Ten (and a half) years of blogging

It's come to my attention recently that I missed the 10 year anniversary of this blog. So much for the resolution to keep it updated with original content and being strict about sticking to a publishing schedule after a 2-year slump!

On January 24, 2009 I published my first post. It's been a decade of huge change and I feel I owe much of that life overhaul to this blog, Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino.

Why I began a blog about Italian food and lifestyle

I started this blog because I felt I owed it to my son. He was going to grow up in a single-parent family with an Italian mom, the least I could do was keep a record of all the great dishes my nonna and my mother made for me (both women raised their daughters as single moms).
After starting, and becoming obsessively consistent with my blog writing, I soon understood that the recipes were a bonus, what readers were most interested in were the personal stories, the intimate reflections, the journal entries.
I was mildly intimidated by the technology and, as I expanded my professional engagements, worried about the time sink. But I felt the urge to write, it was––in a moment of deep professional change––the best therapy I could ask for.

My first post was how a bowl of Minestrone saved my psyche after a demanding rainy Sunday. For the first two years, I blogged twice to three times a week and had a blast. I wrote mostly posts that revolved around the sensorial or emotional allure a certain dish or food gave me, these posts almost always ended with a recipe. Later I slowed down to one blog post per week, then I started linking to blog posts and articles published on other platforms, like The American and Casa Mia. Now I'm down to two posts per month. If any.

From that very first entry, to the present, I have written 470 posts. Some were hugely popular, others nobody read. Some I changed the title to (but still kept the crazy URL), and some I've removed altogether. Overall, the engagement––that initially skyrocketed over the course of only a few months, and that has somewhat endured despite my hiccupping entries––has been mind blowing.

The posts my readers loved the most on Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino were:

• Carbonara recipe (48 comments, 5,839 page views)
• Ossa dei Morti recipe (45 comments, 6,221 page views)
• Arrosticini (40 comments, 8,046 page views)
• Gluten-free Rome (35 comments, 55,422 page views)
• Italian fish and seafood names, translated (35 comments, with whopping 107,669 page views)
• Italian superstition (33 comments, 23,229 page views)
• Parmigiana di Melanzane recipe (30 comments, 27,540 page views)
• Gnocchi from scratch recipe (30 comments, 10,673 page views)
• La pasta! (29 comments, 54,661 page views)
• Orecchiette alle cime di rapa recipe (28 comments, 36,112 page views)
• Frico, soft and brittle – recipe (13 comments, 21,118 page views)

If you look at the posts listed above, what's interesting, is how over time page views grew, compared to the number of comments, which intead slowly dwindled. In the past readers not only commented but many wrote long answers that resembled letters, or posts themselves. That's not counting spam comments, often in other languages, and linking to some form of product or service...
This was all happening before there were so many different social media outlets like Facebook where the comments turned into a virtual room where people opened conversations and sometimes actual debates.

Blogging's Changed

Life, new job opportunities, a growing child and a million other reasons account for why I slowed down my blogging, and thus engagement. But I feel I should also take into account the fact that blogging, in itself, has changed.

Now with Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Pinterest, it's our job to engage and grow our audience on all platforms, which personally is a big challenge. Podcasts and videos have also replaced the longform written word.

Many bloggers have assistants(often virtual) to help with posting, photography and video, content development, answering emails, newsletter compiling and other chores. But for most food and lifestyle bloggers, it's still a single person hobby.

As for me, my ten (and a half) year-old blog about the Italian food and lifestyle continues to be a place where I love to engage with my readers. Thank you for joining me over the years! I'm grateful you're still here, even though I've not been consistent.

Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino is still my favorite way to communicate with you.

If you feel the same, please leave a comment letting me know what topics you'd like me to write about; what recipes you'd like to see here; and how you feel about blogging and blog-reading ten years after first landing on this site. I'd love to hear from you. Grazie!

Abruzzo featured on AmexEssentials Weekend Guide

When American Express Essentials magazine approached me to write about a lesser known place in Italy, capturing the spirit of the region with tips that would appeal to a wide range of interests, I happily suggested featuring Abruzzo, a place I hold very dear in my heart.

I've mentioned Abruzzo in many posts on this blog. 

I shared a photo essay on my first (of many) weekend escape to Abruzzo; 

I shared an account of the chilling night of the earthquake; 

I added a 2009 diary from set entry; 

I listed all the cheese I ate while filming my TV show in Abruzzo; 

I shared a recipe for a seafood dish called scapece di Vasto; 

I have gone on and on, waxing poetic and how to make arrosticini; 

I shared my discovery of vino cotto, cooked wine must.

Abruzzo is where I discovered that size does not matter. Where I celebrate all my birthdays. The place where my son and I unplug and spend long moments hypnotized by the crackling fireplace, enjoying the silence and restoring importance to the little things. Abruzzo is the place where I have met some of my dearest friends. 

It's a special place, and I was happy to "give back" and show gratitude for all that it has given me, by mentioning some of my favorite things about it in a widely read magazine.

The link to the article is here: Weekend Getaway Guide: Abruzzo, Italy

I hope you enjoy reading it.

Expat Writers Book and App Fair

It's happening in Rome, Saturday May 12 at 3pm! Hosting this great event are the delightful The Beehive Hotel and Michelle Fabio.

The program will be featuring expat writers in Italy of books, e-books and iPhone apps. This is a great opportunity to meet and chat with expat writers in the heart of Rome on what we hope will be a gorgeous spring day!

Drinks and snacks will be available for purchase.

The event will take place in the garden of The Beehive Hotel conveniently located near Rome's Termini train station, closest Metro stops Termini or Castro Pretorio.

The current list of writers is as follows:

Terry Bhola (Searching for Wild Asparagus in Umbria)
Flaminia Chapman (Rome Insider's Guide app)
Mary Jane Cryan (Etruria: Travel, History & Itineraries in Central Italy)
Erica Firpo (Rome Select)
Arlene Gibbs (The Rebirth of Mrs. Tracey Higgins; Jumping the Broom)
Linda Lappin (The Etruscan)
Mark Leslie (in absentia) (Beyond the Pasta)
Francesca Maggi (Burnt by the Tuscan Sun)
Gillian McGuire (Rome for Expats app)
Katie Parla (Rome for Foodies app and National Geographic Walking Rome)
Sara Rosso (How to Order an Italian Coffee in Italy; The Unofficial Guide to Nutella)
Pamela Sheldon Johns (Cucina Povera: Tuscan Peasant Cooking)
Barbara Zaragoza (in absentia) (The Espresso Break)
Eleonora Baldwin (Frommer's Rome Day by Day, 3rd Edition; Holiday Goddess Handbag Guide)

During the event we'll be raffling copies of books, promo codes to Apps, and the chance to win a lunch on May 19th with a creative writing instructor at a private home in Vetralla (a lovely town about an hour north of Rome). This is an exclusive chance for anyone interested in writing to enjoy local food specialties, and meet & exchange ideas with Teresa Cutler-Broyles, a published author and instructor of Creative Writing at the University of New Mexico.

I will be there talking about my experience in writing for major corporate editorial proprietors, focusing on the differences with smaller, independent publishing companies.

I look forward to seeing everyone there, finally meeting in person authors and friends I've only interacted with via web!

For details and RSVP - go HERE.

Writing and Snacking in Rome

Image © Raimund Kutter

Though most of my work is published on the web, I'm an old school pen-and-ink gal. I have a callus on the pen-rubbing side of my middle finger. I like to scribble and keep notes in a bulging, dog-eared Moleskine notebook. I also have a passion for sending handwritten postcards. Remember those?

When it comes to work, I hardly ever compose my stories directly on my laptop. Instead, I almost always start with a ballpoint outline. Besides the comfort of the seating and folklore in the faces, it's the nosh that most galvanizes the drafting...

Continue Reading for a lits of places where I love to write and eat ➔

Winter pasta sampler

Chilly weather is the Italian invitation for starch-dependent menus. Though they're consumed with abandon year-round, winter gives carbs an even bigger welcome mat.
Some pasta dishes are particularly well suited to the colder months, most not necessarily dependent on seasonal ingredients. They include hearty grain and vegetable soups, richly dressed ragùs, and the best of all gourmet comfort foods, risotto.

Here are three of my favorite stalwart winter primi piatti, with a little bit of history and recipes.
Continue reading ➔

Where to find Mexican food in Rome

Mexican food regularly disappoints in the tragic Rome dining scene. For the most part, the quality of the Eternal City's south-of-the-border cuisine is an insult, leading so many of us to wonder why.

If I can manage to make great guacamole at home, why can't a Mexican restaurant do the same?

In my endless hunt for a decent burrito, I've endured mediocre mole and detestably microwaved enchiladas, not to mention undistinguished pozole, chiles rellenos, and gorditas. And properly topped tlayuda? Not a chance.

Continue reading The American in Italia Magazine

New freelance writing gig

«By experiencing a place with the help of a local, it's easier and more exciting to learn about the culture and habits of a community.»

Spotted by Locals is a series of blogs–and also downloadable city guides and iPhone apps–with updated tips by handpicked local bloggers in 33 European cities.

I contribute my insider local knowledge as the newest ROME Spotter on the team.

To read my latest articles on the Rome Spotted by Locals cityblog CLICK HERE