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Bono Furtuna A story about finding Olives in Sicily and more at chefshop.com/enews |
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Terra di famiglia
"all good things in life" From nonna to nipotino (From grandmother to grandson) Bona Furtuna is the result of a vision that started over half a century ago, with magical wondrous stories about a grandmother’s memory of home. Bona Furtuna means good fortune - "all good things in life" and what the Grandfather would say to his grandson every time they would say goodbye. And now it means a story of dreams fulfilled. The grandson went in search of the family land in Sicily, armed with only stories of the memories of a beautiful place. With the help of a Sicilian friend and local area officials, he was able to locate the land his grandmother had spoken of. The owner of the land turned out to be a distant cousin of his grandmother and a year later the grandson had purchased the terroir where his grandmother was born. When Steve, the grandson, discovered nine century-old Nocellara del Belice olive trees on the property, the trees became the next step in the process. Steve, his friend, and the Farm’s master Botanist, Dr. Pasquale Marino, started to plant olive trees on the property. They chose nine Sicilian heirloom olive varieties, including the Nocellara del Belice and one other ancient olive tree that Pasquale had found. The olive groves are irrigated with the natural springs that are abundant on the property. As they say, it’s the water that makes the olives great. This farm is doing more than just growing olives and making pasta, it is also supplying jobs to a local economy that has had tough times. With the profits, Steve and his wife, Agatha, also support the community by providing technology and musical instruments to the local schools. Additionally they support the Zimbardo-Luczo Foundation which provides scholarships for high school students in Corleone and Cammarata. In the US they donate to No Kid Hungry. Shop now for Bona Furtuna! |
Biancollila Centinaria Bona Futura has two wonderful oils. One is named Biancolilla Centinara, after the olive that is inside. This single varietal olive oil is really special. Dr. Marino and his team of researchers had found just 2 trees of this nearly extinct species in the wild. By cloning their root stock, they planted almost 5000 starters to bring this olive back to life. For Bona Fortuna it is not just about oil, it is also about promoting biodiversity. Many years later, this special grove is producing a unique, exclusive and special oil. Did we mention that this oil is a single varietal called Biancolilla Centinara - Ancient White Lilac - and is an olive that has been missing from the palate for a long, long time? 
To the nose it is very alive, full of green olive and fruit and a bit grassy—it’s lively.
To the tongue it is light, it floats like a cloud with a very, very light tingle of bitter. To the mouth it’s exciting and full of flavor. At first you don’t even think about the nuances, the “taste”, or the flavor, instead you simply enjoy it. Along with the first swig you get a tickle in the throat that gives you a delightful cough. The second swig is just what you want a Sicilian oil to be. With a good artichoke, a freshness like a field of spring flowers, and a buttery-ness that evolves into a wonderful mouth feel. What’s left after the oil has departed is a tingle on to the front of your tongue, but not all the way to the tip. It is tongue smacking lovely. With enough time your entire mouth will tingle in a really nice way, as well! Shop now for Bona Furtuna Biancollila Centinaria Organic Olive Oil! |
Heritage Blend An amazing blend of Sicilian Olives This blend of olives, ten to be exact, are all heritage olives that are being grown in Sicily. Including the Biancolilla Centinara, the olives that are in the Heritage Blend Nocellara del Belice (1000 years old) are the Cerasoula, Passalunara, Minuta, Moresca, Giarraffa, Nocellara Etnea, Piricuddara, Tonda Iblea. We have never heard of many of these olives which make this oil all the more intriguing! Blending olives is science and art. In the end it is more the art of science. And great taste! To the nose it is very robust, it fills the nose with olive oil and there are hints of green tomato and artichoke. 
To the tongue it feels wonderful. Lap a little up and it floats down the tongue to the back of the throat. Lap enough and you will get a good healthy bite and cough!
To the mouth it has a nice, round feel, a light buttery feel with wonderful notes of artichoke, the oil circles the tongue in a wonderful way. It is not an aggressive oil, but it is, in fact, incredibly vibrant with life. It is soft to the mouth and dissipates nicely. There is a gentle almond finish on the edge of the tongue and gentle rolling of tickling burn to cough in the back of the throat. The tingly feel lasts a very nice time. This oil is quite nice. It is complex, full of flavor, not quite like anything else. This oil is incredibly palatable. A spoonful is in fact, enjoyable to consume. If I had to choose, I would choose both! Shop now for Bona Furtuna Heritage Blend Organic Blend Olive Oil |
Aziz Pasta Ancient Grain Pasta from Buno Furtuna Sicily has a long history of food production. And a history of wars, revolution, tyrant leaders, Roman occupation and rebellions, all before anno domini. There was much disorder in the early AD’s as well. The latifundia, large property estates of the wealthy, who produced olive oil, wine and grains were very important to the economy of Sicily. Yet it also meant the larger estates took over the smaller ones, slaves were used to keep those farms prosperous and the landowners paid no land taxes. The latifunda effectively changed the agricultural foundation of the Roman Empire, transforming Roman peasant farmers from the working poor into the homeless. By the third century, Christianity had arrived in Italy and Sicily, along with many changes. Over the next few thousand years there were many more changes and much has also remained the same. The land, the earth, the terroir, of Sicily started as the collision of the Eurasian and African plates during the subduction of the African slab. This happened many years ago during the Paleogene Period, roughly 23 to 33 million years ago. Along with it came Mt. Etna, an active volcano, which on occasion spreads its healthy “breath” upon the land. This ash “breath” has made Sicily one of the greatest places on earth to grow things! 
Olives, of course, have been in Sicily a long time, and make for great eating and oil. I knew that; what I didn’t know is that wild and domesticated asparagus is also special here. And that grains have been grown here for thousands of years. Fabulous ancient grains.
Bona Furtuna is working with their neighbors to grow these ancient grains to make classic pasta. Using bronze dies to shape the pasta allows for the stipple to form. It’s this stipple, the rough surface, that allows the pasta to “grab” the sauce. You might notice that many pastas are very smooth, really super slick, so slick nothing sticks. Most likely these pastas are being extruded from a machine that uses teflon dies and the speed of the extraction creates friction and heat so it will dry instantly. At Bona Furtuna they dry pasta the old-fashioned way. They air dry the pasta for 14 hours. Not only does this allow the flour to mature for a better bite when cooked, it also enhances the stipple. All this creates a great taste! We love a great stipple, it is the best! Shop now for Bona Furtuna Ancient Grain Pasta! |
Busiate Organic Pasta A Sicilian Shape! Busiate is a pasta, like a spiraling staircase that is originally from Trapani province. The Sicilian word busa means the stem of stramma, a local grass, which was used to give the pasta its helical shape. Classically served with pesto alla trapanese. Shop now for Organic Busiate Pasta! |
Tagliatelle Organic Pasta Tagliatelle is a traditional shape from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The pasta is long and flat ribbons similar in shape to fettuccine. Classically served with a Bolognese sauce. Shop now for Organic Tagliatelle Pasta! |
Ditalini Organic pasta Ditalini, small thimbles, is a pasta that looks like short, small tubes. It is a common shape that is often called tunettini or short macaroni. Classic dishes would be pasta e fagioli, pasta with ricotta cheese and it is often used in soups as it can be eaten with a spoon. Shop now for Organic Ditalini Pasta! |
recipe Pasta with Pesto, Green Beans & Potatoes Recipe This is a classic Italian pasta dish - perfect for the early fall when the potatoes and beans are coming into the market and you begin to have a hankering for heartier fair. Although it is traditionally made with Fettuccine, any long pasta will work. In this case, the recipe calls for walnuts, as well as pine nuts. If the pesto becomes too thick, you can use some of the pasta water to thin the sauce. You should be careful to add the liquid a little bit at a time - after you have combined the pasta, pesto and veggies together. Click here to see the Recipe! |
Spaghetti Organic pasta Spaghetti is a wonderful shape. This one really shows its heritage as it is not perfectly straight, wavy in fact, from the air drying. It is also a shape we always test. You can learn a lot about a pasta when it is spaghetti. Shop now for Organic Spaghetti Pasta! |
Penne Rigate Organic pasta Penne Rigate is a cylindrical pasta with ribs and is cut on the bias. It is recognized often as a pasta shape from Italy. The shape is hearty enough to carry a strong meat sauce and has an interesting enough bite to be with a simple tomato and capers sauce. Shop now for Organic Penne Rigate Pasta! |
Mafaldine Organic Pasta Mafaldine pasta is a ribbon edge shaped pasta. Like a lasagna noodle, except narrower. Shop now for Organic Mafaldine Pasta! |
Fusilli Organic Pasta Fusilli pasta is a wonderful, fun shaped pasta. Hollow twist corkscrew with ridges is cool. Works well in heavy sauces and just as well, cold in a salad. When you bite down it has a bit of wiggle and squiggle. Shop now for Bona Furtuna Organic Fusilli Pasta! |
Order Now - Arriving this week Colomba Easter Panettone "Mom was thrilled, and so was my pastor!" -- roberta Tasting event coming .... Shop now for Colomba Easter Cakes! |
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Come in and try the new oil! |
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Rice Bran Oil! Delicate yet not very flavorful, rice bran oil just may be the world's healthiest edible oil. Rice bran oil comes from the most nutritious part of the rice grain, loaded with monounsaturated fats & polyunsaturated fats, as well as vitamin E. These are the good fats that help your body lose weight. Which means that Non-GMO rice bran oil is not only nutritious, but a superior salad, cooking, baking and frying oil that leaves no lingering aftertaste. Shop now for Essential Pantry Rice Bran Oil! 
Cooking Classes for 2020
Simple Cooking, Visit Sardinia, Visit Catalan, Visit Marrakech, Go to Sicily. ChefShop Cooking Class
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| This Week's Recipes |
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Pasta ala Carbonara Recipe Pasta ala Carbonara for 2. A spicy twist on a classic recipe using Mama Lil's Peppers, based on Michael Natkin's video, fabulous website and cookbook Herbavoracious. Buy this book from an independent bookseller - Herbivoracious: A Flavor Revolution, with 150 Vibrant and Original Vegetarian Recipes. This quick to prepare dish is delish, easy to do and with great ingredients, makes dinner new. Pasta con Bottarga Recipe In 1988, Giuliano Bugialli released a great cookbook called Bugialli on Pasta. (Simon and Schuster, 1988). Not only is it a great resource for many types of traditional vegetable and meat sauces for pasta, but it also contains a lot of information about regional pasta shapes and making pasta out of variety of flours. This recipe is an adaptation from one of Giulliano's recipes. So, of course, when we were looking for information about pasta and bottarga, we turned to Giuliano - and we were not disappointed. The reality is that most of the pasta sauces are pretty simple, and this recipe is no exception. In Italy, it is more about the quality and fresh flavor of the ingredients. If you start with the right ingredients, the outcome will be great. Bottarga is pressed salted mullet or tuna roe. It is a very common ingredient in Sardinia and Sicily, where seafood is abundant. However, bottarga is also gaining in popularity in the US - as more and more traditional imported products become available. Since the flavor of the bottarga is quite strong, it doesn't take much to make your pasta dish sing. Penne Pasta with Borlotti Beans & Kale Recipe Fresh kale and Italian borlotti beans pack this delicious pasta with carbohydrates, antioxidants, calcium, and vegetable protein. A young olive oil brings together the robust flavor of kale with the rib-sticking mellowness of beans and pasta. |
| See what you missed in previous Newsletters |
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Genovese, Tiger Eye, Col Pabst New Fish from Lummi Island and More Chef's Pick New Vinegar, Organic Olive Oils, More |
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