in the kitchen: zuppa toscana

As many of you know, I used to work at the Garden of Olives…you know, that restaurant that everyone in the world loves and loves, with all the breadsticks you can eat, until you turn into a giant, garlic, carb monster drowning in alfredo sauce.

Anyways, here’s the thing about this place.  I worked there for five years. five. long. years, but I made a good money and I got to work with my roommate and it wasn’t all terrible, but a lot of it was, except for the good parts.  The marriage proposals from the cooks are not included in the good parts, just for the record.  Also, every horrible Saturday that the rest of our friends spent at the beach, while we slaved away for 13 hours inside –BAD PART.

I may need therapy.

The thing this, I still enjoy the food, it’s good fake,  Italian food, but I can not, I repeat, I can not eat the food there.  It sends me into a state of nostalgia and not in the best way.  The smells, the music, the servers, the people asking for more, more, more, more, more…. ahhh!!!

Back to the food, it’s tasty and I often think about eating it, as long as it is not in the restaurant. I mean it, I would eat the food in a train or in the rain, in a box or… anywhere except there.  My favorite soup was the Zuppa Toscana, and I made this recipe last night.  Delicious. Scrumptious.  Divine. 

If I close my eyes while eating it, I almost can hear the music and smell the garlic in the air, and hear my server asking if I would like freshly grated….umm, no.  NO. NO. 

I’m just going to eat it with my eyes open, but you can close your eyes if you like.  Eyes open or closed, it’s lovely.  Make it.

PS.  The bowl was super hot when I warmed it up for lunch, hence the dishtowel around it.