Hello My Favorite Foodie Fans,

Sorry for the long absence of newsletters, but you know, maybe I’ve been
a little occupied doing things like eating hot steaming sweet fruit breads
filled with cinnamon butter sugar which oozes down my arm “tasting’ my
students work making sure its edible.  And to be honest, this summer, after
my recent trip to Europe, I have been enjoying a few cold, cold peach
granita filled aperitif’s (that’s a pre-dinner drink that stimulates
the appetite. Usually contains alcohol or in my case, bubbly Prosecco (Find
the Recipe Below)).   I have discovered putting a cold slushy of fresh
fruit from the season into a flute full of bubbly Italian champagne is the
best way to beat the summer depression I always get in Florida when the
rains are non-stop, the humidity is 100% and the bugs are bigger than my
head.  Ugghhh, I need a Prosecco now. Ha.  Italians always have the best
ideas!

Things are going great for the Fat Tuscan as we continue to expand into
more and more cooking classes & specialized events.  We are now officially
a full time Community Cooking School & Event Venue so check out our new
Fall line-up of Cooking Classes on our website www.fattuscan.com if you
would like to join us for a class or a special chef dinner.  We have lots
to choose from and I know I would love to see you as I miss seeing all of
you at the café.  I just want you to know, if you join a class as my
student, I am always willing to “taste” your food.  It’s the
sacrifice I am willing to make for you. Ha!  *Mention this newsletter (July
Newsletter) and enjoy a $5.00 discount off your first cooking class.
**Rebate will be given at class.

I know some of you miss dinning at the Café, but our new direction has
given us more time to make the events that we do even more memorable &
specialized.  This brings me to the point of this newsletter, announcing
our Tuscan Cooking Class Tour!   We will host a yearly Week in Tuscany
Cooking Class Tour to be held in September or October with dates announced
in January of every year on our website.  This year, October 7th to the
14th is our inaugural first trip, sorry for the short notice, but so goes
it with first trips and Italian style business negotiations over aperitifs.
Our Week of Cooking Classes will take place in the beautiful country side
of Tuscany on the border of the mountains between Tuscany and Umbria.  The
tour will be all inclusive and includes a week of nightly cooking classes,
7 night B&B stay, transportation, daily guided tours to small medieval
towns and a translator/tour guide for all your needs.  (This translator is
me so be sure to catch me before my nightly aperitif if you need EXACT
translations done, otherwise I may accidentally sign you up for the morning
shoveling of horse manure for the farm vegetables or make up stories about
the ancient ruins because I forgot the real details.) ha.  The tour is
small, only 4 couples, (8 students) is our maximum number.  We will be
keeping to the unbeaten path for this tour, so it includes lots of small
towns in the countryside with cooking classes conducted by locals from the
region.  But, I recommend that students book their trips with an extra week
to explore some of the bigger cities and areas on their own either before
or after the weeks classes.  *Deadline to sign up is July 20th, please see
our website for more details or email us at fattuscancafe@gmail.com for
more information.

Be sure to check us out on Facebook  and Instagram under Fat Tuscan and
follow us to get daily pictures, notes and occasionally fun recipes from
our test kitchen.   We also post lots of beautiful pictures from some of
the intimate events here at the Fat Tuscan, so if you know someone looking
for a space for a baby shower, wedding shower or rehearsal dinner tell them
to take a look at our site for ideas or to see if they think we would be a
good fit for their event.  As you know, we always excel at making the best
memories here at the Fat Tuscan!

Hope to see you soon, Chef Michelle

PS – Be sure to keep us on your email list as we plan to add a few pop-up
dinners to our Fall itinerary.  This is a dinner for those of you who loved
our Courtyard and miss dinning in the Tuscan ambiance.  They will be
reservation only, limited menu, 15 tables limited seating and first come
first serve.  Dates and Details will be sent via emails. 

Peach Granita Recipe
4 fresh peaches washed and with skins on cut into chunks.
2 cups water
¾ cups sugar
4  tbsp champagne/prosecco or 1 tbsp vodka (helps keep the granite slushy
and to a shaved ice consistency, but doesn’t add much alcohol so kids can
enjoy this too.)
In a small saucepan heat water and sugar until sugar dissolves.  In a food
processor put in peaches and grind until a soft fruit consistency is
achieved.  Mix sugar water and peaches well and pour into a metal or glass
rectangle pan and stir in alcohol, cover and freeze.  In 2 hours stir any
ice crystals from the edges into center.  Repeat twice and then let freeze
completely.  Using a spoon or fork flake the peach granite into a slushy
consistency. – Spoon into a glasses, with or without alcohol, I prefer
prosecco, and it’s a perfect afternoon aperitif for this summer heat!

August - September Cafe Newsletter 2013

Hi Everyone,

Our brief summer hiatus has ended and our doors are open again at the Fat Tuscan for all your culinary pleasures. You can now turn those ‘missing us’ frowns upside down and come to enjoy a Panini or two and some great dinners in our newly (super green) herb planted courtyard. I know your taste buds are having a little fiesta in your mouth at this news. I’ve heard from several of you that you missed us and our cuisine very much, but please be careful with this information as my subconscious starts playing tricks on me and I actually begin to think that my master plan of taking over the world is working little-by-little through all of your stomachs. At least I hope so.
 
Yes, we have all returned with slightly tanner skin and brighter smiles on our faces as well as a little sparkle in our eyes.  In my case, that glazed look is actually from hiking up and down the VERTICAL jungle island I was on and the resulting dehydration and heat exhaustion. Yes, I swear I spent two weeks climbing straight up and down its mountain hills in 100% humidity and 90° degree heat with no shade. Even though the map says St. John is not on the equator, I felt like I was. I don’t know what I was thinking. The heat, the humidity and the fact that water was more expensive than rum, was not necessarily a good mix. But, the worst part, (seriously the very worst part), was the lack of Island food scene I had imagined…well, unless you were a Rockefeller and went to an exclusive resort…at least that was what I was told. And, to top it off, unfortunately, a piece of raw tuna at the local grocery store was $25.00; no, that is not a pound, it’s a piece!  I am still scratching my head about this aspect of the local economy as technically the island is in the middle of a HUGE Ocean surrounded by miles and miles of salt water FULL of fish!!  (I know this for a fact, by the way, because I saw schools and schools of them swimming at arm’s length away from me while snorkeling the reefs.  This, of course simultaneously resulted in my mask filling with drool and me wishing I had a spear for the huge school of Yellow Fin Tuna swimming just under my belly.) So, in retaliation for the frustration of my sad taste buds, next Month’s September Candlelight Dinner, (Sunday, September 29th), will be an ode to ‘what should have been’. Please make a reservation as soon as possible as we expect it to fill up fast. 

Here is a sample of the preliminary menu of “Italian Island Cooking” 
1st Course – Grilled Eggplant stuffed with crab and served in a light coconut milk reduction.
2nd Course – Mixed tossed greens topped with fresh mango, candied walnuts, toasted coconut and feta cheese with an Orange Ginger Vinaigrette
3rd Course – Coconut Risotto topped with Rum Seared Scallops
4th Course – White fish baked with Plum tomatoes and caramelized red onion.
5th Course – Trio of house made Sorbets (Mango, Lemon and Coconut) served with classic Panna Cotta.
 
**Side Note** To all my favorite people who come to these fantastic dinners and especially to some of you who have not missed any of them.  This is the last year we will be doing these dinners.  But, I promise we are going to be going out with a bang, so something extra special will be done at the rest of the dinners scheduled for this year. So be sure to sign up for them. You know how I love cooking for you guys.
   
Yep, we are heading into September and back into full swing over here at the Café with some new faces in the kitchen such as our new baker who made S’more Brownies that were so good that I could not restrain myself. I could have eaten them directly from the oven just from the smell.  She will be adding her style and flavors to our lunch time pasta salads as well, so come in to check her out and tell me what you think. We have also slightly updated our menu. Eggplant Rollatini was added to our dinner menu, as well new salads and additional options for panini’s. Our lunch menu features new gourmet sandwich combinations too.  We also brought back the Tuna Tartar appetizer to the night menu, a favorite of mine currently. (Okay, I’ll admit that this particular addition may be a direct result of the lack of tuna consumption on my trip and the teasing, little crafty reef fish swimming so close to me, wickedly teasing my sad lonely taste buds again and again. Ha, ha, I will get you little fishes’ and then I will bake you and sear you and fry you and soak you in coconut milk and olive oil and shove fresh herbs in your bellies while peppering you with spices and then I will gobble you up one by one…yes I will!  I’ll teach you to stare at me with your beady little fish eyes in your clear blue salt ocean and pretend to mentally stick your tongue out at me! I will, I will. (um, so yeah, I may have gotten a little TOO much sun...ha ha ha.)

After this trip, now more than ever, I am reminded how lucky I am and how much I’ve fallen in love with my little Green Tree Town and its natural beauty and heart here in Gainesville. Upon returning from my trip, as I walked to the new local bakery around the corner from me to get a warm croissant the other morning, I realized how I sometimes take wonderful local places such as the bakery for granted. I suppose spending time on an isolated island in the middle of the sea that had its heritage and heart stripped of it eons ago reminds me just how important these things and places are that create a sense of distinct community to an area and to a culture. And, so as I watched my fresh croissant being put in a paper bag by the owner, baker, cashier all-in-one I thought about what time in the morning he had to get up to prepare it personally. And about how small local businesses such as the bakery and the Fat Tuscan mean to a city, a culture, a society and a lifestyle. These people and places stimulate connections to places through memory, emotion, and nostalgia. And, they are what make living here exceptional. So, I would just like to remind us all to not forget to patronize these local establishments, because they need to stay around and really they need nothing more than your business and perhaps an occasional thank you or a smile on your face (and perhaps to know they were a part of putting it there from time to time), because, sadly small local businesses may be of a dying breed in today’s corporate world that exists only to chase the dollar. So, on my last note here and to get somewhat serious (ha ha), I’ll end this quirky newsletter with something I wrote upon returning from my summer hiatus on that hot desolate island in the sea full of fish I couldn’t eat. It kind of sums up the way I live and hope that many of you, if not live it too, at least understand its meaning. 

 
‘The ones who slave over their hearts and passion to make and produce, thank them,
because, ultimately they don’t do it for the money, but for no other reason than they must,
 their heart and their passion won’t let them be any other way’. 
 
Hope to see you soon, I’m always cooking for you here, Michelle

Summer Newsletter - June 2013

Hi Everyone,

I do believe I have lost my mind; it’s gone, yep, completely. …But, then again most of you reading these newsletters know that probably isn’t far for me to go anyway (ha ha).  Lately, it seems, as I find myself rubbing spices into our meats for roasting, I picture instead suntan oil being rubbed onto sun-warmed skin.  And squeezing limes makes my mouth start to water for Margaritas. My eyes glaze over with visions of this delectable concoction in sparkling ice melting, snowy, salt-rimmed glasses with little rain drops of condensation lazily dripping down them. (mmmm, Yes, I am picturing one right now and I’m betting you are too, ha.  Look out Liquor store, there is going to be a run on Tequila!)  Luckily, I don’t think it’s a state of mind that will stick; I mean, hopefully I won’t just start gazing off into the distance while serving you your food and accidentally miss the table and drop it onto your lap….well, not any more than my klutzy self already does. The good news is I’m pretty sure it’s just a serious case of Summer Fever.  It is that time of year where we are on the cusp of our off season here at the cafe - preparing to close for the month of July for our annual summer month off.  (FYI, this will be noted by the sign on the door “Closed for refurbish/new recipe planning/renovations”, but it is really our time to travel, sit back and be waited on ourselves for a change!  whoop whoop.)

I am so excited, I can't wait.  I guess since the café has added the new extra hours during the week and taken on more tasks with the added cooking classes all year long, vacation time is really gnawing a hole in my subconscious.  As my visions have suggested, it’s the tropics for me.  A month of Island living, yep!  This means days of nothing but shorts and bathing suit tops, flip flops, sunglasses, and the ever present scent of coconut sun tan lotion as my perfume.  This year it’s the Keys first and then off to the island paradise of St. John’s.  I have already planned endless days of sitting under swaying palms sipping frozen drinks with little umbrella’s that are full of rum or other alcoholic libations.  Even the staff is excited for some time off as they already have travel plans to places such as Colorado and the Florida Panhandle.  (Anyone finding themselves in Panama City in July, by the way, might come across our server Kevin serving them a drink at a beach side bar.)  So get in here quick to get your Fat Tuscan fix before we close for the month of July.  Our last day will be Saturday, June 29th and then we won’t be open again until August 6th.  Incidentally, we won’t be having a candlelight dinner this month on the last Sunday since we are closing and we are skipping August as well as we will just be trying to get back into the groove of things after our vacation.  So, the next one will be the last Sunday of September.  Sign Up!  Hopefully, it will be filled since it will have been a 3 months hiatus at that point and you will be ready for a real Fat Tuscan meal!   No Theme yet for that dinner, but currently I'm thinking of using some rum and other tropical ingredients except with an Italian Style twist of course.  

Although the last couple months of Cooking Classes have been full of flour EVERYWHERE, (I am referring mostly to myself here, most students seem to have an easier time keeping it contained, ha), we have been cooking up a storm while having lots of fun.  Students have happily chopped fresh veggies learning how to make Homemade Soups and learned the recipe for easy Egg Pasta Dough for making hand stuffed Ravioli’s & Tortellini’s, (the tortellini’s may have looked a little like blob creatures at first, but by the end of class everyone had the shape down perfectly and happily they all taste the same which is Delicious!!)  And, just to tempt you further into signing up for a class, this Thursday we will be teaching one of my favorites and which I like to refer to as little pillows of Heaven; Homemade Gnocchi.  Most people would agree that these babies tossed with the perfect sauce uncontrollably make little sighs of pleasure escape one’s closed lips whilst consuming them….just saying. For those of you who are interested, the next cooking classes for August are posted below. They will be starting in early August and we still have room in both series, so feel free to sign up.  (For a list of the rest of the year's classes, please check out the website at www.fattuscan.com.)
 - Italian style Vegetarian Recipes - Full of flavor and robust dishes for any palate.  6pm to 8pm (Monday, August 5th, Monday, August 19th, Monday, September 9th, Monday, September 23rd)
- Italian Style Cooking with a hitch; PASTA FREE (FYI - This Class will have recipes & Cooking tips for our Gluten Free friends.) 6pm to 8pm (Tuesday, August 6th, Tuesday, August 20th, Tuesday, September 10th, Tuesday, September 24th)

Regardless, come by soon to see us.  And, oh yeah, don’t worry if you have heard some crazy rumors; no, we are not closing for good or selling the business, that is just the Gainesville gossip mill running with the misinterpreted information of our month summer closing.  We will be back in August with bright smiles, bright eyes and well, most likely somewhat tanned skin and maybe a little zigzag to our walk from perhaps the over consumption of rum, but I am positive that goes away after a while once you arrive back on the mainland.  Ha ha. 
Have a great summer everyone,
Michelle. 

Travel Bug has bitten.

So excited.  Getting ready to travel to Prague in 5 days for a month.  What do I pack?  Lite, for sure. This city has been beckoning me for a while.  Ever since I saw this old artistic black and white photographic book of the city from the 1950's I have wanted to visit.  The stark lines of the buildings in the photographs seem to whisper of time, and time and time.  Maybe it will stand still for me there.

My English Degree is finally useful

I own a little Cafe.  It is struggling to be a European Cafe in the midst of a of a small college town in Florida, full of mainly young college kids, hippies and southern folk.  The cafe is housed in the Historic Vidal House CA 1908.  We sit on the edge of a Historic District, 8 blocks from the heart of the City's downtown.  My husband and I bought this building in 2006, threw about two thirds of it away and completely restored it over a two year period.  The cafe was opened in October of 2008.  I'm starting this blog for two reasons, one; I always have a lot to say, two; I finally need to put my BA in English to good use as I am going to be paying student loans until I am 50.  Read as you like, but WARNING, there will be nothing normal about me, the cafe or my writing.  Read at your own risk.

The Fat Tuscan Cafe Summer Newsletter 2012

Hi Everyone,

Happy Summer solstice, the longest day of the year.  I think it officially marks the arrival of summer, yippee.  If you are like me, summers are spent trying to beat the heat and humidity of the Swamp.  Usually, that means lazing around a pool, a lake, a spring or some form of water source with a cool drink in hand.  Well, wouldn't you know, as it happens, the cafe's tinkling lion-head fountain counts as a an official summer watering hole, and with our fine choices of cold beverages, it should be on the top of your list.  As it happens, I am extremely excited that summer is here this year, as I have big, big plans.  Unfortunately, I will not be around the cafe during July as I am finally taking a trip outside the U.S. since opening the cafe in 2008 and I'll be gone for the entire month.  Yes, can you tell I have serious travel fever right now?  So, while you spend time trying to out-smart the sweltering, energy-sapping humidity in the south, I will be traveling through Czech Republic drinking cold beer, eating great food and learning about Czech cuisine.  Incidentally, don't be surprised if when I get back in August we seem to be running specials full of recipes from Czech.  The Fat Tuscan is a European cafe, right? And, Czech is in Europe; so its all good in my book.  Actually, the travel bug has bitten pretty bad and I keep threatening the employees that I may not return and instead just continue on Eastward through Budapest, on to Romania and finally to Mongolia...(why Mongolia, you ask? I don't know why.  Maybe it has something to do with this recurring romanticized fantasy I have of hanging out with the Nomads on the Eastern Steppes, drinking fermented warm fizzy Yak milk and wearing a large quilted robe that makes me look like a sumo wrestler.  By the way, the sane part of my brain knows this is a fantasy as I am sure that Nomads and Yaks in tight quarters would not make for a pleasant smelling time, nor does warm fizzy Yak Milk probably taste in any way good.  Not to mention, isn't it absolutely freezing on the Eastern Steppes all year?!) So, these are the things rambling around in my brain and for some reason the idea of not coming back for a while sounds really good to the Gypsy blood urging me to travel.  But, don't worry, I promise I'll be back.  I can't stay away too long from the Fat Tuscan.  For me, food, travel and good company are all part of what makes the heart of the Fat Tuscan cafe and I will never give that up, its in my blood too.   

If you happen to be unfortunate and stuck in Gainesville all summer and can't travel anywhere, don't forget that the cafe is like taking a mini European trip, at least for an afternoon.  Sitting in the courtyard, next to the french inspired fountain and enjoying some chilled Rose' or Fruity Italian wines is just like sitting in a Piazza anywhere in Europe, I promise. 

We also have some great things going on this summer at the cafe, most importantly, special hours are planned along with seasonal summer specials running throughout the entire month of July.

New hours for July
OPEN for lunch MONDAY to SATURDAY from 11AM to 4PM.  And only opened for Dinner on FRIDAY and SATURDAY from 4PM to 10PM.  We will still have music every Friday night along with our great happy hour prices on Beer and Wine, so definitely come by for that if nothing else.  The Music line up for the month is listed below. 

Candlelight Dinner is this Sunday!  We still have space if you are interested.  Call us today to make a reservation.  Our Theme is "Along the Eastern Mediterranean Coast".  These 5 course dinners are amazing, and its the best of 'slow food' cuisine anywhere.  Dinner seating starts at 6pm.  Our number is 505-56478 to make a reservation. 

We will be Open for July 4th, for lunch, so if you aren't going to a BBQ until the evening, come by for lunch at the cafe.  We will be here till 4pm. 

Also, check our our website for information on our Cooking Classes, the next series starts in August and is on Cooking with wine...(where I plan to do my best impression of Julia Child in every class!!)  www.fattuscan.com  - Pre-registration is recommended as class size is limited!

So, don't worry the girls in the kitchen will take really good care of you while I'm gone and the best part for you is that any time you need a mini vacation the Cafe is waiting for you,
so don't forget to come by. 

PS - Have a good summer and thank you for reading these news letters.  I really do love writing them, only running a restaurant seems to seriously hamper my writing time.  What do I love more, writing about food or actually cooking it?  This is a question much like Shakespeare's famous quote, 'to be or not to be'. There is no good answer.  (Well at least Shakespeare thought so, I actually always thought the answer was 'to be' always, I mean 'not to be' means you're dead, right?  And who wants to be dead?) 

See you in August,
Michelle