A weekend packed with cooking demonstrations, wine tastings, and educational seminars, it will surely be an event not to miss. For cheese lovers, this is truly an experience unlike any other, with over 200 varieties of cheeses for guests to sample from local and international producers.

If you haven’t tried Academia Barilla’s velvety smooth and complex Pecorino Gran Cru table cheese, rare mountain-milk Parmigiano Reggiano table cheese, tasty Pecorino with porcini mushrooms and truffles cheese spread or the savory Spicy Fig Compote, make sure to stop by and see why Connie Rizzo, Deli and Cheese Buyer of DeLaurenti Specialty Food & Wine Seattle, says that Academia Barilla has a cheese that’s hot now in a recent article in Specialty Food Magazine.
Take a peak below to see some delicious notes on what we’ll be featuring at the event!

PARMIGIANO REGGIANO

Aroma: Fresh milk, with hints of butter and honey.
Flavor: Sweet and mild, with hints of fresh milk, skimmed yogurt, straw and white flowers.
Texture: Soft and compact.

PECORINO GRAN CRU

Aroma: Sweet and fresh, with hints of milk, cream and grass. Scents of nuts, fruit and hay.
Flavor: Milky, sweet and nutty. Fills the palate, well balanced, round, complex flavor.
Texture: Compact, velvety, moist.

SPICY FIG COMPOTE

Made with fresh green figs and spicy mustard essence, this traditional recipe is presented
with a modern flair.
Aroma: Spicy, distinct flavor of mustard has an intense, refined aroma.
Flavor: Softened by fresh figs, this compote embodies the perfect balance between sweet and spicy.

SPREADABLE CHEESE WITH PECORINO SARDO, TRUFFLES, AND PORCINI MUSHROOMS

Aroma: Delicate notes of fresh milk and cream with the intense undertones of Truffles and Porcini Mushrooms.
Flavor: Milky and sweety with a very well balanced aroma with round flavor.

If you can’t wait until the event or won’t be able to make it, try this tasty recipe below to experience a cheese lovers delight!

CHEESE FANTASIA
Ingredients for 4 servings:
5.2 oz. Parmigiano Reggiano
5.2 oz. Pecorino Toscano
5.2 oz. Pecorino Dolce
5.2 oz. Mozzarella
7 oz. Spicy Fig Compote
7 oz. Fresh Pears with Balsamic Vinegar of Modena
7 oz. Gourmet Chianti Wine Jelly
7 oz. Monti Iblei D.O.P. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Sicilian Sea Salt with Black Olives, To Taste
2 Fresh Figs
1 Fresh Pear

Cut the figs into one-fourth pieces, the pears into eighth and the grapes into half. Cut the Parmigiano into flakes, the Pecorino into slices and the Mozzarella into cubes. Place all the ingredients on a platter with the Parmigiano near the Fresh Pears with Balsamic Vinegar and a piece of fresh Pear. Place the Pecorino Toscano near the Gourmet Chianti Wine Jelly and the fresh Grapes, then the Pecorino Dolce near the Spicy Fig Compote and the fresh Figs. Sprinkle the Mozzarella with the Monti Iblei D.O.P. Extra Virgin Olive Oil and a pinch of Sicilian Sea Salt with Black Olives.

Make sure to stop by as we will be featuring some of the products in an effortless dish: Pinzimonio.
See below for a sneak peek at tonight’s dish.
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
- Your favorite fresh vegetables
- 3 ounces of Academia Barilla 100% Italiano Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 ounce of Academia Barilla Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, aged 3 years
- 1 large pinch of Academia Barilla Black Olive e OR Blood Orange Sicilian Sea Salt

Wash, dry, peel and cut vegetables into uniform strips approximately 3 inches long. Display the vegetables (standing up) in a glass bowl with crushed ice at the bottom. For the dip, mix the oil, vinegar, and salt together. Portion the dip into 4 small cups, one for each person.
Enjoy the Pinzimonio by dipping the vegetables into the oil and eating.

With more than 8,000 titles of gastronomy art, italian and international food culture, and everything cuisine, BIGAB is also proud to treasure culinary and recipe books, hand-written volumes and rare gastronomy treats, some of them dating back to the 16th century.

At the beginning of last year Academia Barilla and BIGAB acquired an historic and rare menus collection we already blogged about, and thanks to our BIGAB friends we managed to select two special historic menus from the collection that are in tune with the Season: Historic Thanksgiving Menus from the US Embassy in Rome’s official Thanksgiving dinners in 1927 and 1929.

The US Embassy in Rome booked for the events a very exclusive locations in Rome such as the Hotel Excelsior, in the heart of Via Veneto that, with the cinema industry boom 30 years later, would have become the heart of the Roman Dolce Vita.

A special VIP dinner followed by a gala dance, as in the Thanksgiving 1927 event, and of course plenty of gourmet food, American gourmet reinterpreted by the Italian Chefs at the Excelsior.

This last picture, from the Thanksgiving 1929 menu, doesn’t really show how precious the invitation is - the US flag crossing a missing flag (the Italian flag, that unfortunately has been lost before BIGAB’s acquisition) is a real little flag with the actual pole and flag fabric!

Also the menu is balanced and, of course, gourmet American: Ox tail, Cheese Straws and Tomato Soup, followed by Turbot Washington, and Stuffed Turkey with a side of Cranberry Sauce, Excelsior Potatoes, Texas Salad, and Asparagus Chantilly. Roosevelt Mandarines, the traditional Pumpkin Pie and Fruits closed the gala dinner and, we are sure, opened the gala dance as in the previous Thanksgiving event!

Now that we posted this last Thanksgiving post we can look forward and start getting in the Christmas mood!

The recipe is included in Tony and Cathy Mantuano’s cookbook “The Spiaggia Cookbook – Eleganza Italiana in Cucina“, which is available online at Amazon and Barnes&Noble. Chef Mantuano customized this recipe for us adding a few gourmet products from the Academia Barilla Italian food specialty collection, as you can see from the ingredients’ list below.

As described by Chef Mantuano in the Spiaggia cookbook:

This dish may well become a family favorite, especially at Thanksgiving, when pumpkins are in season. The filling has a sweet-and-savory flavor that pairs well with turkey, goose, or duck. Whenever we serve this dish to customers and friends who have never tried it, the raves are loud and clear. This stuffed pasta yields hearty portions, and we suggest serving it with a robust red wine.

CAPPELLACCI DI ZUCCA CON SALVIA – PASTA HATS WITH PUMPKIN AND SAGE
A recipe by Chef Tony Mantuano
(serves 6 to 8)

INGREDIENTS

- 1 pie pumpkin, about 2 pounds (about 2 cups purée after roasting)
- 1/3 cup mostarda, coarsely chopped (see notes)
- 1 1/4 cups dried bread crumbs
- 1 1/4 cups grated Academia Barilla Parmigiano Reggiano
- 1 cup amaretti cookies, finely ground
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- Academia Barilla Natural Sicilian Sea Salt with Orange Zest and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- basic pasta dough (you can also use premade pasta sheets from your local grocery store)
- 2 cups unsalted butter
- 16 fresh sage leaves
- more grated Academia Barilla Parmigiano Reggiano, for serving

PREPARATION

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. To make the filling: Cut the pumpkin in half and remove the seeds.

Arrange, cut sides down, on an aluminum foil-lined or nonstick baking sheet roast until very tender, 20 to 30 minutes. When cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and place in a blender or food processor. Add the mostarda and process to a purée.

Transfer to a bowl and add the bread crumbs, cheese, cookie crumbs, and nutmeg. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Roll out the pasta dough into thin sheets. Working with one sheet at a time, cut the pasta into 3-inch squares. Place each square on a lightly floured board or cloth and let dry 5 minutes.

To fill, place a dough square in front of you on the diagonal, so you are facing a diamond shape. Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle of the diamond. Lightly spray the pasta with water and bring the bottom point of the diamond to the top point.

Press the pasta together to form a triangle, working out from the filling. Trim the 2 unfolded sides of the pasta triangle with a crimped pastry wheel, and then fold the side points of the pasta forward and press to join them together in a “bishop’s hat” shape. Repeat with the remaining dough and filing.

Stand the finished cappellacci to dry for about 5 minutes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and dusted with flour.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat; do not let the butter brown. Stir in the sage leaves. Set aside and keep warm over very low heat.

Add the cappellacci to the boiling water and cook until al dente (tender but firm to the bite), 3 to 5 minutes after they rise to the top.

Remove with a slotted spoon and carefully transfer to the warm butter and sage sauce. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes to allow the pasta to marry with the sauce and absorb some of it.

To serve, divide the cappellacci among 8 warmed plates and top with Parmigiano-Reggiano. Serve immediately.

CHEF TIPS

Mostarda is a candied fruit, such as pears, apricots, and cherries, mixed with white mustard and sugar syrup. More sweet than piquant, mostarda adds dimension to the pumpkin filling. It is also used with boiled meats and in confections. You can find mostarda in Italian specialty stores or online.

The cappellacci can be assembled in advance and frozen. Arrange them, not touching, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and dusted with flour. Freeze until hard, about 20 minutes. Transfer to zippered plastic bag and freeze for up to 1 month.

Thank you Chef Mantuano for your delicious recipe and for the precious Chef tips. We know Chef Tony Mantuano is getting a Christmas recipe ready to be served to our Italian food lovers next month, and we look forward to it!

Don’t forget to stay with us all week for daily gourmet Thanksgiving recipes from our Chef Network!

Antonio Allegri da Correggio is the foremost painter of the Parma school of the Italian Renaissance, responsible for some of the most vigorous and sensuous works of the 16th century. In his use of dynamic composition, illusionistic perspective and dramatic foreshortening, says the Wikipedia, Correggio prefigured the Rococo art of the 18th century.

Academia Barilla organizes luxury cultural tours in conjunction with the Correggio exhibition, offering a full package of 3 days and 2 nights (or 4 days and 3 nights, in the deluxe version), with tour already selling since the end of September, and until January 25, 2009. 

An amazing opportunity to visit Parma during the Correggio Exhibition that places Parma among the elite destinations of the international cultural panorama. Artistic treasures from the National Gallery and frescoes of the Cathedral, San Giovanni Evangelista Church, and Camera di San Paolo are only a few of the masterpieces that will take your breath away! The city will be at its best for this unique event…don’t miss it! Follow this link on Wikipedia to discover more of Correggio’s Reinassance work in Parma.

This is the program of the gourmet cultural Correggio travel package proposed by Academia Barilla -

Day 1 – “The Correggio Experience”

MORNING: Arrival in Parma on your own (private transfer on request). Check-in at your luxury (at least 4 stars) hotel accommodation in the city. Enjoy your first Parma-style lunch.

AFTERNOON: Guided tour of Parma city center to begin a first discovery of the works of Correggio. You won’t want to miss the Cathedral and the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista with their astonishing chapels, the unique Baptistery, and the astonishing Camera di San Paolo with its frescoes.
The day will end with a delightful dinner in a well-known restaurant in the city center. Night at the hotel.

Day 2 – “The Correggio Experience”

MORNING: Breakfast at the hotel. Your day will start with a guided tour of the Correggio Exhibition to discover masterpieces of the National Gallery such as “Madonna della Scodella” and “Madonna of San Gerolamo”, just to mention the most famous ones. Enjoy your lunch in a typical restaurant in the city center.

AFTERNOON: Transfer to the hillside of the Parma province to visit the permanent collection of Fondazione Magnani-Rocca, counting works by Gentile da Fabriano, Filippo Lippi, Albrecht Dürer, Tiziano, Rubens, Van Dyck, Goya, Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, de Pisis, Morandi, Burri, Canova, Lorenzo Bartolini, and many others.
Your visit will conclude with a special dinner in a private Italian Villa, which will open its doors exclusively for our guests (upon availability). After dinner, return to Parma and night at the hotel.

Day 3 – “The Gourmet Experience”

MORNING: Departure for the discovery of the gastronomic treasures that this land produces.
Visit a Parmigiano Reggiano producer to observe the time honored production method that has remained unchanged for centuries. The tour concludes with a tasting session of samples of Parmigiano Reggiano at the various stages of its aging process.
To follow, visit a producer of Prosciutto di Parma, the most famous ham of the world!
Your experience of the different flavors of Parma will end in a charming winery that will offer a rich tasting of wines paired with typical products.

AFTERNOON: You can choose between a relaxing shopping excursion at one of the most exclusive Chic Outlets in Italy or return to Parma for an arrivederci on your own to the beauties of the city.

Note: the 3 days/2 nights program here above may be subject to some modifications
Price per person (min. of 2 people): US$ 1,020.00 (VAT included)
Price per person in group (min. of 12 people): US$ 790.00 (VAT included)

In the deluxe version of “The Correggio Experience”, the package that will allow you to enjoy more of your Parma cultural and gourmet experience through a 4days/3nights stay and more initiatives, you will start Day 4 in a very intriguing way.

Day 4 – “The Cooking Experience”

MORNING: Breakfast at the hotel. Welcoming and tour of Academia Barilla, the world’s premier italian culinary facility.
Practical cooking class focused on the old recipes of the time and territory of the Correggio, taken from the prestigious books of the largest culinary library of the world inside Academia Barilla.
Lunch with the chef based on what you prepared during the course.

AFTERNOON: Free afternoon for individual visits and/or shopping through the charming streets of the center of Parma. Dinner in an elegant restaurant in the city centre. Night at the hotel.

Note: the 4 days/3 nights program here above may be subject to some modifications
Price per person (min. of 2 people): US$ 2,099.00 (VAT included)
Price per person in group (min. of 12 people): US$ 1,299.00 (VAT included)

For more info, details and booking for Academia Barilla’s cultural, culinary and gastronomic tours, including the Correggio Tour, please get in touch with Academia Barilla in Parma at +39 0521 264060 (toll-free number from Italy 800 376-116), or in the United States at the US toll-free number 1-866-772-2233.