You are What You Eat- A Meme

The Top 10 Foodstuffs I Cannot Live Without

Alan tagged me for this Meme and I have to say I have been thinking quite a bit about food lately since I've decided to put myself on a low-carb diet. The South Beach Diet is a no-carb for 2 weeks, shock your body diet but I had to modify it since I missed fruits and vegetables too much. Surprisingly I am doing fine without pasta, rice and potatoes.

10-SALT/SOY SAUCE
Love it even though I have high blood pressure. Just a tiny sprinkling/dash will do. (Alan I'm still hoarding the special Hawaiian salt you sent me.) Can you say salt crusted red snapper without drooling?

9-PEPPER
Freshly cracked on meats and with a squeeze of fresh lemon is simplicity at its best.

8-TEA
When it's cold outside I have to have my Twinnings English or Irish Breakfast tea with a dash of honey or a nice cookie/biscuit. It makes my morning and afternoon and evening.

7-SPICES/HERBS
There is no way I can cook without garlic, onions, chili, thyme, rosemary, cilantro and I think it's safe for me to say that I can't eat well without them either.

6-PANCETTA/GUANCIALE
This cured meat is like bacon but not smoked. In the kitchen it is an invaluable to add richness and flavor to soups and stews. I saute a few cubes of pancetta (from the belly area of the pig) and guanciale (sweeter and from the cheek/jaw area of the pig) before make bean soups. The aroma they impart is simply delectable and cooks up much faster than a ham hock.

5-SHELLFISH
If I did not have a run of high cholesterol in my family I could eat clams, mussels, crab, lobster, prawns, scampi, crayfish, mantis shrimp, until the cows come home or until my wallet comes up empty.

4-MILK
2% to be exact. I need it in my tea and coffee. No if's and or but's. Everyone in Italy drinks "cafe' normale" which is an espresso shot and after 10 months I still can't handle it.

3-CHEESE
I am stealing this from Alan. Even when I was a kid I loved cheese. My dad really liked blue cheese when I was growing up and I learned to like cheddar by tasting it at a neighbors house. Then when I moved to the U.S. I began to really experiment. My sisters will attest to the time I opened up a batch of Limburger in the car and they all demanded I throw it out before I even left the grocery store parking lot.

2-SALAD
Part of me think I would just die and wither if I could not have a salad. The pungent greens that are common here are simply delicious, arugula, chicory, radicchio, and lamb's lettuce or mache are very popular here. Give me some vinaigrette and a giant fork and stand back.

1-FRUITS
I cannot go a day without a bit of fruit and it really does not matter what they are. It's winter now in Italy, cold and frigid especially in Torino. I find myself eating a ton of mandarin oranges, pineapple (though from Chile), lychees (from Madagascar) and persimmons (local and in season).

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