Keep Calm and Carry On: The Diary of Foodie and Gourmet

This past Saturday, I spent the evening with my parents at the Metropolitan Opera house, where we saw the Met's new and modern production of Mozart's classic comedy: "Le Nozze di Figaro" (The Marriage of Figaro). The beautiful Metropolitan Opera House The masses congregating around the central fountain After having an early dinner, we slowly strolled towards the opera house. Once we arrived at Lincoln Center, my parents and I people watched for a bit, and took pictures in front of the opera house. It was a gorgeous summer-like evening, so my dad and I decided to indulge a bit with some pre-opera chocolate gelato! The gelato was delicious and really hit the spot! For those who may not be familiar with the story of "Le Nozze di Figaro," here is a plot summary, courtesy Wikipedia: " The Marriage of Figaro" continues the plot of "The Barber of Seville," several years later, and recounts a single "day of madness"

A few weeks ago, my mother and I went to see The Trip to Italy  starring British comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon. We were excited to see this movie for many reasons. A) we are both avid foodies, B) we love British comedy (and I have a particular soft spot for Rob Brydon), and C) we watched the first film back in 2010. Before I jump into my thoughts regarding The Trip to Italy , let's back track and talk about the first film, which is simply titled: The Trip. To quote Wikipedia: " The Trip is a 2010 British television sitcom series directed by Michael Winterbottom, starring Steven Coogan and Rob Brydon as fictionalized versions of themselves on a restaurant tour of Northern England." Although The Trip  aired as a TV series in the UK, in the USA, is was released as a feature film. (Click here for the trailer.) In The Trip, Coogan and Brydon visit and dine at: The Inn at Whitewell (Lancashire), L'Enclume (Cumbria), Holbeck Ghyll (Cumbria), Hipping Hall (

Several weeks ago, my parents were invited to a small get together with friends. Whilst our friends did the cooking, my mother was asked to provide dessert. As always, she outdid herself and made several mouthwatering goodies: flan, bourbon balls, and tiramisu. I was home that weekend and longingly watched as mom assembled a delicious, easy, no bake dessert that I hadn't seen before.  I love tiramisu, but this was something different --- a strawberry tiramisu. Elegant, delicious, decadent, fruity, and SIMPLE TO MAKE. The perfect dessert. Pleasing to both the eyes and stomach. I was intrigued and dying to try to dessert! Thankfully, when my parents came home, they managed to save me some and I greedily devoured my tiramisu. It was so yummy! This past weekend, we had several friends over for dinner, so my mom decided that we would make this dessert together. I was very excited and eager to learn! (Also, I was very eager to devour this treat again). I was pleasantly surprised