A TASTE OF AUTUMN - ITALIAN STYLE

On Saturday evening the Pro Loco San Venanzo presented "Olio, Vino e Castagne...I NOVELLI D'AUTUNNO", and evening of education, food and fun. The educational part consisted of a talk about olives and olive oil, along with a tasting of the new oil. Needless to say, I was excited about this part of the program, and quite disappointed to discover that only a select few would actually be tasting the oil! Additionally, the man giving the presentation had the most monotone voice and it was very, very difficult not only to understand him, but also just to hear him. Okay, so I probably wouldn't have understood much of the talk anyway, but it was still disappointing.

When the discussion was over the real fun began: the food! Bruschetta with the new oil of the two producers from San Venanzo, "Tenuta Colli Verdi" and "Zaffera e Farnesi" was available, as well as the new Merlot, supplied by "Tenuta Colli Verdi". There we also pieces of a wonderful bread,, sort of like focaccia, but with small pieces of ham baked into it. This was really, really yummy!

After the bruschetta and focaccia was devoured, the soup with farro and vegetables was served, and it was light and tasty. Next came steaming bowls of spaghetti, and as always, we marvel at how perfectly everthing is cooked, even for such a large crowd. There were quite a few large bags of chestnuts sitting around, and given the name of the festa, I assume that these would be roasted and served as dessert. Since neither of us care for chestnuts (castagne), we skipped this part altogether.

The entertainment - and what would an Italian evening be without entertainment and a little dancing? - was provided by our favorite hometown band, the Erika Mastrini Band.

During the lecture about olives I gave up trying to hear what was being said and took a few pictures of the food preparations. The bruschetta was being prepared - first the bread is toasted, then it's rubbed with garlic...



then it's drizzled with oil....









then finished with just a sprinkling of salt....









And here's the bruschetta (pronounced bru SKET ta)



As I said earlier, we don't care for chestnuts, and normally the new wine doesn't hold much appeal, but the Merlot Ricardo served was really good! For us though the star of the evening was the new oil - don't you just love that intense green color?




Just getting TO the food proved to be a challenge.  Making any sort of orderly line is just a concept unknown to most Italians, and it was just a matter of working your way through the crowd...





and Gilberto sums it up best of all - Salute!