Food and Wine

Thursday, September 10, 2009

The food from this part of the country is a very simple, peasant cooking that uses a lot of extra virgin olive oil, tomatoes, beans, hams and salami. Fresh fish is available along the coast.

Some typical dishes:

• Cured meats and hams – A platter of sliced Parma Ham, prosciutto cotto (cooked ham), mortadella, wild boar salami, which is often presented as hors d'oeuvres.
• Crostini – Toasted bite-sized pieces of bread topped with olive, anchovy, tomato, liver or mushroom paste.
• Tortellini – Egg pasta stuffed with meat or cheese, served either in a broth or topped with a rich tomato sauce.
• Rigatoni al ragu – Typical dish from Bologna, the pasta is covered with a rich tomato sauce cooked with minced beef.
• Cannelloni – Large stuffed pasta tubes filled with cheese and spinach or minced beef, coated with tomato and cheese sauce.
• Bistecca alla Fiorentina – Very large tender steak grilled over open fire, generally seasoned only with a little salt and olive oil.
• Cinghiale – Wild boar, generally grilled, typical of the Maremma area in Tuscany.
• Panforte – Rich nut cake spiced with cinnamon and cloves.
• Ricciarelli – These biscuits are made from almond flour, orange peel and honey.
• Cantucci – Sweet nut biscuits generally served at the end of a meal with Vin Santo, a dessert wine.

Wines: Everywhere you look in central Italy you can find vineyards. The best come from the hills of South-eastern Tuscany, like the red Chianti Classico, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano or the Brunello di Montalcino wines. Lovely white wines that generally accompany a traditional dinner are the Tuscan Vernaccia di Gimignano, a fresh, dry Orvieto Classico from Umbria, or a crisp particular Verdicchio from the Marche region.

Thursday, August 06, 2009

You can distinguish southern cuisine because of its wide variety of seafood, fresh tasty vegetables, rich olive oil, and, of course, basil and oregano. All this makes it one of the most healthful, most envied diets in the world. The best Italian olives come from the Puglia Region, and are often marinated in garlic oil or covered with crushed chili.

Some typical dishes:

• Maccheroni con le Sarde – Typical Sicilian pasta dish with sardines, pine nuts, raisins and bread crumbs.
• Frutti di Mare – Sauteed mussels and cockles. Char-grilled lobster, prawns or scampi and squid generally dressed with olive oil and some lemon juice.
• Pizza Napoletana – Soft crust pizza with tomato, garlic, anchovies and oregano. This is only one of many ways of topping pizza.
• Pesce Spada – A favorite in Sicily, swordfish steak is generally grilled, accompanied by eggplants cooked in a sweet and sour tomato sauce (Caponata).
• Cassata Siciliana – Ricotta cheese and candied fruit covered by marzipan.
• Torrone – A sweet nougat with nuts and almonds, often served during the Christmas season.
• Cannoli alla Siciliana – Tube-shaped biscuits stuffed with ricotta cheese, chocolate chips and candied fruit.
• Cheese – Battipaglia, near Naples, is home to the world famous Mozzarella di Bufala, made with buffalo milk and often served with sliced tomatoes and basil leaves  – the classic Caprese Salad. Scamorza, generally served grilled with Parma Ham, which is typical of Basilicata. Provolone, either mild or piquant, and ricotta cheese, used both for pasta dishes and for desserts.

Wines: Since the bronze age, wine has been produced in the south of Italy. The biggest regional producer of wine in Italy is Puglia, and some of the best Italian wines come from Sicily. Marsala wine – it takes its name from its city – has been in production since the 18th century, when it became famous thanks to Admiral Nelson, who ordered huge quantities of it after the Battle of the Nile.

Saturday, July 11, 2009

"Cucina Romanesca" relies on using fresh seasonal products from the countryside near Rome. Typical vegetables include artichokes, mushrooms, and the ever-present, strongly flavored rughetta selvaggia – arugola or rocket salad. Most dishes are very richly seasoned with garlic, sage, bay leaves and onions, and often topped with grated Pecorino, a strong flavored goat's cheese.

Some typical dishes:

• Carciofi Fritti – Artichokes dipped in batter and deep fried in oil.
• Fiori di zucca – Zucchini flowers stuffed with mozzarella cheese and anchovies, dipped in batter and fried.
• Suppli di riso – Rice croquettes with mozzarella filling, covered in bread crumbs and fried.
• Filetti di Baccala – Fried battered cod fillets, one of the main dishes in the Roman Jewish cuisine, like the fried artichokes.
• Gnocchi alla Romana – Semolina dumplings grilled with grated cheese and melted butter.
• Bucatini all'Amatriciana – Spaghetti style pasta with a rich tomato, onion and bacon sauce, and served with grated pecorino.
• Spaghetti alla Carbonara – This creamy pasta dish is made with fresh eggs, crispy bacon, parmesan cheese and grated black pepper.
• Saltimbocca alla Romana – Veal slices skewered with ham and sage leaves.
• Coda alla Vaccianara – Braised oxtail cooked in a spiced tomato sauce, typical of Rome.
• Torta alla Ricotta – Cheesecake filled with ricotta, lemon and candied fruit.

Wines: The Romans began wine-producing over 2,000 years ago on the same hills that still surround the city of Rome. Roman wines are all made from the same variety of grape, the Trebbiano, so most local wines, from the Frascati to the Colli Albani or Marino are white, and fairly similar in taste. Local red is rather rare; Romans drink reds from other parts of the country. A meal is often accompanied not by wine but a chilled beer, generally a Moretti or a Nastro Azzurro, light Italian lagers.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Did anyone catch the latest episode of Giada's travels? Giada's Italian Holiday, a 1 hour special on the Food Network, visited the Italian cities of Venice, Parma a short stop in Perugia and ended in Rome. From glass blowing in Murano, making Parmesan cheese in Parma to sightseeing and romance in Rome, the show just gives a brief highlight of all that these cities have to offer.  

We offer a great selection of tours that visit Venice and Rome, including train travel for those weary of a bus tour, but not many tours visit Parma. Parma is a beautiful Italian city known for its monuments, castles, opera and gastronomy Parma is a unique city known for it's pasta (Barilla), proscuitto and cheese. According to legend, the Parmigiano was created in the course of the Middle Ages in Bibbiano, in the province of Reggio Emilia. Its production soon spread to the Parma and Modena areas. Historical documents show that in the 13th-14th century Parmigiano was already very similar to that produced today; this suggests that its origins can be traced far before.

Globus' Discover Italy package is a 17 day which covers Northern and Southern Italy with 3 nights in the Parma region. The 10 day Buon Taste and Flavours includes wine tasting, cooking classes and a full day in Parma, including a visit to the factory Giada visited, where the world famous Parmigiano Reggiano is produced. Also overnight in Perugina and enjoy a cooking lesson and chocolate tasting.  

You can also take a drive from Venice in or we can set up a custom itinerary with private car and driver. The distance is about 104 miles. The distance between Parma and Florence is 84 miles.