Diet Coke vs. Coca Cola Light

Diet Coke is my favorite drink, even over water. Diet Coke was born in 1982 and became the No. 1 sugar-free drink in America. It is referred to as Coca-Cola light in some countries, and in many European cities. It's now the No. 3 soft drink in the world. Diet Coke is the drink for people who want no calories, but plenty of taste.

I drink a lot of pop. At home, in the US, I consume about 3 cans of pop a day on average of Diet Coke. A can of pop in the US ranges from .75 cents to 1 dollar. I drink a can at lunch, one for a snack, and then either during or after dinner. This seems like an extreme amount of pop to drink in a day; some would think I have an addiction to diet coke, and I think I might. I like the taste of Diet Coke more over coke, also because there are no calories, but I like the carbonation as well. It is probably very bad for my health to consume this much pop, but I can’t help it. I thought that I would slow down on my pop addiction when I got to Rome, which I have, but I still consume about one pop every day or every other day. Instead of diet coke, Rome and many other cities in Europe sell Coca Cola Light. The only place that I have seen Diet Coke was in Ireland this past week. Coca Cola Light is much more expensive to purchase in Europe than it is in the states. The cheapest can I have bought was .50 euro and the most expensive one was 2.80 euro, which I found at the airport. That is almost 5 dollars for a tiny can of pop. Most stores sell a can of pop for 1.50-2.50 euro, but the best price is at the grocery store ranging from .50-1 euro. I do consume less pop here, however I am paying just the same price as if I were buying 3 cans a day at home. The Coca Cola Lights also tastes very different than Diet Coke. The syrup is more sweet and thicker, with less carbonation. I also feel like the Coca Cola Light can have less amounts of pop in it for the price. Basically, it is not worth my money buying pop here, but I cannot resist. The first thing I noticed in a grocery store in Dublin was that there was Diet Coke. At first I thought maybe it would still taste like a Coca Cola Light, but I was wrong. It was also 1.50 euro for the can which is much cheaper than Rome and other parts of Europe. I opened up the can, took a sip, and had the biggest smile on my face. It was real diet coke, just like it tastes back in America. I enjoy drinking the Coca Cola Light in Rome, but I think it is overrated for the price. Diet Coke is by far the best soda pop to drink, hands down, but especially from America. Cheap and tasty!

Carnevale Pastries

This past weekend, I went to Venice, Italy for Carnevale. I bought a mask, took a gondola ride, went up the Bell Tower, people watched, bought some Murano glass, and had a fun filled weekend experiencing Venice Carnevale. I was not allowed to leave Venice until I had a Fritelle.

Frittelle, or fritters, are the most famous sweets (doughnuts) of Venice Carnevale. Frittelle begin showing up in pastry shops, bakeries, and snack bars during the weeks leading up to Carnevale di Venezia. When Carnival is over, frittelle disappear from the store windows almost as quickly as tourists in masks or costumes vanish from the Piazza San Marco. Like doughnuts, frittelle come in a variety of styles, both filled and unfilled.

Frittelle veneziane. No filling, but with raisins and pine nuts mixed into the dough. After frying, the frittelle are rolled in granulated sugar.

Frittelle con crema chantilly. Filled with a vanilla-flavored pastry cream and rolled in granulated sugar. (This is the one I tried, so yummy!!!)

Frittelle con cioccolata. Filled with a chocolate-flavored pastry cream and rolled in granulated sugar.

Frittelle con zabaione. Filled with a Marsala-flavored pastry cream and rolled in granulated sugar.

Frittelle con mele. For each fritter, a ring of apple is covered in batter and fried. An apple frittella looks something like a doughnut, with a flat shape and a hole in the center.

Some Fritelle are filled with Nutella or Tiramisu.

Below is a link showing the steps on how to make a Frittelle.

http://www.annamariavolpi.com/frittelle.html

Some other popular Fritter sweets of Carnevale are ribbons of pasta fried and covered with sugar or honey. These fritters are popular all over Italy with many different names such as Frappe, Frappole, Sfrappole, Flappe in central Italy, Cenci (“tatters”) or Donzelli (“young ladies”) in Tuscany, Bugie (“lies”) in Piemonte, Gigi in Sicily and other names in other regions.

Below is a link showing the steps on how to make a Frappe.

http://www.annamariavolpi.com/frappe.html

I liked the Carnevale sweet, but I prefer chocolate pastries. However, Italian sweets are not often made with chocolate....grrrr