Italians Make Great Friends

Everyone should have at least one Italian friend, even if it’s just for the food.

I had the great privilege of being invited to my friend’s house for dinner tonight. This is one of my friend’s who, when they invite me to dinner, I stop what I’m doing and run as fast as I can to get there. It doesn’t matter if we haven’t seen each other in months, or that we have nothing in common anymore or if we even like each other. It’s the food, and they feel sorry for me because they think I can’t cook.

It’s taken years to carefully craft this image but I’m proud to say I’m now successful in getting the best meals in town and leave them feeling like the Dynamo Chef’s they are. The method I’ve developed is fail-safe although I almost got busted when I told her I made homemade cannelloni and crepes for Christmas. She probably didn’t believe me.

The mood was perfectly set with candles everywhere, great music and the smell of homemade food longing to be placed on the table.

Rule #1- be wide-eyed and amazed by everything and tell them how it’s so much better than the frozen dinners you’re used to. Second, ask a lot of elementary questions about how they made the food. You’ll look like you know nothing which makes them feel important. And third, eat as much as you can and rave about everything. Italians love to feed you and are insulted when you don’t eat much.

Do your job, find an Italian and you’ll never go hungry.

It works like a charm and they’ll have you back often. The bonus is, this friend cringes when I step foot in the kitchen. Maybe she thinks I’ll taint the food with my [seemingly] rudimentary knowledge of fine cuisine. I always offer to help clear the dishes but she won’t allow it. She probably has better table clearing and dish washing skills than I do. Besides, I’m just a guest, and a very grateful guest I make.