Come sail away, come sail away ⛵
how you can sail the italian islands with us & a recipe for caponata
Welcome to A standing reservation! Thanks for reserving your table. If you’ve found your way here via pure luck and haven’t already reserved your standing reservation, pencil yourself in the book and we’ll be sure to serve you up something good:
Need to catch up on A standing reservation? Head over to the archive to catch up on what you might have missed.
Record breaking temperatures & life at sea
Why, hello there! We’re back on terraferma (dry land) which means, once again, your standing reservation has been confirmed. As promised, this week is all about life at sea, specifically sailing the Italian islands of Ponza and Palmarola. What an adventure it’s been. It’s hard to package up the words for a trip like this, but I’m determined to bring you on board, whether that’s in person (one day) or through words.
From where I currently sit, in front of the sea, a top the volcanic island of Ischia, I watch the boats anchor in and out of the small cove below. A beach, that is only visited by boats, water taxis, and some brave enough to hike down the rocky terrain (as we did), hosts a small restaurant and a set of stairs to dunk yourself into the sea between naps and twirls of pasta. The boats are arriving into the cove, one by one. Sailboats, catamarans, and even a few small yachts. My thought lingers off to a breeze that whipped through the sail and the one that rocked us gently to sleep. It’s been a week of relentless heat. Record temperatures bake down on Italy like those on the inside of a wood burning oven - one specifically fired for spinning pizzas. But luckily for us, a light breeze and a dip in the sea was all we needed to escape the wave of heat that flooded through mainland Italy.
With our sails up, cruising away from the forno (oven) that is Rome, we settled in to life at sea. With Monte Circeo, the home of Circe, the sorceress in Ulysses’s long journey, in the rearview, we cruised away from the boiling and brewing realities of life on land. Our trusty Captain, Alessandro, guided us to the island of Palmarola where we would spend our first two nights. An uninhibited island with only one bar/restaurant and a single villa, which, just so happens, belongs to the Fendi family. Palmarola is magic. It’s crystal clear blue waters, coveted grottos, coves that pull you in and invite you to shut off the outside world, make you realize why Ulysses was so enamored with this coast of Lazio. Whether it was the beauty of these islands or the deceiving tricks of Circe that called Ulysses to these islands of Ponza and Palmarola, we might never know. Ulysses held a treasure of Lazio so beautiful it feels it could only have been made for a mystical story such as his.
We said our goodbyes to Palmarola, trading in the uninhabited island for the colorful, vibrant, and bustling (in relation to Palmarola) island of Ponza. The first order of business - the fishmonger. Lots of time spent on the boat means dreaming up delicious pastas - isn’t that what you do? No? Just us? We anchored near the port, lowered the dingy, pilled in and sputtered our way to dry land. With sea legs, we bobbed along the cobblestones in search of vongole (clams). The main attraction for that evening’s dinner - pasta e vongole. I pick up a bottle of finocchietti liquor made from wild and foraged fennel - a digestivo for the evening. The heat we’d heard about and felt from time to time on the boat was ten fold on dry land. The sun setting against the facade of the main port’s dwellings, light up the colors of the buildings and intensifying their colors. We’re here now, we say, so a spritz to cool us off with have to do.
Back on the boat, Doctor Emilio, our family friend and doctor, prepares the pasta e vongole. The smell of garlic dancing in hot oil glides through the galley of the boat and sends signals through the port that something good is on its way. The shells hit the sizzling oil and with a shake of the pan they begin to pop open, one by one. The pasta drops into the boiling water in one fell swoop. Cooked to al dente, it then travels into the pan to meet the vongole. Dinner is served, our bellies full, and just a touch of civilization is returned to our bodies.
The next day, I decide to fulfill my summer craving. Caponata. It’s a tricky one as the key to a truly great caponata is frying the eggplant. But in 100 degree temperatures, it’s safe to safe that no one in their right mind should be frying anything…except if that right mind is me. So as the rest of the group takes to the sea, decorated in snorkeling equipment and floaties, I get to work. Shallow frying in batches with “chill mix” radio humming in the background. I work slowly, I have no where to be besides for rewarding myself with a dip in the sea post fry session. Mise en place is the name of the caponata game. I prepare and chop my eggplant, onions, celery, tomatoes and measure out capers, olives, raisins, pine nuts. Everything is in it’s place. And so I fry, assemble, add vinegar and sugar. Taste. Add basil. Taste. Adjust. Taste. That’s it. With the final flavor spot on, I cover the caponata and allow it to rest until dinnertime. I jump into the sea and dream about the caponata that awaits me.
Sail the Italian Islands with us
Our first group of travelers sets sail with us to the Islands of Ponza and Palmarola this September 2023. The cabins are full up but I invite you to reach out if you’d like to book the boat privately for yourself and your group of friends/family for remaining dates in the end of September/October and most certainly for 2024. I’ll be offering a few set of pre-planned dates for 2024 which you can book your own double cabin (occupancy for 2 people) with other travelers. It’s a great opportunity to meet like minded travelers and maybe even make a new friend or 2…or 6!
We limit the size of the boat to 6-8 people (6 people for mixed groups of travelers and max 8 people for private charters). There are 4 cabins on board, each with their own bathroom. Sailing is a mix of luxury and completely leaving behind all the comforts of life on land. The beauty of being able to sail to untouched coves and places that people cannot reach by foot or car is truly spectacular. But there’s an element of off-grid living you must account for, let’s be honest, we’ll be sleeping, walking, and cooking ON WATER!
The pre-planned and private charter tours will be a 5 night, 6 day sail and will include a private chef for most meals on board - we’ll also explore the local restaurants for some time on land and out on the town. Snorkels and a stand up paddle board on board will help you explore the coves and grottos. Our time together is all inclusive which means food on board, alcohol and soft drinks, gas for the boat (we need that), your Captain (most certainly need him), boat rental (that makes sense), port fees, excursions (think wine tasting, guided hike), and more.
If you’re looking to take the private charter option, we can customize your trip to your liking - want to be at sea for the entire week? Or just a few nights? Or looking to mirror the 5 night pre-planned tour? Let’s chat!
Respond to this email/newsletter or email me at paige.woodie@gmail.com for the brochure and pricing.
If you missed the sailing content and need to catch up, head over to my Instagram page and check out the highlights section ‘sail with us!’ to see more behind the scenes sailing fun.
Caponata
Serves 6
Oil to fry
1kg of eggplant, cut into cubes
4 stalks of celery, chopped
80g of capers
150g of olives, kalamata or similar is best.
1 large red onion, halved and then sliced
400g of cherry tomatoes (only if in season) sliced in half or 200g of passata
80 of raisins
50g of pine nuts (optional)
50g of white sugar
50-75g of white or red wine vinegar
Handful of torn basil to garnish
In a frying pan, heat the oil until hot. Line a plate or baking sheet with kitchen towel. In batches, fry the eggplant until golden, making sure not to crowd the pan. Transfer the eggplant to the kitchen towel to drain and season with salt.
Bring a small pot of water to a boil and drop the chopped celery. Cook until the celery is tender but still with some bite. Drain and set aside in a bowl to cool. Rinse the capers and roughly chop. If the olives have pits, remove the pits and roughly chop.
In a frying pan, heat 3 tbsp of olive oil, add the sliced onions and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add the tomatoes or tomato sauce and cook for another 3 minutes. As the sauce cooks, add the capers, olives, raisins and pine nuts.
In a separate bowl, prepare the vinegar and sugar mixture. Mix the vinegar and sugar together, taste to see if the balance is to your liking (it should be a mix between sweet and sour). Adjust the flavor if need be and when you’re happy, add it to the pan allowing the sugar to dissolve into the sauce. Turn off the heat and add the fried eggplant, celery, and torn basil. Gently stir so to not break the eggplant pieces. Let the caponata rest for about 2 hours or more - the flavors will marry over time. Enjoy!
Until next time at a standing reservation…
With love & snacks,
Paige
Like what you’ve read?
If you’ve liked what you’ve read, show some love and feel free to like or leave a comment! Maybe even share with a friend!
Let’s chat!
Have you tried the recipe? Let me know in the comments below or share with me on Instagram. Would love to chat.
Need a happy moment?
Drink a beverage while swimming in the bluest waters. That should make you happy. Also, if you missed the Instagram stories from the boat trip, you can find them in my highlights section at the top of my Instagram page. Happy virtual sailing!