Adri Barr Crocetti

Maccheroni alla Chitarra with Roasted Tomatoes

Extra virgin olive oil is the new wine. Like fine wine, it is a delicate thing, its quality a function of the olive varietal or cultivar (type of olive) from which it is made, the area and conditions under which the fruit is grown, and harvesting time and technique. Factor in the art and skill of the makers who press and blend the oil, and you will get a sense of what I mean.

Just as wine nerds took over the table conversation with a new vocabulary forty years ago, so olive oil enthusiasts are introducing food lovers to the limitless variety and nuances of extra virgin olive oil. From personal experience I can say that even if you grew up consuming olive oil every day, until you have tasted a fine extra virgin olive oil, you don’t know beans.

I have been tasting and cooking my way through extra virgin olive oils sent to me for review from Olio2go, a retailer of Italian extra virgin olive oils. Most recently I have indulged my every whim with a collection of five oils from Fonte di Foiano, a producer in Tuscany. The Fonte di Foiano oliveta is in Castagneto Carducci where the rich limestone and clay soil and briny air combine to produce particularly flavorful fruit. In the 1970’s the di Gaetano family breathed new life into the ancient groves, keeping some of the older trees and introducing newer, younger ones. Read the remainder of this entry »

More with Pace da Poggio Etrusco Extra Virgin Olive Oil

The baby vegetables are in the Farmer’s Markets. The herb garden is planted, and tiny peas in their pods have made an appearance. My mint plants are already giving forth, their new leaves packed with fresh flavor. Spring has arrived, and with it have come the fava beans.

Travails with Fave or Size Does Matter

Preparing fave (FAH-vay, plural of fava) is a labor or love, or so some people say. The preparation of this member of the Fabaceae (bean family) is a point of great contention among the cooking community and for a time, a source of plunging self-esteem for me. To peel or not to peel? That is the question. The Great Fava Bean Debate of 2013 rages on. For years I labored (or not, depending on one’s point of view) in blissful ignorance of the aforementioned debate, happily zipping open the fava pods, removing the tiny beans from their downy resting spots and eating them. For me there was no third step. You know the one, the part where you peel the beans.

In the garden or at the market I selected firm, bright green pods, free of marks or blemishes. Patient harvesting or careful shopping rewarded me with tiny beans, sweet and tender, about the size of my little fingernail. I never bothered with the larger beans, having always thought them better suited to the compost heap than a diner’s stomach.

However there came a point at which I realized that everyone, food writers and friends alike, even food writing friends, was talking about peeling the fave. A terrible unease set in, the kind of self-doubt in which I specialize. Could I possibly be so rustica, so out of touch with civilized culinary technique? It seemed that everyone peeled those little beans before consuming them, whether raw or cooked. Then one day just a few weeks ago I was rescued from the ignominy of bean preparation inadequacy by none other than food writer Nancy Harmon Jenkins. She came down on the side of not to peel. Despite some formidable opposition, chief among them Paula Wolfert, Nancy stuck to her guns. There is no need to peel, she declared. It is simply a matter of knowing how to pick fave, and you should pick them young. Thanks, Nancy. A girl needs her heroes. Read the remainder of this entry »

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

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 »

Fresh Mushroom Herb Salad

Many people, when asked to name olive oil producing regions of Italy, do not immediately think of Abruzzo. This pastoral region set in central Italy east of Rome is well known for its spectacular vistas, majestic mountains, and expanse of Adriatic coastline. Yet olive trees and grape vines cover Abruzzo’s mountain slopes, and for thousands of years olive oil has played a crucial part in the culture and cuisine of the region. The truth is Abruzzo produces excellent oil, and each year more and more is being exported to the United States and other countries.

I recently received a bottle of Agrumato (ah-gru-MAH-to) Lemon and Herbs Extra Virgin Olive Oil for review from Olio2go, an online and brick and mortar retailer of Italian extra virgin olive oils, vinegars, and food products. This mild, yet flavorful oil is made from Gentile di Chieti, Leccino, and Olivastra olive cultivars. It comes from the Ricci Family of Lanciano, an area well known for its citrus oils. There is a long standing tradition in the area of pressing the last of the autumn olives along with lemons. The acidity of the lemons cleans the press and the oil is traditionally shared with family and friends. Because the olives are pressed simultaneously with the ripe lemons the oil exhibits a remarkable harmony of flavor. The sunny lemon oil is infused with garlic and oregano to create a sophisticated marriage of clean citrus flavor and aromatics. Read the remainder of this entry »