Monday November 24, 2008

Well, it looks like everyone is finishing up picking the last of their olives - in fact last week I even got a taste of the some of the new oil from my area (the Florentine Hills) . . . a little piccante (Italian for a spicy kick) and with a rich olive perfume. Florentine Hills are a perfect place to begin exploring the flavours of olive oil in Tuscany and the delicious chianti.
This weekend I had friends over with the intent of "showing off" the oil - we started with fett'unta (the Florentine way of saying toasted bread with garlic, salt, pepper and of course extra virgin olive oil). Then I followed up with a classic Tuscan dish – Cavollo Nero (in English this would literally be Black Cabbage, characterized by its long, very wrinkly and kind of dark green leaves, best used after the first frost of the season which softens up these tough leaves). This veggie is boiled down – and then chopped up finely and spread on toasted bread. If you want to be truly traditional, you need to scrape a little garlic on the bread and then dunk rather quickly into the water left over from boiling this Tuscan treat and then spread the cavollo nero on the bread. Lavish on the olive oil and eat hot - - with a glass of red wine (of course). . . . sound strange and un-appetizing, well then try to imagine my mind when they tried to describe a favourite Tuscan desert for this time of year : Castagnaccio. The bare bones recipe is made with chestnut flour, water, fresh pressed extra virgin olive oil (thus why it was on my menu), pine, nuts, raisins, walnuts and fresh rosemary twigs. - - I couldn’t phantom a desert with rosemary! Yet it is definitely a treat to be tasted. Were my friends impressed, boh, don’t know but, I do know that we ate everything right down to the last drop of red wine.

Donna Scharnagl

Friday November 7, 2008

What fun! Took a hike up to one of our favorite Chianti producers on our Chianti wine tour and caught him pressing wine. Of course, it was small scale - but that was the beauty of it. One of their friends was fermenting his grapes in their spare containers, and it was time to press. The day was perfect and sunny, and it just had me daydreaming of the end results - a glass of rich red wine, maybe a little Tuscan salami from one of the best butchers down in Greve and hey, while I am at adding in the calories, why not some pecorino cheese. Oh yes, the day was looking good. Our wine partner saw my obvious curiosity, he tried to satisfied every question bubbling in my brain. He even offered me a special treat - go ahead, he said encouraginly, taste a grape (yeah one of the ones that had been fermenting for the last 10-12 days - whatever was I thinking!) It was pure, 100% yuck! all alcohol!! But it hasn't dampened my desire to wait the next three years to taste the final product.

Donna Scharnagl

Tuesday November 4, 2008

The rest of the world may be watching their TV’s to see what President the good US of A is struggling to select – but here in Tuscany we are watching the olive harvest. This has probably been the best in years, and there are lots of smiles as locals strip their trees clean of this tiny black and green fruit . . . many are already imagining the distinct olive flavour on a piece of toasted bread with a sprinkling of salt and pepper - - - and for those with a desire for the spicy there may even be a swipe of garlic on the bread.
I have several olive trees surrounding my home, there are four in the front that have always given me the sense of being protected and guarded by 4 stalwart knights. Their dark and gnarled trunks stretch out and create an umbrella of silver green. Each of these four trees gives the impression to have its own distinct and intricate personality, gruff yet loving, playful and joking, loving and caring . . . in the two years that I have lived right outside of Florence, they have invoked numerous images and daydreams.
I remember my first Christmas in Italy, as a governess for two little kids. The family was making its traditional haul to the Italian Alps to ski and was busy packing suitcases with clothes and holiday gifts. The family father came home with 6 dark green bottles – obviously recycled from a local who bottles water – and very enthusiastic about his “treasure” . . . little did I know that extra virgin olive oil from your own grove was a prized gift at any time of the year!
And so I have learned, Need a unique holiday gift idea? - - Extra virgin olive oil - nuovo, of course.

Donna