, Marinetti and Norman Douglas. He was also a good friend of Leonide Massine and Pablo Picasso. He died leaving an unfinished but almost perfect work: La Torre di Fornillo.
Read more»Walking around Positano in April and May
April and May are beautiful months here in Positano.
The weather becomes warmer but not so hot, clothes shops expose their new collections on display and the scent of linen blends with that of wisteria.
Everybody is happy for the beginning of new season and the Sirocco Wind gives to the town a magic atmosphere.
Everytime I guide my guests around Positano, I like bringing them into some neighborhoods where it’s difficult to see lots of tourists and very easy to find local people and interact with them. In this way the tour of Positano is not only a good idea to have an orientation of The town and to discover its history but it also becomes a unique experience. Local people, infact, love talking with tourists and telling them the stories of their lives.
Positano is also full of stairs and some of them are really vertical, but you don’t feel like a local if you don’t walk on (at least) 150 steps. And if you think that the stairs are just shortcuts, you are wrong: every stair hides a beautiful door, a cat on the roof, an incredible view… all good subjects for a great picture.
April is also the month to have the first gelato or the first granita of the season…
… and it’s strictly forbidden to leave Positano without having seen or tasted our lemons
or without having had a special cocktail
Are these good reasons to come to Positano in April/May?
And if you are here, are you ready to walk with me and to discover the beauties of my hometown?
Have a great day and cheers from Positano!
Let’s have a Spritz! What italian drink
- At January 02, 2016
- By Zia Lucy
- In Positano
- 0
Have you ever come to Italy and noticed an orange drink we generally have for our happy hour?
That’s the Spritz, our delicious and fashionable drink which is becoming popular all over the world.
At the end of my walking tours, I suggest my customers to have a spritz and tell them that we love having a drink with friends at 5 pm: it’s a way for us to meet and relax after a long day of working in Positano (and all over Italy) and it’s a good reason for turists to discover our culture.
We have excellent wines and prosecco, we like drinking bellini and rossini but the thing you will notice into the bars, from 5 to 7 pm (and sometimes even later), is that orange drink called Spritz.
But what is it? How can we prepare an italian Spritz?
The origins date back to the 19th century when absburg soldiers in Veneto used to dilute white wine with water due to the high alcohol content. The word they used was “spritzen” which means spray (the water into the glass). A century later, people started changing regular water with Seltz water and its sparkling taste was so good to became popular among the noble classes.
Between the 70s and the 90s new ingredients were added into the drink and nowadays there are different versions of the spritz. My favourite one is with Aperol (alcoholic aperitif made from orange and herbs), and it’s not difficult to make at home: you just have to mix 3 parts of Prosecco, 2 parts of Aperol and a splash of Soda. We love nibble crisps (my favourite are the San Carlo’s with lime and pink pepper), olives and peanuts while drinking and in some bars you can find buffets of food (cous cous, pasta, cheese and cuts, etc) because locals love to have nibs and dinner together for their long lasting “aperitivo”.
Remember that the Spritz contains alcohol so DRINK WISELY.
Walking Tours of Positano in The low season
- At December 29, 2015
- By Zia Lucy
- In Positano
- 0
Don’t think that Positano during the low season is a dead town.
Many shops are closed, that’s true, but the weather is still beautiful, there is a life in town and you can even choose to eat in some restaurants or have a coffee into one of the bars that stay open. The best time to come to Positano during The low season is from October to January 6th.
I love to travel but I generally stay here during the winter (especially because I want to spend Christmas time with my family) and I organize walking tours so you can discover the history of Positano through the eyes of a local guide. You can even have The possibility of meeting “The natives” ( locals who are really relaxed during the low season). The natives love meeting people, talk to tourists and suggest places to visit, where to eat… and sometimes have a Spritz with their new friends.
If you are brave enough you can even swim into the sea like a real native. We love to go to The beach in December!
You can enjoy our low season which looks like the spring at the moment (during the night is colder). Positano is not crowded and it can be The best place to relax. And if you don’t want to relax, you can visit Amalfi, Sorrento and Capri or hike into our beautiful mountains (don’t forget that the famous path of the gods is above Positano).
And if you have a jet-lag and cannot sleep… why don’t you go out to enjoy the best dawns of The year?
Local Dishes: Totani e Patate
- At June 14, 2015
- By Zia Lucy
- In lifestyle in Positano, Positano
- 0
The Amalfi Coast is not only a beautiful place to stay. Its particular micro climate and it’s incredible position between the mountains and the sea had helped locals to create authentic and delicious recipes hand down through the generations.
Every single village of the coast shares its own recipe, even if there are common ingredients into it.
One of the most popular recipes in Positano and the Amalfi Coast is Totani e Patate.
Totani e Patate o “Totari e Patate” is a typical dish in Campania, made of potatoes and squids.
Even if people believe that the calamari (white squids) have a better taste and are more expensive as they’re finer, I prefer eating totani, maybe because I am a resident in Positano and my family used to go out at night to fish these delicious mollusca.
Almost all the restaurants in Positano serve the totani e patate but there are many ways of cooking them. The most popular recipes are from Positano and Praiano.
Praiano is a village nearby Positano and it’s not so far but its recipes change a lot and the way of cooking is different from our way of cooking in Positano.
The mail difference in the totani and patate recipe is the tomato sauce.
Positano style: you generally fry the squidds (cut into strips) into a pan and then cook them with tomato sauce. Add the potatoes cut into large pieces and cook all together. Then add chili peppers and parsley.
Praiano Style: the potatoes in pieces are fried into a pan. Then you can add the squidds cut into stips and fry them all togheter.
It’s hard to tell which is the best recipe. Why don’t you come on the Amalfi Coast and taste both?
Hikes of the Amalfi Coast
- At May 04, 2015
- By Zia Lucy
- In Paths, Positano
- 0
The paths of the Amalfi Coast are incredible places where you can discover local culture and explore the authentic essence of villages such as Positano, Amalfi and so on. Going off the beaten paths and explore the Amalfi Coast in an unique way could be the adventure of a lifetime, an adventure that you will remeber forever.
As a local guide I should tell you that I love all the paths on the Amalfi Coast but there are some foothpaths I love most.
Of course the first on the list is the path of the gods, not only because it’s the most popular but also because it’s the first place where I’ve guided people. I never get tired of this walk and I love reaching the path from Praiano or starting from Bomerano in order to have the best views. I love taking the steps that from Praiano go to the Monastery of Santa Maria a Castro or San Domenico. There are about 1000 steps and it’s a good workout. The monastery was built between the 11th and the 14th century and when it’s open you can admire amazing frescoes which are under restoration. From there you can reach the path of the gods by a small and narrow path, not recommended for those who are scared of heights.
Another incredible path is one side of the Alta Via dei Monti Lattari. People call this walk the path of the 2 provinces as it is situated on the mountains between the Amalfi Coast (province of Salerno) and the Surrentine peninsula (province of Naples). Starting from Positano, the first section of this walk is really challenging as you have to reach Santa Maria del Castello and then Monte Comune, an elevation gain of about 600 metres.
It is a challenging hike but once at Monte Comune you have an incredible view on both the Gulf of Naples and the last side of the Amalfi Coast facing the island of Capri. From Monte Comune you can reach Monte Vico Alvano and from there you can go to Arola where you can eat at Torre Ferano (a restaurant with a very yummy food) or you can walk to Colli di San Pietro where you can get a bus.
One path on the Amalfi Coast that in my opinion is really cultural is the Valle delle Ferriere in Amalfi. During Middle Ages, the village of Amalfi was a great Maritime Republic, famous all around Europe for the production of a luxury paper made of cotton. The valley behind Amalfi was full of Paper Mills which were activated by the power of the River Canneto.
Nowadays it is possible to see the ruins of those papermills while walking on a path surrounded by an incredible nature. Having the possibility to walk all day, you can walk from Amalfi to Pontone along the Mills Valley (lower side) and then to go to Pogerola (upper side). Sometimes I’ve also walked from Pontone to Pogerola where I had a great meal at trattoria Rispoli. Here at Trattoria Rispoli the “sisters” (owners) will delight you with a home atmosphere and good food. From Pogerola you can down to Amalfi by an old muletrack.
When in Amalfi, I also love visiting the paper museum. Here you can learn about our culture as a local guide in the museum shows you the medieval way of producing paper (guide included in the entrance price).
Feel free to ask for infos regarding the paths and enjoy my Amalfi Coast.
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