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Pace da Poggio Etrusco Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Eggplant with Roasted Tomatoes, Baked Ricotta and Herbs

Man has cultivated the olive tree for thousands of years. The Roman Empire depended on olive oil for everything from perfumes and personal hygiene to cooking and lighting.

Courtesy: Nacional Arqueològic de Tarragona (Dottsa Pilar Sada) David Williams

Rome’s oil came from the far flung parts of the Empire, and the terra cotta containers that held it, known as amphorae, were inscribed with tituli picti, markings that certified the oil’s place of origin, owner, weight and other particulars. The Romans knew where their oil came from and you should too. How can the average consumer, inexpert at discerning the quality of oil he or she is purchasing, get good oil? I have said it before. Either know your grower or know your seller. Fortunately for me, I know both. Among a box of oils I received for review from Olio2go, one of the country’s largest sellers of Italian extra virgin olive oil was a tin of liquid gold, Pace da Poggio Etrusco Extra Virgin Olive Oil made by Pamela Sheldon Johns.

Pamela is a well known food writer, cookbook author, and cooking teacher. With her husband, artist Johnny Johns she operates Poggio Etrusco bed and breakfast and working farm in Montepulciano, Tuscany. On her organic certified farm property she grows the Moraiolo, Leccino, Correggiolo, and Pendolino olives that go into the oil. In November it is time for la raccolta delle olive, the olive harvest, when Pamela, her family and crew, and even guests, pick the fruit (yes, olives are fruit) entirely by hand. The careful harvesting, free of rakes and machines, assures that the fruit reaches the frantoio, the olive pressing mill, unbruised and in good condition, resulting in a pure, fresh tasting oil. Pamela’s hands on approach to the manufacture of her oil is a mixture of science, hard work, and respect for tradition and the earth. Read the remainder of this entry »

Cucina Povera by Pamela Sheldon Johns – A Book Review

Cucina Povera: Tuscan Peasant Cooking

Let us pause in life’s pleasures and count its many tears,
While we all sup sorrow with the poor;
There’s a song that will linger forever in our ears;
Oh hard times come again no more.

“Hard Times” Stephen Foster (American songwriter 1826-1864)

I was bowled over when I received a copy of this cookbook to review. Its subject is Tuscan peasant cooking, and true to its folk, the Mangiafagioli (beaneaters), pictured on the cover is a bowl of Roasted Tomatoes, Beans and Onions – peasant food if ever there was. This is a simple dish, economical and easy to prepare, but more than that it is representative of the soul satisfying fare within. This dish like so many others in the book can be put together without fuss, yielding flavor greater than the sum of its parts.

Throughout history the working class of Italy has been no stranger to hard times. Read the remainder of this entry »

Adri Barr Crocetti