Never did I realize when seeing a guest shortly after arriving from France, scrub down our kitchen table, that he had plans to cut up and serve 5 kilos of fresh raw tuna which he brought to serve “sulla tavola” His preparation fantastic that I doubt I could ever duplicate.
Crazy but fun Jean Claude made sure we all ate well with his gifts from France along with music, lots of laughter and great food prepared by him.
On another visit when guests had the main house, he prepared in the back outdoor kitchen, which we use when the house is rented, his favorite dishes of calamari in the black ink sauce. Fun into the wee hours of the morning, acting like kids, we relished the delicious dishes of calamari, and painted our faces having fun with the ink.
When my husband and I retired for the evening, we tip- toed to our room so as not to disturb the guests. Although it was past 2 am the guests were still enjoying themselves and not in their private rooms. Their strange questioning looks as we wished them good night, had us concerned until looking into the mirror and realizing that we had not removed the ink from our painted faces. You might expect this from kids, but not adults in their 70’s.
The next morning we had to explain that we were not inebriated, not chimney sweepers not coal miners, but just regressing to child like fun since our parents never allowed us to finger paint our faces as kids. Must say the squid in ink sauce that Jean Claude prepared was fantastic, worth every embarrassment of the evening.
