(map) 
Farmwoman Novella had a couple tempting bunches of wild asparagus at her vegetable box (to call it a “stand” would be an exaggeration) in the Assisi piazzetta the other morning. I stopped by early to chat with Novella and husband Bruno as they unloaded their 3-wheeled Ape and set up their farm abundance for morning sale.
When we first moved to Assisi in 1975, the Piazzetta dell’Erba was ringed every morning with kerchiefed farm women in smocks and aprons selling vegetables, fruits and fresh eggs out of huge baskets. Like many a medieval centro storico (historic center), the population of Assisi is diminishing. Young people go farther afield for jobs, and the number of farm women in the surrounding countryside has diminished, too. Novella is now the only contadina on the piazza. There used to be Nazarena as well, but I haven’t seen her for some months. It seems that Novella’s produce is sufficient.
As husband Bruno snipped thorns off their roses and arranged the blue and yellow irises in white plastic buckets along the wall behind their produce box, Novella weighed bunches of Swiss chard, spread out her mixed salad greens and put out carrot bunches and radishes alongside a pile of fava beans. A crate of luscious cherries – the first of the season – added a bright splash of red to the various shades of green. Needle-like agretti were squeezed in there, too…but the wild asparagus took center stage and I knew the few bunches she had would go fast. Risotto agli asparagi selvatici, frittata di asparagi, pasta agli asparagi… who can resist?
The weather has turned warm, rains are infrequent now and any spindly shoots remaining in the woods will soon elongate into prickly inedible plants. Anyone going into the woods now wears high rubber boots and carries a good-sized stick to push aside woodland growth, hopefully scaring away any snakes. When reaching down to snap off the asparagus shoot, attenzione! – vipers slither under cool rocks as the weather warms up.
That said, I’ve never met a viper in all our years on the land – and the incomparable flavor of wild asparagus lures me into the woods every spring, snakes or not!
Read more about a wild-asparagus hunt in 1976, with links to asparagus recipes!
How wonderful … Yes I think that happens alot over Italy, where the younger ones go off on their adventures , leaving home, for the city life.
I would definetely buy from this wonderful couple … it all looks very very tasty ..and Fresh !!!
It is really a shame that we are losing all the old traditions and good things of life. The busy young people of today are going to be very sorry some day.
Tutto bello…
You capture it all so well in prose and photographs. Thanks for bringing an armful of Umbria to our computers this morning.
Love it! Everything about Italy is fabulous!
Wonderful article, brought me back to our vacation in Umbria last April. Can’t wait to return to this enchanting countryside and it’s cities, especially Orvieto. We enjoyed open markets filled with all you describe. Unforgettable. Thank you.
Great photos. Grazie! Such fond memories of Assisi and the piazetta in the 70s and 80s. Time for a return visit before the old way of life disappears for ever!
My cousins teenage children know they must leave Castel Morrone for a job after at least 5 generations have been living there. It is sad that the farm women are diminishing.
We visited Assisi last year and hope to return for a longer visit sometime soon. We just fell in love with Umbra and thank you for the window into that beautiful area. It’s sad to see things change but that is the way of the world.
Thanks, Anne, for painting those wonderful Umbrian scenes for us. When I read what you write and look at the pictures my mind brings great memories of my visit there…
Anne, love your articles! It is another very rainy day here in New York today and reading your article made me smile and HUNGRY.
just last midday I made a frittata di asparagi, it was wonderful, then I looked over your note! How much more so would it have been if only I could have lay hold of Signora Novella’s asparagus…I can almost taste it.
Wonderful. Now, let’s see those recipes!
Great article Anne! I could picture it all happening
Anne, I envy your life! It’s filled with beautiful simplicity…thank you for your lovely photos, especially appreciated on this rainy and dreary day on Long Island. The only nice thing is my irises are opening, finally :-)
Cara Anne;
Thank you ever so much for this morning’s article, it brought me right back to one of my family home towns of Carpeneto d’Acqui in Piemonte where the hilltop village hosts a delightful older lady who sells vegetables from a seven by ten foot room just off the main street. In that the village has only 150 people and two other stores that sell small amounts of produce (most people wait to buy in bulk when caravans of merchants and vendors show up on Tuesday)la signora sells a limited supply of vegetables and other eatables, if one wants to buy a couple dozen eggs she’ll only sell six (“Signore, there are other people in town who also need eggs!”), one must buy celery by the stalk for the same reason, and never more than two onions at a time. Of course I could wait and buy in bulk when the vendors arrive, but why? La Signora needs her small income… And oh the recipes she offers!!! As such she is happy, AND so am I!!!
Thank you Anne for this morning’s smile!
Ah, yes, sorry to say good-bye to the wild asparagus—until next Spring. At least we shall soon have garden-ripened tomatoes to look forward to, and the peas are still great (but not foraged). Thanks for a well-written and illustrated article… Diane from southern Lazio
Thanks to all for your notes and here is a video of thewild-asparagus frittata making: http://www.youtube.com/user/Annesitaly#p/a/u/1/rgHRjzhjqck
(another one precedes this link on the “hunt” – http://www.youtube.com/user/Annesitaly#p/a/u/0/vS01HoY-kjc
Ah! Now I have a name for the contadina. Thank you Anne. Her venue always presents a great photo op. As little as 8 or 9 years ago there were multiple vendors surrounding her. I have photos of them that I treasure. When she and Bruno no longer appear it will be a day to mourn. How poor we become.