And then one day it became clear - pasta is the ultimate camp food. I was 18 and living in Florence for the summer while taking a film making program through NYU. At that moment however school was a distant thought as I struggled to fit in among the shaggy, bohemian young Italians camped riverside at a music festival outside of town. When they weren't smoking hash the cool kids were getting busy with huge pots of water, boiling and straining pasta. My American mind was reeling - pasta and camping? I was used to hot dogs, canned beans, maybe a quesadilla. That day the world shifted a little bit. Pasta stepped into the great outdoors.
Read morepea party
I need not sing to you the praises of the pea. Even frozen and trapped in little white bags from the freezer section they are damn good. But fresh peas are magic. They are also rare, fleeting, and require a good deal of labor to get the goods out. It's best to start the shucking when there is at least one person sitting around your living room, reading a book, sipping a cocktail or picking their fingernails. Dump the pods out on the counter, moan a little, and see what they do. Nine out of ten jump in and rock it out with you. So buy a bag and get into it.
Read more