Heather Broster
When I was a kid back in Canada, my friends and I used to have competitions in class to see who could roll their Rs the longest, much to our teachers’ chagrin. Now, I don’t have many claims to fame from my school years, but I can proudly say that when it came to tongue …
An Italian word that has an established place in the English language is graffiti which specifically refers to writing or drawings on public walls, usually done without permission and as a form of artistic expression. In English, graffiti is almost always used as if it were a mass noun but in Italian, you will encounter …
In English, there are many different words for the humble eggplant: aubergine (from the French), brinjal (South African and South Asian), guinea squash (Southern American) and finally melongene, the word used in the Caribbean. This last word sounds most like the Italian word for eggplant, which is melanzana (plural: melanzane). Although the melanzana is often …
They say that home is where the heart is, and this couldn’t be truer in Italy where family always comes first. There is one word in Italian that covers both the words “home” and “house” and that is casa (feminine, plural: case). When used on its own with the following verbs, the translation is always …
What comes to mind when you imagine an Italian grandmother? For me, it is someone who is an excellent cook, won’t hesitate to tell you what she thinks, and has a deep love for her family. Not every Italian grandmother has these personality traits, of course, but I’ve met enough of them to know that …
Breadsticks, or grissini as they are known in Italy, are a staple of the Italian diet. When I used to live in Turin, my mother-in-law would always make sure to put a full jar of grissini on the table, just in case Mat and I were feeling peckish before or after supper. Needless to say, …