Quaintrelle Weekender – Italian Edition

Five ways to a better (travel) weekend

Welcome to Quaintrelle Weekender.

This is a short list of things I am currently loving to make eating, drinking, and hosting easier and a lot more interesting.

Saluti da Roma!

Today’s salutations are a postcard from the Eternal City.

We landed in Rome very, very early this morning, and will be travelling around Italy – Marche, Umbria, and Emilia-Romagna for the better part of the next three weeks. Expect lots of notes on our adventures.

To wit, I’m sharing some if my fave things and ways to stay stylish while en route.

Beat the Traffic:

The UP Express

This one seems pretty obvious to me, but my sister once again reminded me that what’s obvious to me isn’t obvious to everyone. Plus, many Quaintrelle readers are based somewhere other than Toronto – or even Canada, so this little tidbit may be very helpful when/if visiting the city.

The UP Express is the fast train service from Pearson Airport to Union Station, downtown Toronto in 25 minutes, with short stops at Bloor Street and Weston Road.

I take this train nearly every day, as I live close to the Bloor stop and I can get to and from downtown in six minutes for less than $5 (however, the full ride from the airport to downtown is $12.35 one-way for an adult.) With clean, spacious, properly heated/air-conditioned trains running every 15 minutes I am baffled why anyone would take anything else.

Even if you’re not coming in from the airport, you might (definitely will) be better off in both time and money to find a parking space at the Weston or Bloor stops and take the UP the rest of the way to catch a game or theatre or just spend a day in the city.

Get the Look:

Ilia Super Serum Skin Tint SPF 40

I love this stuff.

I’ve never liked the look of foundation – even the “natural” finishes look cakey and settle into pours and lines, making you look somewhat garish and old. And, as I continue to, ahem, matoooore, I am after that youthful dewy look I never had as a teenager.

Ilia is somewhat pricey, $65 CAD for 1oz, but a little goes a long way, and it has a beautiful finish, sun coverage (no age spots for moi!) and is a perfect travel size for carry-on.

To Eat:

Brown Bag

Did you know you can bring a packed lunch through airport security? No liquids, of course, but salads or sandwiches are fair game.

For me, travelling and time changes, can make my system go a bit wacky, so I try to avoid the high sodium, gawd-knows-what-is-in-there airplane food in favour of a high-fibre chickpea salad or a nourishing sandwich. Tastes better, is better, and I feel better – not all bloated and gross – deplaning in one of the sexiest places in the world.

(PS – out of respect for my fellow passengers, I keep stinky stuff like onions and cruciferous vegetables out of my meals.)

Clean Up:

Avène Eau Thermal Spring Water (for face), Crest disposable toothbrushes, soaked cotton balls.

This may seem extra to you but hear me out.

I think we can all agree that air travel is just gross.

In order to feel, and look, somewhat human when deplaning and going through security, I spruce up a smidge before my seat back and tray need to go in the upright position. Part of this routine is to wash my face – but not in the revolting bathrooms that have been well-used by an entire plane full of passengers overindulging on dubious airline food.

Before leaving home, I soak a few cotton balls in face cleaner (I use CeraVe Micellar Water) and store them in a Ziploc in my purse. I wipe my face with a few of these, and follow with a spritz of Avène Eau Thermal Spring Water. Maybe it’s all in my head, but I find it refreshing and revitalizing. I also keep a cache of disposable toothbrushes with me so I can give a good scrub to my teeth, and subtly dispose of it in my coffee cup before the flight attendants come around for the final garbage collection.

It’s not perfect, but at least I feel somewhat alert and clean when landing in a city where everyone from street sweepers to corner store clerks are all supermodels.

Use it Up:

Citrus Salt

Don’t throw away that zest!

As I mentioned in last Tuesday’s communiqué I hate food waste. I had loads of lemons and limes that I would never get through before leaving Toronto, so I squeezed the juice to freeze for later, and used the zest for citrus salt.

Years and years ago, whilst making margaritas, I had what I thought was a genius invention of mixing lime zest with the salt to give a little oomph to the glass rimmer. Turns out I wasn’t the unique cocktailing snowflake I thought I was. Citrus salt is an actual thing. A thing that can cost $10 or more for a tiny jar in a fancy grocery store!

Before squeezing your next lemon, lime, or orange, zest it with a microplane first, add the zest to salt, and dry it out in a low oven. Use it to flavour fish, sprinkle on vegetables, in a salad dressing, pasta sauce, in a cocktail, or even on chocolates.

I generally eyeball my ratios but start with two tablespoons of citrus zest for every half cup of salt. I use Kosher salt, but you can use Maldon, flakey sea salt, or even standard, free-pouring table salt. Depending on how salty your salt is (it’s a thing!), you may want to play with portions. Spread your salt mixture on a baking tray and dry it out in a 200°F oven for an hour. Set a timer every 15 minutes or so because you don’t want it to burn. Once the citrus has dried out, let it cool and store in an airtight container for up to three months (but really, pretty indefinitely.)

If you have any travel tips, please share them! I’m sure we’d all benefit from new ideas to travel more comfortably.

If you missed the last post reducing waste (including my quick pickle recipe), read it below.