16 September 2025

Sunday, October 14th was the first day I didn’t feel jet lag.  I got to Italy late on October 5^th after a harrowing trip.  I had an uneventful flight from Palm Springs to Dallas Fort Worth.  Upon landing, I opened the American Airlines app to check on the departure gate for my flight to Rome and was greeted with a message in red indicating that the flight had been cancelled.  Nothing else!

I was surprised by this.  As an Executive Platinum member, I am usually greeted with information on the replacement flight that has been reserved for me or, at least, a message that it is being worked on.  Flying internationally in business class on a ticket that I paid real money for, as opposed to using miles, should also have garnered more assistance.

I called the Executive Platinum desk before the plane ever reached the gate.  Ultimately, I got put on a set of flights that would get me to my destination the same day but many, many hours later than planned.

With a partial sense of relief, I went to the nearest American Airlines Admiral’s Club to see about alternatives.  It turns out that American Airlines had added a new flight, an hour later than the cancelled one, to accommodate the passengers from the cancelled flight—except that I wasn’t on it.  No amount of trying by the Executive Platinum Desk or three different agents at the Admiral’s Club and the Flagship Lounge could get me into the one remaining business class seat on that aircraft.

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The only explanation offered by the secretive American Airlines desk that all these different agents called was that the “automated system” had not assigned me a seat.  Mind you, there was one remaining business class seat but the secretive desk declined to release it!

I spent five hours talking by phone and in person with many different representatives, all of whom were friendly and who honestly tried to help to no avail. 

I ended up arriving in Venice, instead of Trieste, in the evening instead of in the morning, and with a 2½ hour drive rather than a half hour drive.  But I made it!

Cooking the first few days was not elaborate as I was in recovery mode.  One of the interesting dishes was this one of roasted potatoes and ham suggested by a butcher at the market who sold us the ham.  This is another story but a fun one with a happy ending. 

One of the joys of grocery shopping in Trieste is Prosciutto di Praga (Prague Ham).  Although originally from the Czech Republic, hence the name, it is now made locally.  This is a cooked, lightly smoked, and juicy ham.  Many markets slice it to order at the meat or deli counter, often warm.  A brisk business happens shortly before lunchtime!

When it’s no longer easy to carve slices from the bone, the bone (actually two bones attached via a joint) with attached meat is marked for sale. 

When we walked by the deli counter at a local market, in front of the employee who was slicing the ham, there was a neatly wrapped ham bone.  After deciding to buy it, the store employee suggested we try adding it to roasted potatoes for a wonderful meal. 

A few minutes later, while we were at the cheese counter, the woman who had been carving the ham walked buy holding another, better-looking, bone.  We asked if it was for sale but she said it had been “reserved.”  After leaving the cheese counter we turned the corner back to where the ham was being carved only to find another, even better, bone wrapped for sale.  We quickly swapped out the one in our cart for the improved version feeling certain, without proof, that the store employee had intentionally put out a better one for us. 

Half an hour later, at home, we cut off slices of the ham for sandwiches.  The ham was still warm!

Roast Potatoes with Ham (Patate Arroste con Prosciutto)

This is really a no-recipe recipe. None of the measurements is critical so just do it by eye. I prefer golden potatoes but russet potatoes will work as well.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Total Time 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 1 potato per person (more if the potatoes are small or the appetites are big)
• 1 handful diced smoked ham per person
• A few cloves garlic smashed with the side of a knife, more or less to taste
• A few sprigs fresh rosemary or a few sprinkles of dried rosemary, more or less to taste
• A few good glugs extra virgin olive oil (don’t skimp here!)
• fine salt to taste
• black pepper freshly ground, to taste

Method

 

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into thick wedges. Wash in several changes of water and dry well with a kitchen towel.
2. Put the potatoes in a shallow roasting pan in a single layer without crowding them. Add the garlic, rosemary, olive oil, and a generous amount of salt and black pepper.
3. Toss to coat well with the olive oil and to distribute the salt and pepper.
4. Roast undisturbed at 350°F (180°C) for about 30 minutes by which time the potatoes should just be taking on a bit of color.
5. Carefully slide a spatula under the potatoes and flip them trying not to break them in the process.
6. Continue flipping the potatoes every 15 minutes for about another hour until nicely browned. Remove the garlic if it starts to burn.
7. Meanwhile, dice the ham into approximately ½-inch (1 centimeter) cubes and reserve.
8. When the potatoes are browned, add the ham and toss to combine. Roast for another 10-15 minutes to heat the ham without drying it out.
   
9. Serve immediately.

Notes

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