What I eat in a day
how my Italian diet looks on weekdays
I am currently visiting Helsinki and a discussion with my Finnish friends on Friday night inspired me to write this post. I’ve now lived in Italy for over a year, and ever since I’ve been adapting to the Italian lifestyle and becoming more Italian by the day. For me this reflects most strongly in my daily life regarding my diet, and how and when I eat. I have learned to enjoy more the process of making food, the stories and origin around the ingredients, seasonal and local produce, and talking about what I am currently eating or planning to eat next.
So, this week’s Merenda will take a look of my typical What I eat in a day on a weekday living in Bologna. I hope you enjoy it!
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Cari Saluti,
Emilia in Bologna
P.S. Let me know if you enjoyed this overview to what I typically eat on a week day and if you’re interested in seeing a similar post for the weekend.
Breakfast - the least important meal of my day
For years breakfast was my favorite meal of the day, but slowly it became my least favorite as I often eat it by myself, and I’m concentrating on other things. Today, my morning cappuccino has replaced the once blissful moment breakfast meant to me.
On week days I wake up between 6 to 7 am and the first thing I do is make espresso with my Moka pot. While it’s brewing, I froth milk in my favorite home appliance, our Jura milk frother. When my coffee is ready, I enjoy it for a good 20-30 minutes waking up and setting the right mood for the day.
My morning coffee keeps me going for at least a few hours, and normally I try to get some fresh air in the morning whether it be a walk, run or most recently my tennis classes. At least once a week I finish my morning run and get my favorite pasticceria’s brioche alla crema and enjoy it around 10 am whilst working. The days I’m not eating a croissant, I typically eat some natural full fat yogurt with granola and seasonal fruit.
Lunch
So, I’ve had my late breakfast around 10 am, worked and finally around 1:30-2 pm I start making lunch. Typically I eat lunch at home, and I try to eat as much vegetables as possible to keep it fresh and light to have energy to continue working after eating. My go-to lunches are a salad or omelette of some sort. On the side I always have a slice of bread, which I fry in a lot of olive oil and Maldon sea salt often spread with ricotta cheese.
Caffè
After lunch I continue working for an hour or so and then head to my favorite place to enjoy an afternoon pick-me-up. There’s a bar nearby by home with a terrace where the afternoon sun shines directly. I order a caffè (a single shot of espresso) and enjoy it in the sun. I usually take this moment to study Italian and eavesdrop on the students’ juicy conversations on the table next to me.
Aperitivo
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