High Line {Part 2}

More pictures of a positively lovely morning spent at the High Line last summer. Seems like it was just yesterday, although this winter feels like it is many years old.

Time is a funny thing. Depending on the moment, day or even week, our perception of time and when things happened can shift. 

I found myself looking at these photos and thinking how it feels like it was maybe last month that I wandered through this lovely park on a hot and humid city day. But then in the next second, I think that it was 8 months ago, and so much has happened since then. Is 8 months a long time in the grand scheme of things? No, not really. But it is a lot of time for all the business, occasions and time spent living life. Many a change can happen in 8 months. 

And while I can still vividly smell the beautiful flowers and remember the bright sunlight of this day so clearly that my eyes squint just thinking about it, it feels although a lifetime has been lived since the summertime.

From the Old Country

 I've found heaven.

In the right-off-the-boat-from-Italy kind of way.

I first heard of DiFiore Pasta Company from my mother who knew the wife of the owner in high school. She was always posting scrumptious sounding Italian delicacies on Facebook, and each week, my mother and I would look through the mouthwatering pictures and declare that we have to make a trip down to Hartford ASAP. So {finally}, after months of saying we were going to investigate, we finally made our way down to the Italian heartland of Hartford. Y'all, this place is what Italian dreams are made of.

For starters, they have a vinegar and olive oil bar. Hello, people. That fact alone sold me. I could have been happy having the nice people working there filling bottle after bottle of olive oil for me.

Not to mention the freezers full of homemade ravioli, tortellini and stuffed shells that were filled with mouthwatering ingrediants such as buffalo chicken, lobster, and sausage, onions and peppers. Oh and if you are a cheese addict like me, the piles of mozzarella and pepperoncino asiago might make you weep.

Pasta: Very well may be some of the best I've ever had. Even compared to meals I had in Italy. Although frozen, the quality of the pasta and ingredients is noticeable when you take the first bite. Let's just say I don't ever want to go back to the regular store bought pasta again.

Sauce: Wonderful. I had the puttanesca and pesto sauces and fell completely in love with them both. Can't wait to get my hands on some of their others.

EVOO/Vinegar: I took home a raspberry balsamic vinegar and rosemary infused olive oil. I'm almost out of both after only a month and a half {which obviously means I have to make another trip. Stat. Soooooo delicious, I could just dip a loaf of bread in both for every meal and be satisfied.

Bottom line: If you ever find yourself in Connecticut,  DiFiore, its worth the visit.

 

High Line {Part 1}

The High Line Park in NYC is one of those places that needs two posts to do it justice. Or I just take way too many pictures. I'll let you decide.

This particular Friday in June that I strolled above the city streets below, it was 90 degrees and that special kind of humid that only cities seem to achieve in the dead of summer. At the time, I wished there was a little more of a breeze off the water and that I had been smart enough to save some of my iced tea and water for the end of the walk. Live and learn. And this winter, I've learned that I should never, ever be upset with humid summer days again. 

I am still trying to wish away winter by sharing all the summer goodness I can find. 

Can you tell? 

In any case, you should know the High Line is one of my favorite spots in NYC. I wish more cities would find beautiful ways such as this to transform abandoned relics into something that everyone can enjoy.