So long seaside summer

buon rientro (welcome back) to a standing reservation

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:

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Need to catch up on A standing reservation? Head over to the archive to catch up on what you might have missed.

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Buon rientro…

We’re back. Literally and figuratively, I’ve return from the sea and returned back to our standing reservation. A place where good food and good times keep rolling - usually weekly, but who are we kidding, at this rate, it’s been more like monthly. But what matters is that we’re back! A standing reservation is reentering back into your lives, your inboxes. So, we start by wishing ourselves buon rientro to a new season of recipes, snacks, and chats. Buon rientro translates to wishing you a good return. It’s a phrase that’s usually said after long periods spent in one place with the hopes that your return back “home” will be a pleasant one. In Italy, we say this after the long summer holidays or maybe after spending an extended period of time in your home city in anticipation of returning back to life elsewhere. Buon rientro a casa literally means good wishes for your return home.

But sometimes, when the phrase is said, it takes on another meaning. Buon rientro can have a tone (if you know what I mean) - whether it’s sarcasm or warning, I’m not entirely sure how to pinpoint. Sometimes that tone (I sound like my mother, “don’t use that tone with me!”) suggests that where you’re returning to is not as good as the place you’re currently visiting. It reminds me that the fun is over, it’s time to return to real life. I see it happening specifically to Romans (can’t manage to get away from ‘em) after they’ve spend an entire summer vacationing at the sea. The eminent return to oppressive Roman traffic and countless hours searching for parking spaces looming over them with great disdain. Or the phrase is often dished out when Gianluca and I visit Italy for Christmas, spending the week eating and drinking gluttonously with friends and family, sometimes even enjoying warm and sunny days that have our friends and often ourselves asking, “Why do you live in grey London again?”. Those buon rietro’s are the most difficult to swallow; the ones which we both know means we’re returning to dark and grey winter days in London, leaving behind Italian blue skies and delicious seasonal food.

Although my recent buon rientro meant leaving behind wind in sails, blue sea waters, and gorgeous Mediterranean produce; it also meant returning to autumn, a cozy season which I adore. It also meant sleeping in a real bed which has been a treat. Most importantly, it’s allowing me to sit here and type this newsletter for you, my diners. So just as quickly as summer came and went, I’m welcoming - without any tone - the well wishes of buon rientro, to a new season complete with new challenges and exciting projects.

Before we dive into the fall season, let’s reminisce on summer and all it’s treats. It goes without saying that I spent most of my summer cooking at sea. Cooking on boats comes with many challenges, but when you get to cook for some pretty special and adventurous people, it makes all the difference. We ate local, seasonal, and mostly fish based on board with special treats like build your own gyros, birthday canapés, and steak with white truffle (shout out to Mr. Truffle for sending me some incredible truffle products to cook with).

An added bonus was being able to cook alongside a close friend and amazing Rome based chef, Flavia. It’s always a beautiful thing to be able to have a friend to lean on, ask questions, and bounce ideas. Especially at sea. When I learned we’d be cooking and sailing together on not just one, but two trips, I could not have been happier. I take so much inspiration in my cooking from chefs like Flavia - her food is gorgeous and a true example of what I strive to put into my dishes. Grazie, chef Flavia, for a wonderful season!

Ventotene, September 2024. Photo by Sam Berdinka.

Some extra special moments included this one in Ventotene. A small island which belongs to the group of islands called the Pontine Islands - you all should know the Pontine Islands as I bang on about Ponza and Palmarola in almost all of my newsletters (sorry, they’re that great). We just so happened to be in Ventotene for their festival of their patron saint, Santa Candida, where they launched a giant hot air balloon into the night sky. And low and behold, what did I pack in my suitcase none other than my hot air balloon dress. It was such a special night, surrounded by locals and tourists all there to send off the balloon. No one could really explain the reason for the hot air balloon tradition, but fireworks lit up the night sky as we waved goodbye to the gorgeously hand-painted paper balloon.

Views from my galley kitchen…

To close off this week’s newsletter, here are some views from my galley kitchen. A summer of cooking on beautiful boats, in beautiful seas, with beautiful people. Look forward to more of these adventures to come.

Thanks for sailing with me this summer and sticking around for a standing reservation. Can’t wait to take you along for an exciting season of food, chats, and new projects on the horizon…stay tuned, and hungry.

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Butternut and apple soup

Credit for this quick and painless fall soup goes to my sister - she’s a mother of three so I trust her when she says it’s quick and easy! It’s no fail and you can doctor it up however you like. Perfect for those chilly autumnal nights.

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash, peeled and cubed

• 1-2 large apples, peeled and cubed

• 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and roughly chopped

• 2 cloves of garlic, roast in their skin

• 3 Tbsp olive oil

• Salt and pepper to taste

• 1-2 cups of water or broth of choice

• Greek yogurt or creme fraiche to finish, optional

• Roasted butternut squash seeds or pumpkin seeds, optional

• Croutons, optional

Method

In a 200c/400f oven, place all the chopped vegetables, onion and garlic cloves on the tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Roast for about 25 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and a knife easily cuts through the squash. Add the roasted vegetables, onion and garlic (be sure to peel the casing away) to a food processor. If using a blender, be sure to allow the vegetables to cool first. Blitz until smooth. Add the paste to a pot and on medium heat add 1 cup of liquid at a time, ensuring you receive the consistency you want from your soup. The choice is yours, you can have a thicker or thinner soup so be sure to keep an eye on the liquid as you add it to the paste. Finish with some greek yogurt or creme fraiche, toasted pumpkin seeds, and croutons.

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Until next time at a standing reservation…

With love & snacks,

Paige

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Need a happy moment?

The happy moment this week is having some of your closest friends in a new country you now call home. Great friends, good British weather, and a picnic. What more could you ask for?