Many of you who follow my blog, or have read bits and pieces of it, know that one of my pet peeves is when words are mispronounced or misspelled (you can take the teacher out of the classroom, but you can't take the classroom out of the teacher). While I was perusing one of my favorite blogs today, Ciao Italia, I found an older post by the author of it, Mary Ann Esposito, whose image graces this post, and it just tickled my fancy. This mispronunciation of Italian foods drives my mom crazy too...OK, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Read Mary Ann's post and enjoy it as much as I did - and the next time you order any of these foods pronounce them CORRECTLY and then wait for the server to correct YOU! I always re-correct them. I just have to.
What's In A Name
I wish I had a nickel for every time a wait staff person lets me know that one of the specials of the day is ”brushetta.” I just bite my lower lip and then politely say: “You mean bruschetta?” Bruschetta (pronounced brew-SKEH-tah, not brew-SHEH-tah) is simply fried, grilled or toasted bread that has a number of possible toppings from chicken livers to chopped tomatoes.
You can find recipes for the classic ones, like Bruschetta with Fried Peppers, at www.ciaoitalia.com/recipes.aspx
Farro (Fah-Row) is another classic example of bad pronunciation in restaurants claiming to be Italian. Farro is a nutritious wheat berry making a gourmet comeback and is a grain used in soups, stews and salads. But please don’t pronounce it like PHARAOH. You can find recipes using this grain on the web site as well.
In the pasta realm, gnocchi (gnaw-key) is a tough one for many not familiar with this delicious dumpling usually made from potatoes. It is often referred to as "no-key" or "knock-key".
And then of course there is espresso, known here as "ex-presso".
Fortunately everyone seems to know how to pronounce "Ciao" (chow).
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