Italian Food Lovers

Don’t miss this year’s Seattle Cheese Festival! Academia Barilla will be showcasing its line of authentic Italian food products on May 16th and 17th in Seattle at the famous Pike’s Place Market for the one and only Seattle Cheese Festival.

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 Read more…

Spring is in the air (and on our plates!) A look at three great springtime recipes found in the Academia Barilla Gastronomic Library.

Spring has sprung here in Italy, and it is no more evident than at the market. The stalls of radicchio and other bitter, winter greens are slowly disappearing, making way for next season’s fashions. What joy can be found in the arrival of tiny, tender fava beans, crisp radishes, spring onions and strong fragrance of fresh garlic. Read more…

To celebrate the month of March, we have decided to make an updated version of an Italian classic: risotto alla gorgonzola. Spring is just around the corner but until the temperatures begin to rise, we will take comfort in this creamy dish from northern Italy.

Gorgonzola is a blue cow’s milk cheese originally from the small town of Gorgonzola, located less than 15 miles northeast of Milan. For more information on this legendary Italian blue, be sure to check out Chef Matteo Carboni’s video presentation.

In this recipe, the spicy, piquant flavor of the gorgonzola is balanced by the sweetness of the fresh pear sauce. Follow the chef’s directions for making a perfectly rewarding risotto.
What a wonderful way to finish your day.

RISOTTO WITH GORGONZOLA AND FRESH PEAR SAUCE
Serves 4 to 6

INGREDIENTS
For the pear sauce:
- 3 pears, medium-sized
- ½ clove garlic Read more…

We had a slow start this year with the Italian Food Lovers blogs, mostly because we have been focusing on completing the launch of the new Academia Barilla website. Our blogging team has been heavily involved with the development of the content side for the new website, and this kept us from blogging with our usual frequency. 

While the Academia Barilla website is now completed, as well as all the new website features we invite you to explore, we are now working on the restyle/redesign of the Academia Barilla online store, that will be released in its new version soon.

We love our blog and we couldn’t stay away from it, so here we are again, back to blogging.

Since you can now discover gourmet recipes from the Italian regional gastronomic tradition at the new Academia Barilla website, we asked Barilla Executive Chef Lorenzo Boni to provide us with a recipe from our beloved region, Emilia-Romagna, and he provided us with a recipe for a classic dish: Veal Cotoletta alla Bolognese, that Chef Boni pairs with a side of Asparagus Tips and Cherry Tomatoes sautéed in Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Ready? Let’s go to the kitchen! Read more…

Final post on the new series of Italian gourmet Season Gift Sets from Academia Barilla, the new line Italy-in-a-box.

A true taste of Italian gastronomic culture, an experience that will evoke all your Italian food lover senses, Italy-in-a-Box is also a journey across the findings of
 Academia Barilla’s continue research into the gastronomic and cultural identities of the different regions of Italy.

Get this limited edition of gastronomic gems as a treat to yourself or as a gift to others, and get a selection of the best Italian regional products, simple and original tips for bringing the Italian flavor to your kitchen and your table, all with limited edition confections that can be personalized according to your taste.

Today we close our presentation of the gift set collection introducing other four Italy-in-a-Box gift sets: The Connoisseur’s Collection, Simply Tuscan, Artisanal Compote Trio, and Salt and Salt. Read more…