ExperiencePlus!
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Renaissance Cuisine in France and Italy
Renaissance Cuisine in France and Italy Italy’s Tuscany and France’s Loire Valley don’t have much in common as far as geography or climate are concerned, but they share a special place in the history of the European Renaissance. From Florence,… Read full article
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Mushroom Soup or Zuppa di Funghi or Soupe aux Champignons
Mushroom Soup or Zuppa di Funghi or Soupe aux Champignons As Paola says in her accompanying article on the tenuous connections between Tuscany and the Loire Valley, the two regions are quite different. But one thing they do have in… Read full article
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The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century by Thomas L. Friedman
The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century by Thomas L. Friedman (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005) When I began graduate school in geography at the University of Oregon in the early 1970s some of the… Read full article
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Mussels in ‘Sauce Poulette’
Mussels in ‘Sauce Poulette’ Josette Smyrl, our French Hotel Coordinator, has sent me this recipe from her home in Provence. She had just prepared this dish for some friends, so she gladly passed it on to me to share with… Read full article
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Bagna Cauda (“Hot Bath”) – A Garlic and Anchovy Sauce
Bagna Cauda ("Hot Bath") – A Garlic and Anchovy Sauce Bagna Cauda, which literally translates as "hot bath", is a unique specialty of the Piedmont region often eaten with white truffles. According to Matt Kramer in A Passion for Piedmont,… Read full article
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A Passion for Piedmont: Italy’s Most Glorious Regional Table by Matt Kramer (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1997)
A Passion for Piedmont: Italy’s Most Glorious Regional Table by Matt Kramer (New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1997) With the winter Olympics coming up in February 2006 in Italy’s Piedmont region we thought we might suggest some reading… Read full article
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Peter Pezzelli, Home to Italy (New York: Kensington Books, 2004)
Peter Pezzelli, Home to Italy (New York: Kensington Books, 2004) Peter Pezzelli’s first novel is a delightful tale of loss and grieving, of personal tragedy and of rebirth. A simple, predictable story becomes more complex as it develops. It is… Read full article
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Latin American Caramel Flan
Latin American Caramel Flan Flan is a traditional desert from Mexico and is popular all over South and Central America. It is an excellent finish for a spicy dinner. Emma Wells and Corey Odell made this recipe for the ExperiencePlus!… Read full article
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Al Young, Shifting Gears, My Global Bike Odyssey
When the history of American bicycle touring is written it will surely include the story of Frank A. Elwell of Portland, Maine who was the nation’s first bicycle tour organizer. He began “high-wheel” tours in New England and Quebec in… Read full article
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Learning to See
Learning to See Whether pedaling through the countryside on a bicycle or walking a trail in a natural area, you can enrich your experience by practicing these simple principles: Take frequent breaks to observe your surroundings. I mean,… Read full article
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Read Any Good Books Lately?
Read Any Good Books Lately? We usually try to make sure our book reviews have at least something to do with cycling, or hiking, or the places we visit and their history. But that’s not all we read! At a… Read full article
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Heft on Wheels: A Field Guide to Doing a 180 by Mike Magnuson
Heft on Wheels: A Field Guide to Doing a 180 by Mike Magnuson Heft on Wheels makes no secret of its subject matter. On the front, we have a photo of author Mike Magnuson, naked, obese and miserable riding his… Read full article
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Roast Pork, Porchetta Style
Roast Pork, Porchetta Style Joeann Gutowski of the Fort Collins office shares a recipe for roast pork, porchetta style. In Italy, porchetta (por-KET-ta) is prepared as a whole pig stuffed with garlic and herbs and roasted over a wood fire.… Read full article
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Skordalia (Garlic Spread)
Skordalia (Garlic Spread) Greek tour leader Patricia Hajifotiou shared her recipe for Skordalia with Paola a while back, and now she’s passing it on to the rest of us. Paola says that the Greeks traditionally serve this tasty and… Read full article
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Lentil salad with bell peppers and vinaigrette
Lentil salad with bell peppers and vinaigrette Experienced hiker Julie Horton, Operations Manager at ExperiencePlus!, finally shares her recipe for one of her favorite trail lunches. Lentil salad with bell peppers and vinaigrette is both simple and delicious. Served on… Read full article
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Giving Good Weight: Unmasking Food Writer John McPhee
Giving Good Weight: Unmasking Food Writer John McPhee My all time favorite food essayist is John McPhee. This may come as a surprise, mainly because McPhee writes about so many things (his interests are even more eclectic than mine, it… Read full article
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Angela’s Ciambella or “the Farm Dessert”
Angela’s Ciambella or "the Farm Dessert" A group of cyclists who stopped for lunch at our Italian headquarters on their way from Venice to Florence in mid-May so enjoyed this cake that my cousin Angela makes for all the groups… Read full article
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An Interview with Mountain Bike Legend Joe Breeze
An Interview with Mountain Bike Legend Joe Breeze Mountain bike pioneer Joe Breeze recently came through Fort Collins to promote the more utilitarian side of cycling. In a heavily attended presentation on “Healthy Transportation Choices Now” at the Fort Collins… Read full article