48 Food for thought Saturday 2 August 2008 • Midleton Post

with Andrew Carey andrew@limerickpost.ieView our digital edition online at www.limerickpost.ie

Supporting Slow food Limerick and region

food for thought

THIS week, all things being Italian, we have four wines that offer plenty for their price. Two bottles from the Sartori range at under eight euro with one free in every 12 if bought from the O’Briens Wines online store. And moving up in price slightly, I have a red and white from two very popular producers at under 15 euro. Also worth a mention is

the offer available in the Limerick O’Briens Wines store where a free bottle of Whitehaven, Sauvignon Blanc, accompa-nies any six bottles purchased in the store. This offer runs until August Bank Holiday Monday.

I HAVE included what I feel are a few must haves for your larder should you fancy that authentic taste of Italy. This brings the whole concept of fast food to a whole new level as all that is required for the success of is to cook the pasta in some boiling salted water until ‘al dente’ (it means that the pasta has a little bite to it and i s

NOT soggy and over cooked. Follow the on packet instructions for this Strozzapreti pasta below. Then, add the tomato sauce and return to the pan and stir in to combine. For the ultimate in luxury, I added a drizzle of truffle scented oil and

some shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano

and some freshly torn basil. Absolutely fantas-tic.

The Olio and Farina store captures that and more and since it opened in 2005, for me, it has done that very thing, captured Italy in taste and in its aromas.

But what makes it so? What makes this store or this concept any different from any other purveyor of fine foods and wine.

Simple! They are producers and not just traders. Many have tried and failed as well as tried and succeeded, but the brand and authentic artisan view that they operate is not just a replica, it is the real thing.

Take the wine on the shelves. It is more than just the wine that you can buy in Italy, it is the wine that is poured into the glasses that are held by the men that have taken the grapes from the vines to produce it. It is their wine. Take the olive oil that adorns the shelves in its many forms. It is the olive oil that is used in cooking or that has bread dipped in it by the men, women and children who have taken the olives from the groves and pressed it in the making of that very olive oil. Even take the pesto that is now going into production in the company’s latest ven-ture. La Cucina di is the latest expansion of the Olio and Farina business. Their project is to produce their own sauces and soups. The site and farm is situated in Mele, near Genoa, just above the sea, in the middle of the “Parco del Basilico” (Basil Park) district. There they have a 1000 square metre unit, where they currently produce an award-winning Pesto and Nut Sauce, and where plans are ripe to settle the site for the production of other sauces and pâtés. Being from Genoa, the company decided to start with Pesto Genovese, which is a strong symbol of their culinary tradition. Olio and Farina Pesto is a fresh sauce, made exclusively with the seven basic ingredients of Genoese ancient tradition, without any additives or antioxidants.

This really is a taste of Italy. So if you fancy having a taste of Italy, take a trip to the store where you will dip, delight and delve into the treats available where you can get that real authentic taste. Keep an eye on this page for future nods to all things nice from italy.

The shopping list

Filtered Extra

Virgin Olive Oil 500 ml

Extra virg

in olive oil

produced on the Ligurian

Riviera, with a mellow

and strong taste.

Excellent

as a dressing or s

imply as a dip. 5.99

Strozzapreti”

pasta 250 g

This traditional irregularly-shaped pasta is

enriched with wheat germ to achieve

a superior

quality product. 3.99

Tomato sauce w

ith porcini 180 g

Another excell

ent sauce fo

r pasta dishes. Tasty

tomatoes sauce w

ith “porcini” mushroom

s.

Ideal for any riso

tto! 3.49

Extras

Truffle scen

ted oil

Parmigiano-Reggiano

You must admit that we just have to love them! For many, years, the Italians have been doing things with

a certain degree of style, panache and love - in Italy I sup-pose you would call it ‘amore’. But what ever way you assess it, the Italians have that something that makes things just a little better.

For car lovers or haters, you need only look to the gallop-ing stallion and see that for years Ferrari shine brightest amongst many. Even the Alfa Romeo cars with all their faults and technical malfunctions still have the lifeblood of Italian passion coursing through them.

For coffee purists, a sip from the cup of an espresso is what garners memories of rolling green Italian hills dotted with vineyards and olive groves, or a bustling side street in any cosmopolitan city of fashion, style and grace. Just talk-ing and thinking about it would salivate the taste buds.

So why don’t we all move to Italy? For anyone that has travelled to Italy, be it on a frequent basis or even just the once, you might agree that it probably is nicer to go there and visit because on your return home, you get to ponder more for Italy, the Azzurri and all things Italian as you anticipate another trip. The beauty is to sample, not gorge. Thankfully, to keep you going through those long arduous months in between, we have some places here that allow you taste the coffee, smell the basil, sip the wine and be in Italy, albeit in your own kitchen, and when you can do that, where else would you want to be.

Looking to Little Catherine Street in the heart of our very own cosmopolitan city, you will find the little Artisan Italian store, Olio and Farina. Nothing new there as the store has been trading with the food lovers of Limerick for a number of years now. But on each and every visit, it’s like stepping back to the small enoteca’s on the shores of Lake Garda. Those enoteca’s (a wine tasting shop or bar that also serves food) are typical to Italy and the way of life.

They harvest the best of fresh produce from the area and under one small, quaint and delightful roof, offer you the treats and delights from the land and sea in an atmosphere that bursts with charm and character.

A real Italian fast food treat Limone hosts Ancient Sounds and Flavours of the Olive Grove

A taste of Italy

Sartori Soave @ 7.99Crisp, lively little Soave that offers very good value for money regions largest and oldest producers

Sartori Valpolicella @ 7.99Here’s a light, fruity Valopicella from one of the regions largest and oldest producers. The full taste at a fraction of the price

Ascheri Langhe Arneis @ 14.99Matteo Ascheri. For those who enjoy the exotic and delight in the different, this dry style white is fruity, yet spicy.Think of a twist on a Pinot Gris! Rich yet elegant on the palate this is a truly wonderful wine to complement spicy dishes - bellisimo!

Bertani Villa Novare Valpolicella @ 14.99This is not a light anaemic wine. It is a rich juicy single estate Valpolicellla with pizzazz. Aromas and flavours of plum, rasp-berry, cherry and subtle spice makes this unoaked juicy red make it a really good alternative to a Fleurie.

SITTING against the cliff face that drops into the magnificent Lake Garda is the wonderful town of Limone. Like any of the lake bank towns in the region, Limone captures the won-ders of land and water and for anyone tempted to make the trip to Italy, they host a food and wine festival.

Adding to its fame, Limone will hit the highlights again later this year as the new James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, hits the big screens as 007 tears around the mountain roads in his Aston Martin. Topflight are currently looking after tours to the area and more details can be found on www.topflight.ie

Called ‘Ancient Sounds and Flavours of the Olive Grove’, the festival is currently running until August 17 next where you will follow a food and wine tasting trail around the beautiful cobble stone streets as you sample the very best in Italian produce.