Scordo.com

Wines of Calabria

2010-03-09T15:49:51Z

(photo: Nonno Scordo's vineyard overlooking the sea near Bagnara Calabra)

Ciro is the most well known Calabrian wine here in the US and it's for good reason. The region of Ciro is situated on the eastern tip of Calabria, about a 4 hour trip north from Reggio Calabria. Ciro is designated a DOC wine or Denominazione di Origine Controllata, DOC is basically a fancy label meaning that any particular wine from an officially recognized region of Italy must be produced in specific well-defined regions, according to specific rules designed to preserve the traditional wine-making practices of the individual regions. Other, more famous, DOC wine regions include Chianti Classico and Barolo. There are three other labels you may see on wine bottles from Italy including Vino Da Tavola (table wine) , Vino a Indicazione Geografica (IGT), and Vino a Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) - just think of all these classifications as standards for wine making (with DOCG being the strictest standard). Here's a nice map that points out both DOC and DOCG regions in Calabria.

Back to Ciro, there are three standard types produced including a rosso (or red) made from the Gaglioppo grape, rosato (rose), and biano (white) made from the Greco grape. Some rosso wines also contain a mixture of Greco and trebbiano white grapes, but it must be less than 5 percent to meet DOC standards. Like most wines produced throughout the world, Ciro is meant to be consumed 3-4 years after production, but some Ciro Rosso can be aged 10+ years.

(photo: Nonno Latella and my father at the vineyard)

As the UndertheGrapeTree states, The Gaglioppo grape is usually left for blending, giving its blend a softer edge. Ciro Rosso is like Beaujolais or red Bourgogne (both from Fance), with soft red fruit, allspice and cinnamon flavors, notes of walnuts, and a bright, acidic stricture that matches up nicely with spicy meats, stuffed peppers, and pizza, lamb, and even fish like swordfish and sardine. If you've come across any Calabrian wines in your local wine shop, it's probably Librandi Ciro Rosso, which is a fine representation of the Gaglioppo grape (read on for a great, exclusive offer on Calabrian wines from Winechateau)

Another DOC zone in Calabria is Melissa (about a 30 minutes drive south of Ciro). The region of Melissa produces Ciro-like wines (mostly from Gaglioppo and Greco Nero) but doesn't have the same reputation (at least outside of Calabria) as Ciro.

Calabria has 12 DOC regions and they include:

- Ciro

- Bianco

- Bivongi

- Donnici

- Isola di Capo Rizzuto

- Lamezia Terme

- Pollino

- San Vito di Luzzi

- Savuto

- Scavigna

- Verbicaro

- Melissa

There are other wine producing regions in Calabria, but they all have the lesser IGT label which, in my view, doesn't take away from the quality of the wine produced in these areas. For example, near my parents place of birth in the province of Reggio Calabria there are many IGT zones including Arghillà, Costa Viola, Locride, Palizzi, Pellaro, and Scilla Given the intense regionalization in all of Italy it's common for locals to drink wines only from their specific micro-regions (hence the wine world's golden rule of drinking wines associated with a given regional cuisine; this rule is flexible, but I think drinking wines from the Costa Viola region along the western Calabria seacost with Swordfish and goat dishes for example is a great way to map foods with wine).Made In Italy also has a nice overview of wines from Calabria as well as Italian Made.

Finally, in honor of Calabrian wines, I've partnered with the good folks at Winechateau.com to offer free shipping on any wine in their online shop to one lucky Scordo.com reader, including some great Calabrian wines such as Librandi Ciro Duca Sanfelice Riserva and the Librandi Ciro Rosso Classico.

Here's what you'll need to do:

- 1. leave a comment on your favorite Italian wine (doesn't need to be from Calabria) and 2. sign up for the Scordo Facebook Fan page or Scordo.com newsletter, it doesn't need to be both). If you've done both already, then I'll ask you if you can please re-tweet the article on Twitter and include the article URL: http://bit.ly/ae4RqH and @scordo in your tweet)

- Only one entry per person please and only to US residents.

- The contest is open until 12 midnight on 3/13 and a single random user will be picked via Random.org. The winner will be announced immediately on Twitter (so please follow me) and on Scordo.com by 5PM on Monday, 3/15.

- Please use a valid email address when leaving a comment so I can contact you just in case you're the lucky winner (I'll need your email address to email you the free shipping code).

- You'll select and order your wine and enter your free shipping code at http://www.winechateau.com/ . Wine Chateau reserves the right to limit the amount of bottles ordered via the free shipping code promotion.

8 Tips to Make Great Pasta at Home: From My Childhood Block in New Jersey

2010-03-07T16:38:25Z

(photo: the backdrop isn't New Jersey but rather Nonno Scordo's farmland in Calabria. Nonno is in the center while my father is on the right and my Uncle is positioned on the left. All three men are/were excellent pasta eaters and the photo above is one of my favorites )

Growing up in Northern NJ on a densely packed block full of immigrant families (mostly from Calabria) both Thursday and Sunday were special days. That is to say, for many of the families on our tiny New Jersey block from Pellegrina, Bagnara Calabra, Grimoldo, and Ceramida Thursday and Sunday were designated as pasta days! My mother, from Pellegrina, would often make pasta with Tomato sauce on Sunday and then a more exotic pasta condiment on Thursday (maybe a ragu of rabbit with Pappardelle, for example). And I'm convinced our New Jersey block had a higher relative humidity on the aforementioned days because of of all the pots of boiling water going at once (ever notice why Italian kids have great skin!).

Here, then, are eight pasta tips gathered from the many Calabrian women on Oregon Avenue (from, say, 1979-1994) in New Jersey. Oh, enjoy your pasta today!

1. Buy the best possible dry pasta on the market. Like fine dress shoes, you get what you pay for in terms of dry pasta. Good dry pasta usually comes from Italy and is made with 100% semolina (Durham wheat) flour and spring water. The better Italian products are also made by hand. De Cecco is a fine readily available pasta brand. Rustichella d'Abruzzo uses slightly better ingredients for a nicer end product and is usually sold at Italian specialty shops.

2. Use lots of fresh boiling water. I have a dedicated pot when it comes to boiling water for pasta and I always overcompensate when it comes to the amount of water needed. You want lots of water so that the pasta doesn't stick during the cooking process.

3. Salt the water right before adding your pasta and as soon as you have a good, rolling, boil going. Not including a healthy amount salt in your pasta water is the equivalent of eating a tomato without salt, so please use plenty of it!

4. Once you add your dry pasta to the pot stir often and don't walk away from the pot. You don't need to nurse a pot of cooking pasta like risotto, but you should certainly stir every 2-3 minutes.

5. Most brands include cooking times depending on pasta shapes so it's important to time when you add your pasta to the boiling water. Al dente (or to the tooth) is the golden rule, but I know plenty of dyed-in-the-wool northern and southern Italians who go well beyond the al dente cooking time period, Nonno Scordo, for example, preferred rigatoni and penne at 1-3 minutes over al dente. Like finding your niche in the wine world, you should cook pasta to your taste, but please don't turn it into mush (just keep in mind there should be some give when chewing pasta). Finally don't add olive oil (or any oil for that matter) to your pot.

6. Add your drained pasta to your hot pan containing the condiment or sauce and never vice versa. Adding your pasta to the hot pan containing the sauce will allow you to cook through the pasta for an extra 30-90 seconds. You should also save some of the starchy pasta water just in case you're looking to change the consistency of your sauce. You don't always need to add pasta water to your sauce, as many FoodTV personalities do. Moreover, do not rinse your pasta after the cooking process (again because the pasta contains a coating of starch that allows your condiment to adhere to the pasta).

7. Finish your pasta with a bit of olive oil (I almost always add a bit of olive oil to my completed pasta dish). The oil gives your pasta dish an additional fresh oil component and just finishes the dish. You can add grated cheese to your pasta during the mixing of pasta and sauce in your pan and then again at the table. You can use Parmigiano-Reggiano, Grana Pa'dano (a great substitute for the more expensive Parmigiano-Reggiano) , or Pecorino Romano (note Pecorino Romano is not a substitute for Parmigiano-Reggiano)

8. Watch your portions. Most Italians have pasta as a starter for any given dinner or lunch and not as the main dish. A quarter pound of pasta for two people, for example, is deal.

History of Calabria

2010-03-05T16:59:01Z

(photo: the picture is taken from Pellegrina looking down on the seacost town of Bagnara Calabra.)

As many of you know, my parents (and extended family) were all born in the southern Italian province of Calabria (specifically in a tiny hilltop village called Pellegrina). The region of Calabria is comprised of mountains, multiple seas, farms, small and large towns, and even a few urban centers. The history of Calabria is tumultuous and is part of why the Italian region has been so underrepresented in the Italian storybook (afterall, you don't hear tourists talking about their trip to Reggio or their recent wine and food tasting tour of the Calabrian country side ).

(photo: the village of Pellegrina and associated villages.)

If you're interested in reading more about Calabria you can quickly read a history of Calabria via Michelle from Bleeding Espresso. Michelle also has a great book resource page where she highlights books about the Calabrian region (make sure to sort the books by "southern Italy").

In terms of an accessible cookbook on the food of Calabria, I really like Mary Palmer's Cucina di Calabria. Not only is Palmer's book full of easy recipes, there's also some great content on the history of Calabria, the story of immigration, and the beverages and wine of the region.

Paccheri with Olive Oil, Parmigiano Reggiano, and Course Ground Pepper

2010-03-03T15:47:23Z

I like all types of pasta shapes, but one of my favorites is Paccheri from Rustichella. Paccheri is a super variant of rigatoni (without the ridges) and best prepared with chunky sauces (such as a ragu with rabbit, for example).

However, I like to cook up a batch of Paccheri and simply add very good extra virgin olive oil, freshly grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Grana Padano, and lots of coursley ground black pepper. If I have fresh ricotta (recipe to come!) in the house then I would include a bit of it as well.

Enjoy the dish with a glass of Aglianico from Campania or Basilicata

SagaForm 11 3/4 Oz. Vacuum Flask: Exclusive Offer for Scordo.com Readers

2010-03-02T16:54:25Z

At just under $15.00 the Sagaform vacuum flask is a great value and made from tough stainless steel. Bring espresso or French Press style coffee to the office with you and save big on coffee runs!

But, wait, there's more! Use the exclusive coupon code for Scordo.com reader (scordo50) and get 50% off!

Click here to purchase one for your coffee obsessed friend, husband, or blogger!

Portable Espresso Take Three: MyPressi Twist Review

2010-03-01T21:03:02Z

(Photo: Espresso machine meets the Star Trek Enterprise)

I was a big fan of the Sci-Fi series Battlestar Galactica. Battlestar, as it was known to series insiders, was serious science fiction that was elegantly produced with big ideas, a great script, and blissful (almost film noir) type visuals. The central plot of Battlestar centered on man made machines called Cylons that evolved into sentient and free will-laden beings that ultimately destroy all of humanity (this is why we shouldn't train primates) except, of course, for a few interstellar space ships and it's human inhabitants (I forget how much of humanity was left, but I think it was under 500 and it didn't include Joan Rivers).

The very first iterations of the Cylon machines were robot-looking with lots of shiny stainless steel, curved surfaces, and proportions that weren't exactly right (kind of like an Audi TT). The Cylons evolved and eventually came to look like humans, but it's the first iteration of the Cylons that I immediately thought of when I layed eyes on the MyPressi Twist portable espresso machine by Espressi, Inc. No, I didn't think the MyPressi espresso machine was going to obliterate New Jersey and most of my Italian friends and family, but the large circular head and sleek curved handle somewhat mirrored the Cylons or better yet the StarTrek Generations version of the space ship Enterprise.

I can assure you after using the MyPressi Twist for a few weeks that the machine has only one major existential goal, namely, to produce world class espresso at home. And produce quality espresso the Twist surely does!

(photo: packaging is nice, but Handpresso had nicer packaging materials ala Apple)

Here are the produict details: The MyPressi Twist is comprised of aluminum (I'm making an assumption) and plastic components and weighs about 38 ounces (or a little over 1 kilogram). The unit measures in at less than 11 inches in length and is capable of producing 135 psi or 35 bars of pressure (this is important). The unit comes with a ton of accessories including a carrying case, tamper, drip catcher coaster, o-ring replacement kit, and baskets for both fine espresso and more coarse espresso used in a stovetop espresso unit like the Bialetti. The pressure is derived from N20 gas cartridges which are recyclable. One gas cartridge will produce 8 single or 4 double shots of espresso. The Twist handles freshly ground espresso or ESE pods and a typical extraction lasts about 25 seconds. The unit requires hot, boiling, water. The unit retails for $169.00 (you can find it for $149.00 at OpenSky and help support Scordo.com!) and comes with 5 N2O cartridges; you can purchase additional cartridges for $15.84 (24 pack).

(photo: all the parts!)

(photo: group head)

(photo: closeup of water chamber, where's the water line? took some time to find)

I used my Twist in a home environment with fresh boiling water produced via a Krups water kettle. I used both illy fine grind coffee and Lavazze Crema e Gusto Ground coffee, 8.8counce brick. I didn't use freshly ground coffee with the Twist because I don't think most users purchasing the unit will be grinding their own beans via a burr grinder (unlike say a coffee enthusiast purchasing the Rancilio Silvia). Twist espresso was sampled by 6 individuals (including yours truly, my Italian born father/mother/aunt/uncle, and US born cousin (all are avid espresso drinkers and have experience drinking coffee in Italy and the US Bialetti stovetop espresso>). Here are my wholly unscientific observations:

1. The Twist produces semi-automatic type espresso at home, meaning the coffee is similar to espresso brewed in units costing between 4X-8X more than the $169.00 Twist. And even with pre-ground coffee, the Twist produced a lovely crema head that hung to the side of the espresso cup. The espresso itself had complex notes of chocolate and almond. The espresso had a nice consistency and was very "clean" tasting but maybe a little "bright" as other reviewers pointed out. Twist espresso is no where near a ristretto type of espresso, even when pulling a single shot. The Twist easily produces a better cup of coffee than most mediocre semi and fully automatic home machines and in terms of coffee quality beats both the Handpresso Wild Domepod and Wild ESE.

(photo: required top water lid)

(photo: pulling a shot, took a couple of trials to learn the machine)

(photo: with my third pull I was finally producing good crema)

2. The Twist is a cumbersome and a bulky son-of-a-gun to use. The unit is comprised of a group head, handle, water container, water container top, basket, and diverter lid (which funnels the coffee into a one or two cups). It took me multiple times to learn how to assemble the unit and moreover align both the group head and diverter lid to the handle set (even with clear indicator marks visible). Moreover, filling the water container and thereafter the basket with coffee can get messy so it's best to do this over a large kitchen towel. Unscrewing all the components after use was also messy and I had to use a dish towel to unscrew the group head from the handle because some of the part stuck. Dumping the coffee grounds from the small basket required the use of a spoon to dig out the grinds. In terms of ease of use I'd opt for the Handpresso Domepod.

3. It's no secret the Twist produces great espresso because of the use of N20 cartridges, the cartridges produce the necessary pressure but there are two huge drawbacks to this system: 1. cartridges are expensive and yet another required accessory and 2. a single cartridge only lasts 3-4 (double) shots. A single shot was not enough coffee for an individual, in my view (and my guests agreed). A single shot is appropriate when drinking authentic ristretto or corto because of the richness of the end product, but in all other espresso drinking cases a long or double is the appropriate amount of coffee for a single person (or an almost full standard espresso cup).

(photo: you need N02 cartridges for the MyPressi)

4. The temperature of the espresso was not adequate. I used boiling water (seconds after coming to a boil) and also preheated my espresso cups with boiling water for several minutes and all my guests had the same reaction: the coffee is excellent but the coffee temperature is not correct or appropriate (this equivalent to making a wonderful tomato sauce and buying imported dry pasta from Italy only to bite into your first forkful of linguine and realize you undercooked the pasta and it's incredibly crunchy, it just ruins the whole experience).

5. The Twist uses a considerable amount of coffee. The standard basket uses 21 grams of ground espresso or almost 4.5 teaspoons of coffee for a double shot. The unit is designed for single coffee drinker so don't plan on using the Twist for a dinner party.

6. From an industrial design perspective, and like the Chemex drip coffee maker, the Twist is a nice piece of consumer gadgetry and design and all Sci-Fi analogies aside it looks nice and will easily impress your techie and art scene friends, if that's your goal in life.

Overall, the MyPressi Twist surprised me immensely as I didn't expect the unit to pull the quality shots it did and when compared to some semi-automatic home machines it's a steal in terms of price and size (there's no bulky machine sitting on your counter top, just slide it into your kitchen drawer).

However, only single cup espresso drinkers should purchase the Twist because it's really designed for single use and moreover requires additional components to work (namely, the purchase of N20 cartridges on a consistent basis which makes my frugal alter ego cringe).

If you're willing to sacrifice how your espresso tastes and want ease of use without the additional expensive of buying cartridges (including easy clean up) then opt for a Handpresso Wild Domepod for $88.95 (non ESE pod version). If you're the occasional, single dose, espresso drinker and value quality over an easier use experience go and get yourself a MyPressi Twist!

Here's the NY Times Magazine take on the MyPressi Twist.

Recipe: Uovo Rotto al Aqua con Cipolla e Prezzemolo or Poached Eggs with Onion and Parsley

2010-03-01T03:39:09Z

(photo: poached eggs with parsley and onion)

My mother can pretty much make a fabulous meal out of anything she has laying around the house (her culinary skill set constantly amazes me). Here's a classic example: uovo rotto al aqua con cipolla e prezzemolo, literally translated from the Calabrian dialect, "egg broken over water with onion and parsley" or poached eggs with parsley and onion.

My mother's recipe is not technically a variant of poached eggs but rather a type of gently fried egg.

Let's start with what you'll need:

- 4 large eggs (buy good eggs as they're the king of the show)

- 2 tablespoon of olive oil

- 2 tablespoons of water

- 1 large onion finely diced

- Bunch of parsley fined diced

- 2 teaspoons of dried oregano

- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Start by sautéing the sliced onion in 1 tablespoon of olive oil (add salt and pepper to taste). Once the onion has become softened and slightly caramelized add the chopped parsley and stir well. Next add the remaining olive oil and water and crack 4 eggs into your sauté pan (in separate parts of the pan). Sprinkle the eggs with the dried parsley and a bit more salt and freshly grounded pepper. Cover the sauté pan with a lid and gently cook for 5-10 minutes depending on how cooked you like your eggs (I prefer my egg yolk runny).

You can serve uovo rotto al aqua with some good wheat bread, cured green olives, and some simply prepared risotto, and an arugula salad with vinaigrette. Serve the eggs with a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough in New Zealand.

On The Myth of Equating Poor Eating Habits with Economic Class or Spending Power

2010-02-24T19:42:24Z

(photo: Bok Choy with garlic, olive oil, and red pepper flakes: $2.00 for 2 pounds)

One of the critical life lessons I learned from my Italian family is how to value food. Specifically, I was taught:

1., how to cook and the closely associated idea of,

2., why food is important and should be taken seriously.

My mother taught me the mechanics of making all sorts of foods from scratch, ranging from pasta to risotto and roasted baby goat to pan seared swordfish. And at the same time, I learned how important it was to make time for preparing food and, thereafter, sharing it at a communal table with family and friends (and to repeat the process as much as possible). I equate the latter lesson I was taught as an Italian boy to the importance of reading and scholarly endeavors in the Jewish tradition, for example. The idea of food being important and necessary for a good quality life is in my blood and I can't imagine living any other way (I know people who place incredible value on Yankee baseball or shiny new car every three years; misguided values or to each his own?).

In turn, it comes as a great shock and disappointment when one looks around and sees a culture of fast food, obesity, and the general lack of importance in relation to consuming homemade food in the US. Specifically, we hear many reasons from the so-called "food experts", including the notion that buying quality ingredients to produce fresh and homemade food is an expensive endeavor in the United States (ask a European how expensive food can be). And, moreover, it's more economical for a family of four to purchase dinner and lunch from McDonald's, for example, then to go out and buy fresh food (this isn't the view of the food expert). What the experts are implying is that poor people choose fast food and other high calorie meals because they have no choice and are priced out from shopping for fruits, vegetables, fish, meats, grains, etc.

To the latter assertion I say, "that's nonsense!" And, yes, I'm going to turn to the recent immigrants storybook to illustrate that one doesn't not need to spend a fortune to eat well and, moreover, that a family of four can take his or her fast food budget and prepare "from scratch" meals that are quick, cheap, and taste good (eating well doesn't equate to great spending power, as the folks at SeriousEats.com seem to suggest when responding to one of Pollan's eating tips).

(photo: One pound of Wild Flounder made with breadcrumbs, olive oil, and lemon zest. The fish easily fed four people: $9.99 per pound or $10.00 for serving of four).

Let's take the price of an average meal at McDonalds for four and say that the Smith family will consume 4 medium size French fries, 3 cheeseburgers, 1 6 piece chicken McNugget, and 4 medium sizes Cokes (let's assume dinner will cost about $20; I don't have access to a menu with prices so I just estimated). With that same $20 I can head to my local independent market (some would call it a gourmet market) and purchase the following items for dinner (I actually bought these items for dinner two days ago):

- 1 pounds of wild flounder fillet for $9.99 per pound or $10.00

- 1 box of artisan ravioli from Vitamia in Lodi, NJ (16 total ravioli) for $4.50

- 2 medium sized Bok Choy heads (about 2lbs for 99 cents a poud) for $2.00

- 1 loaf of Sullivan Street bread (this is a large bread which will last a few days) for $3.50

- Total: $20.00

Note: I live in a region of the US where the cost of living is high.

With the above ingredients I made baked flounder with breadcrumbs, lemon zest, and olive oil, ravioli with already prepared homemade tomato sauce, and sautéed bok choy with garlic and olive oil. We consumed the bread with our fish and vegetable. We did finish up our meal with two fresh pears and two oranges that were purchased during a different trip to the market. The meal fed 4 adults (with an appropriate sized portion of fish, vegetable, and bread per person and we started the meal with 4 ravioli per serving).

Our meal was tasty, satisfying, made with fresh ingredients, and for the exception of the ravioli and bread, prepared at home. You could certainly make your own bread and pasta at home, and keep price down, but for a Mon-Fri type of meal this is the sort of "pre packaged" items that are ok to buy, in my view.

(photo: Artisan ravioli made by Vitamia in Lodi, NJ with homemade tomato sauce with mushrooms, made a few nights earlier: 1 pound for $4.50 ).

So, why is it that many poor to middle income families choose the fast food route when it comes to meal choice? Could the families who choose prepared food not be ingrained with the idea that consuming quality food is important? If not for my specific culture and upbringing, for example, I certainly would not consider food an important part of living in the US because it's not taught at school or praised in the media. Therefore, a probable explanation for eating habits in the US may be cultural norms rather than income or access to fresh ingredients. In sum, I choose to spend my twenty dollars for wild/fresh fish, greens, artisan bread, and handmade ravioli, as opposed to prepared French fries, cheeseburgers, Coke, and deep fried chicken nuggets, because I was taught from an early age to value food and make it at home. Eating well isn't a byproduct of socio-economic factors (don't listen to the food experts), but rather how one is raised and views the preparation and consumption of food. Being poor doesn't force you to eat at McDonald's, rather being taught that consuming pre-made food is acceptable (from an early age) and part of how one lives is the culprit.

A Kitchen Scale for Everyone: Pasta Portion Control and GiveAway!

2010-02-23T17:08:52Z

(The unit comes in many colors and is perfectly sized. The two simple buttons are large and easy to use. The LCD screen is huge and there's no guessing the amount when scrambling in your kitchen preparing a dinner party)

Update: Congrats to Ami for winning the contest. The giveaway is now closed.

For years, I've used a Salter metal body kitchen scale to measure everything from pasta portions to cups of flour for baking (well, my wife is the baker so she uses the scale for measuring flour for sweets). We also use our scale to measure cereal and oatmeal amounts so we don't overeat (especially when we're consuming Cheerios!) The Salter is a practical enough kitchen tool but I've always had a secret dislike for the product because it 1. is large and takes up valuable countertop space and 2. is not precise. I do like the industrial design of the tool and if our kitchen was a museum I would indeed leave it out for guests to admire, but a home kitchen is first and foremost a practical space where the user (or home cook) completes tasks (that is, makes food)!

In turn, I've been looking for a replacement for our Salter for years and it looks like I just found an elegant and cheap solution, namely the EatSmart kitchen scale. The EatSmart takes up a fraction of the space my old Salter occupied and is also more precise; kind of like an old Model T being replaced by a modern vehicle with a turbo engine and electronic stability control! The electronic kitchen scale can also measure in ounces, lbs, grams, and kgs. It also has a handy tare feature which eliminates the weight of whatever item your flour, pasta, etc. is being held in (a bowl or measuring cup, for example). The scale is easy to use (a big plus for someone who takes ergonomics seriously) and has an auto off button so you don't go wasting battery life! I can't talk to reliability as of yet as I've only been using the scale for a few weeks, but I can say that I've had no significant problems thus far. One thing I was concerned about was moving from a device that didn't require batteries or electricity to another "powered" kitchen item (in the case of the EatSmart, 2 AAA batteries). And while batteries are needed I think the accuracy and functionality of the digital scale outweigh the use of batteries (just a Green acknowledgement). The device retails for $27.99.

>>Order a GardenSmart Scale via The OpenSky Project and help support Scordo.com!

One of the other reasons I get excited about kitchen scales is that they are great mediums to keep calories and portion sizes top of mind when cooking. For example, even though I've grown up with dry pasta and can pretty much tell you how many grams of linguine fine I'm holding in my hand, I occasionally guess wrong and cook too much pasta for one sitting. And what ends up happening inevitably is that I consume a larger amount of pasta (usually with a dish like Alio e Olio) than I would like (especially given that I include pasta as a primo or starter at home between 1-2 nights per week).

Kitchen Scale Giveaway!

(Kind of looks like a space ship from Star Trek Generations)

In an effort to control the world wide problem of eating too much pasta (or any food for that matter!) I'll be giving away a single EatSmart digital kitchen scale to one lucky Scordo.com reader. Here's what you need to do to enter:

- 1. leave a comment under this post on how you use your kitchen scale or an incident on eating too much of one food and not really being aware of it (for example, pasta, potato chips, Cheerios, etc.) and 2. sign up as a fan of Scordo.com on Facebook here or Scordo.com newsletter, it doesn't need to be both). If you've done both already, then I'll ask you if you can please re-tweet the article URL (http://bit.ly/b6wR9u) on Twitter and include the article URL and and @scordo in your tweet)

- Only one entry per person please.

- The contest is open until 12 midnight on 2/27 and a single random user will be picked via Random.org. The winner will be announced immediately on Twitter (so please follow me) and on Scordo.com by 5PM on Monday, 3/1.

>>Order a GardenSmart Scale via The OpenSky Project and help support Scordo.com!

- Please use a valid email address when leaving a comment so I can contact you just in case you're the lucky winner (I'll need your shipping address).

- EatSmart will send out the digital scale to a single contest winner during the week of 3/1 (you should receive it within 7-10 business days).

That's it, so please sign up for a chance to win a kitchen product that all home cooks should own and use! If you can't wait to use the EatSmart kitchen scale, you can buy it online via the OpenSky Project (proceeds go towards supporting Scordo.com). If you don't see the product on my page right away, come back tomorrow in the AM.

By the way, here's my recipe for my favorite pasta dish of all time.

How to Negotiate With Contractors Before and During a Home Improvement Project: 12 Tips

2010-02-22T19:45:07Z

(Some home improvement projects are just too big for the average homeowner to take on him or herself. Case in point, when a 100+ year old Silver Maple falls across the entire width of your street.)

Like many first generation college grads, I come from a long line of blue collar workers (I don't like this phrase as, in my experience, many old world "blue collar workers" are as capable and technical as the average college grad here in the US). My father was trained as an electrician, but has a skill set ranging from plumbing and carpentry to landscaping and roofing. Both of my father's brothers are also skilled craftsmen and their expertises include metal working/welding and carpentry. If I extend my family connections further, the list grows to include professional landscapers, blacktop and cement experts, general contractors, finish carpenters and framers, masons, commercial and residential plumbers, etc.

My hands on skill set, however, is limited. I can count my home improvement skills on a single hand (and I include painting and mowing the lawn high on the list; not very impressive tasks). In turn, I often work with my father on running most of the home improvement projects on our 80+ year old home. And while I've picked up the occasional hands on skill from my father, I've learned to love and master the second most important home ownership skill set; namely, negotiating with contractors.

Even with a large family-based home improvement network it's often necessary to contract out large jobs given a special skill set, piece of equipment, or simple lack of time to get the project done yourself. A necessary home improvement project you may need to outsource to an expert may include pouring a new cement sidewalk, laying a new asphalt driveway, installing a new roof, sanding and installing new hardwood floors, tiling a bathroom, or removing a large tree from your local street (see above).

When it comes to outsourcing a home improvement project and , in turn, negotiating with contractors and tradesmen here are 12 home grown tips keep in mind. By utilizing the tips below you'll be certain to get the best price and highest quality tradesmen to work on your project:

1. Avoid amateurs and new businesses. Young and inexperienced individuals and businesses often charge less for a given service and while you may save a few bucks on that new exterior paint job or new furnace for example, you'll end up paying more over the life of the service or item installed. Hire a bunch of college students to paint your home, for example, and they'll often skimp on the preparation side of exterior painting which includes finely sanding the given surface. And if you paint on a surface not prepared correctly, you'll need to paint again the following year.

2. Get at least three bids or estimates. If you don't have at least three estimates for a home improvement project you'll have no basis to compare what a job should cost. Moreover, when you talk to as many specialists as possible you'll begin to learn what it's going to take to build a new deck or put in a new roof (and with knowledge comes the ability to negotiate).

3. Avoid hiring a general contractor most of time. Most general contractors are not hands on and as a homeowner you'll basically be paying a single individual to act as a glorified coordinator. You can skip the GC mark up and contact the individual tradesmen directly. Yes, you'll need to spend some time researching who you need to call to get a particular home renovation project completed, but you'll save big by bypassing a general contractor. I've often been told by general contractors when I push them on pricing that, "hey, I have to make some money here, Vince" My reply, "go and find someone else to make money on I'm not going to need your services!"

4. Avoid using "experts" or installers from big box stores like Home Depot and Lowes. It may seem convenient to hire the local carpet or window installers from Home Depot but there are plenty of horror stories I've heard and the expertise level is often very low with the aforementioned crews.

5. Ask folks in your neighborhood for recommendations on the top carpenters, plumbers, and electricians in your area. If you're lucky enough to have a mom and pop hardware store in your town then ask the owner for tips on good tradesmen in the area. And don't forget to check out completed jobs in your neighborhood (your standard for what constitutes good work may be higher than the 80 year old Mrs. Smith down the block). Also, don't forget to check local online message boards and visit the Better Business Bearru web site.

6. Negotiate fiercely and make it a point to tell the contractor you're not desperate to get the project done and you're looking for the best price and a quality job. If you know you need a new roof then don't wait until you have water coming in from your second floor ceiling to get bids and select a roofer. If you know someone more knowledgeable than yourself then have them at your house when meeting a contractor to get an estimate. And as I said earlier, prepare yourself with a bit of research so that you can talk specifics about the job you are looking to get done. If you get a strange vibe or a bid comes in too high or too low then tell the contractor to take a hike (remember this is a business transaction and you're not looking to become best of friends).

7. When getting down to an estimate let the contractor give you a bid without much in the way of negotiations (you don't want to reveal too much about what you're willing to pay); at this point, you want to get a baseline price on what s/he is charging for the given service/work. Get the estimate in writing and move on to the next scheduled estimate or contractor. After going through several estimates and work samples, you'll have a sense for who you'd like to use. Have the contractor come over again (don't negotiate on the phone) and tell him you'd like to move forward but that his quote is beyond what you expected and can afford. Usually the contractor will reduce his estimate by about 10 percent. State that it's still too high and that you've received 3-4 other estimates for similar work. The contractor will probably come down again. Next, tell him you'll pay for the entire project in cash and also do any of the prep work or demo work necessary (if you don't have cash to get the work done, you may want to think twice about being a home owner and maintaining a home). The contractor should come down again. Finally, tell him you're willing to recommend his service to friends and family. His final estimate should be between 20%-30% lower than his first quote (depending on the size of the job).

8. Before accepting any bid check out the contractors work on at least two similar projects and, if possible have a conversation with the home owners who used the given contractor. Ask the home owner if the contractor did the work himself or relied on a crew and if they showed up on time and worked neatly. Finally, ask if the project was completed on time and if s/he met your expectations from a end product and work process perspective.

9. Put as little money down at the beginning of the project as possible. If the contractor screams desperation that he needs money to secure supplies or materials then the contractor is probably not right for you. If the job is large, then you may want to promise the contractor a small amount (maybe 10-20 percent of the total job) at some mid point milestone. Remember, you need to have some incentive so that the contractor shows up every day and finishes the job on time. My standard line to contractors who ask for money upfront is, "why should I give you money if you haven't given my anything in return?"

10. Get everything in writing and be compulsive about the details. Have the contractor document begin and end time (even if it's an estimate), materials used, who will do the work, insurance, warranty on service and materials, etc.

11. If you've selected a contractor try to be home for at least a few hours during the first day of work and then at random times during the project lifecycle. Check the contractors work and ask questions. If the contractor is not doing something according to what you specified in the contract or what you verbally agreed to ask him or her to correct the issue. Don't expect to have thing go your way if you don't manage the work or contractor in some capacity. Before making your final payment inspect the work.

12. If the contractor wants to put up a sign advertising his or her work on your front lawn tell the contractor you don't offer free marketing services so s/he can either reduce his estimate again or keep his, "another quality job done by ABC Corp." in his pick up truck. If at the end of the project the contractor has done a great job ask for some business cards and pass around to friends and family.

Remember that most older homes in the US will need constant home improvement work (here are 5 areas not to ignore) and that learning how to complete a given job or project yourself (if done correctly and with quality) can save you thousands of dollars per year. If you must use a contractor, then treat the negotiation and the project as a sort of game where your end goal is to get the highest quality work done and the lowest possible price point (in other words, love to haggle!).

Wolf Duel Fuel Range: My Personal Experience

2010-02-17T21:27:47Z

(photo: the DF366, or 36 inch, 6 burner, Duel Fuel Wolf range with custom burner lids from Uncle Frank)

I live by the rule that you don't need fancy kitchen equipment to produce great food. I'm also a fierce believer in kitchen tools that have multiple uses (via Alton Brown's mantra that one use tools should not have a place in a home kitchen) and I cringe at expensive home cooking machines like the Sous Vide Supreme and manual kitchen gadgets like a mandolin or pizza stone. Of course, the three kitchen tools in the previous sentence all work and do their respective tasks well, but the question every home cook needs to ask (just like any good consumer) is: do I really need a particular tool to cook and eat well? As an example, I turn to the many extraordinary home cooks in my family. Specifically, I remember my well traveled grandmother who prepared all of her food via an aged 1.5 foot by 1 foot maple cutting board and small plastic handled steak knife from Italy. She used the knife to dice, chop, and slice and pretty much utilized the "cut into your pan or pot" method of cooking (the cutting board was decorative). My mother, for example, has never owned a dishwasher, chef's knife, Boos cutting board, All-Clad cookware, etc. and only recently converted over to using a Kitchen Aid Mixer for pizza dough. And let's just say that the type of cuisine both women were/are producing would make even the fiercest food snob / "expert" salivate with envy.

It's with a slightly guilty conscious, then, that I admit to owning a necessary, but highly gluttonous, kitchen product; namely, the gentrified industrial range (it's insulated and will not catch on fire randomly, so it's not truly industrial or commercial). The product in question is the duel fuel 36 inch, 6 burner, Wolf range (model DF366, specifically). Yes, the monstrous cooking machine that contains enough stainless steel metal to sustain 2 or 3 southern Italian provinces (a crafty Calabrian would, for example, sell the metal from the stove and live a comfortable life via the profits; this is what my father thought when I showed him the unit).

Our Wolf stove was installed about two years ago and replaced a 25 year old four burner Thermador range top. Our old Thermador worked but it was reaching the end of its product lifecycle and it required that we light each burner (one of which didn't work) with a match. When it came down to selecting a new stove we turned to the so-called high end brands like Wolf, Thermador, Viking, and a few other manufactures at the local "fancy appliance" shop (like a luxury car showroom without the exhaust fumes).

Click here for my "Guide to Renovating Your Kitchen"

Prior to purchasing our range, I had done my research via third party rating organizations, online message boards and forums (see the GardenWeb Kitchen Forum for a great resource), and, of course, the product literature from each of the manufactures. However, and uncharacteristically, I made my choice based on design/aesthetics and, to a lesser extent, on performance. For example, I knew the Wolf Duel Fuel 36 inch range wasn't going to boil water faster than our 25 year old range top and, most likely, require more maintenance and possibly have some sort of reliability issue down the road (Wolf model DF366 has more electronic wizardry than my Mazda3 station wagon) but I still lusted after the large hunk of metal. I wouldn't necessarily say I made a poor choice when it came to selecting a new stove, but I certainly didn't make the logical choice as there were plenty of smaller, and less expensive, 4 burner gas/convection type stoves on the market.

In turn, I wanted to share some specific insight on my personal experience with a semi-industrial (insulated) "professional type" range with anyone considering the same type of product for their next kitchen renovation. Here are my unstructured thoughts on the $7,000+ Wolf 36 inch duel fuel range (6 burner set up):

- Aesthetically, the stove looks great and when all of the stainless steel, black enamel, and burners are cleaned and polished you'll get goosebumps whenever you walk by it. The stove resembles an Audi sedan with conservative, yet elegant, lines. And from an build perspective, the unit is more in line with a fine watch than a box that heats things up. Note, I've experimented with a few stainless steel cleaners and polish and only one has worked well; that is, Wolf's recommended "Signature" polish (which seems to be made specifically for Wolf).

- The stove is a royal pain in the butt to keep clean if you cook consistently. The stainless steel attracts smudges and scratches easily. The black enamel cook top requires daily soap and water to keep clean and if it's not buffed with a clean cotton rag you will get annoyed by all of the smudges.

- The large, porcelain coated, grates are very heavy and difficult to move (which is required when cleaning the black enamel surface). Further, the grates quickly turned gray due, I'm thinking, to our metal pots rubbing against the cast iron grates (this happened with our fancy Shaw's Original porcelain sink as well; note to these two manufacturers when constructing items out of porcelain please use the same material Italian porcelain tile is made out of as they are truly indestructible). To Wolf's credit when I called to complain about the grates they simple sent out new grates.

- The sealed burners have a grey, metal material, that quickly stained on our unit and I haven't been able to remove the brown/black spots to date. This is annoying especially when the rest of the stove is clean, yet brown spots persist on the sealed burner material.

- The burners themselves are of high quality and 5 out of the 6 burners are capable of producing 15,000 BTUs (I know that many food "experts" will yell at me and say that the BTUs are not high enough and established a good sear, for example, is not possible; to the naysayer I say: "That's no true." All 6 burners have a simmer setting and 1 burner is capable of a Melt feature with only 9,200 BTU.

- The auto ignite burners have worked flawlessly and are well engineered overall.

- The large oven takes an inordinary amount of time to reach temperature and to boot it's quite loud during operation (including venting which happens for a prolonged period of time after the oven is turned off). We purchased a smaller Cadco convection oven and we end up using the unit more than the Wolf oven given the aforementioned issues.

- The oven has ten cooking modes but beyond the "convection" and "broil" modes I can't differentiate between the remaining eight modes, including "roast" and "bake" (for example, if I want to bake a ham is it the same as roasting it - which mode do I use?)

- The pivoting electronic control panel is easy to use and does retract flush against the stainless front (a nice design feature which creates a very clean look when pushed closed).

- The adjustable oven racks are well made, yet they're incredibly difficult to adjust vertically. The three racks are very wide and you need both hands to go from one position to another (don't attempt to do this once your oven has reached temperature because once you open the oven door to perform the task you'll lose heat because it takes such a long period of time to perform the task).

- The oven cavity has dual halogen lighting so there's plenty of light to see your food. And the oven door construction, along with the oven insulation, is top notch. The oven size is also very nice and especially handy when it comes to baking larger quantities of cookies, pizzas, etc. (of course with size comes heating time, per above bullet).

So, there you have it, overall I like my fancy Wolf range. Would I buy a fancy range all over again if I had the choice today? The answer is most likely no, rather I would buy a higher end version of a standard 4 burner gas range from a company like GE or Bosch (problem is I wouldn't get the same subjective warm and fuzzy feeling every time I walked by a GE Profile). But, you know what, my pasta water would boil just as fast (somewhere a dead Calabrian relative is laughing at me and my range).

Click here for my "Guide to Renovating Your Kitchen"

Elegant and Sustainable Coffee: Chemex, Filter Drip, Coffee-Maker

2010-02-11T20:04:16Z

(photo: thanks to Dr. K, Chemex in action during brewing process)

I was flipping through the latest issue of the New Yorker and an article by Malcom Gladwell caught my eye, as it usually does whenever I see his name in the table of contents. Gladwell writes clearly and as deeply as a popularizer of big ideas can so I look forward to his articles (you'll never get all the details with writers like Pinker, Dennett, and Gladwell because they often write for a mass audience - this is just a small critique).

Gladwell's piece was on the drinking habits of two distinct people; the Cambra of Bolivia and the Italian-Americans of New Haven, CT (circa mid 1940's). The reference to the latter group caught my eye and I read intently as Gladwell points out that for both the Bolivians and Italian - Americans a great deal of alcohol is consumed on a day-to-day basis, but unlike many other ethnic groups, the propensity for alcoholism is low (versus the Irish - American class in New Haven, CT of the same generation, for example). Gladwell attributes the idea of "drinking responsibly" to cultural norms in the aforementioned groups that don't tell it's members: "drink and get loud or violent", "drink until you can't stand up", or "drink when you have a problem" as is the case for some college students, tailgating sports fans, or unhappy suburban dads.

(photo: thanks to Dr. K; close up of "bloom" during brewing process)

The New Yorker got me thinking about other positive habits that Italians and Italian-Americans take part in on a daily basis (I'm not talking about watching the Jersey Shore on MTV). And like having a daily glass of wine or aperitif, many Italians begin their day with coffee (usually in the form of a single espresso or a cappuccino ).

I witnessed the coffee ritual first hand growing up in NJ, as the first thing my parents did in the morning was reach for the Bialetti stovetop espresso maker. I should also say that the second thing they both did was kiss their kids (bad breath and all, sorry ma/papa'). For Italians in Europe the morning coffee ritual often takes place at the local bar (short for café) with customers ordering a short or single espresso and consuming it quickly (while standing) at the bar). The process is usually repeated again after lunch.

(photo: thanks to Dr. K; part of unit that collects coffee)

I've expressed my love for all types of coffee here on Scordo.com, including stovetop espresso, French press, handheld espresso, single cup Americano, etc. And all for good reason, I truly love coffee and I couldn't imagine not taking part in my twice a day coffee ritual (either a latte or Americano in the AM and a single shot espresso after lunch; caffeine after 2PM doesn't work for me). Recently, I've shared my love of coffee with Dr. K. from Philadelphia (Dr. K is married to my wife's college roommate and we've gotten to know each other over the last couple of months). And one recent discussion centered on how difficult it's been to find an easy to use, drip style, coffee maker for larger amounts of coffee (read more than a few cups). Being self described coffee aficionadas we shied away from plug in drip style machines (which are often expensive, yield bland brown liquid, and consume a ton of counter top space) and messy French press machines (which yield a good cup of coffee but often include sediment and are finicky with bean grind). Just as our quest for a simple drip style seemed futile, Dr. K. stumbled across the Chemex filter drip coffee maker from his favorite online shop Sweetmarias.com.

(photo: with the first pour of water using my trusty Krups electrical hot water kettle, a must have for any kitchen)

The Chemex is an elegant coffeemaker made out of glass and natural wood and has been produced for forty years (the product is made from International Housewares Corporation in Pittsfield, MA). The 10 cup model I used basically looked like an oversized science beaker (Chemex was started by a Chemist!) yet with a lot more style. The Chemex works with a proprietary bonded coffee filter (available in both natural, non dyed, brown and regular, bleached, white). The square shaped brown filters can be used in a compost and are relatively cheep ($7.50 for 100). At the heart of the Chemex is the aforementioned paper filter which according to the company is 20-30 percent heavier than standard filters. The Chemex filters brew coffee slower than most drip style machines but do not let any nasty sediment or paper taste come through. And brewing via a longer time period is something you want in a drip style machine, as the grinded coffee bean has more time to "sit with" the hot water and creative flavor.

The process for brewing a pot of Coffee is fairly straightforward with the Chemex unit. You start with hot water at 200 degrees F. and thereafter place the custom paper filter over the opening of the unit. Next, you place one tbsp of coffee per 5 oz cup (grind it fresh please, preferably with a burr grinder, but if you have a traditional blade grinder the Chemex filter is pretty forgiving) - you can add more or less to suit your taste. The trick with the Chemex coffee maker is to add just enough hot water (with the first pour) to allow the coffee to "bloom" or develop that nice crema (you'll see it when it happens). Thereafter, you keep on adding water and stop just before reaching the top (you'll need to do this several times if you wan to brew the full 10 cups). That's it for the process.

(photo: close up of glass and wood/leather handle)

Here are my quick observations on the Chemex unit and the coffee it produces:

- It's incredibly easy to use and clean up is quick (as you just throw away the filter with grinds and wash out the glass container and let dry).

- The coffee is very good and it does exhibit some nice complexity. The coffee flavor is, indeed, better than a standard drip style coffee maker, but I do find a French press or Aeropress cup of coffee to have more complexity and richer overall flavor. The coffee is incredibly "clean" with the Chemex; that is to say, there is no harshness or bitterness but it does lack a depth of flavor that I've found with other manual type machines. I may need to try adding more coffee grinds than the 5 oz per cup recommended by the company.

- The coffee does not remain hot for a long period of time after the brew period. As Dr. K recommends, it's best to have a large stainless carafe ready so you can move the contents of the Chemex to an insulated container as quickly as possible.

- From an industrial design perspective, The unit is well executed. The wood and leather used in the middle of the unit serves as a handle and from an ergonomic perspective is almost perfect (think of Oxo products without the plastic). The model I used was made with machined glass, but there are more expensive models made with hand blow glass.

- The unit is inexpensive and requires no electricity. The 10 cup (50 oz) model I tried retails for $37.50 at Sweetmarias.com

(photo: packaging has an Apple-like feel, very simple and elegant)

- Like any glass coffee maker you do need to be careful when washing / cleaning the unit. I have friends who have broken countless Bodum glass French press coffeemakers.

- The unit requires proprietary filters and is akin to a vehicle needing premium gasoline to run (yes, in some cases, an engine will yield more power or run more efficiently, but at a higher price point). The filters, as I said, are not expensive, but you need them in order for the unit to work the correct way (trust me, I tried using a regular paper coffee filter as a test)

- The unit is perfect for a large dinner party when you want to brew up a large batch of quality drip style coffee (just make sure you have an insulated carafe waiting and your guests will not be disappointed).

Pre-Dinner Cocktail: Introducing The Scordoni

2010-02-09T18:29:55Z

(photo: Scordoni awaits grapefruit juice and a quick stir)

I didn't always like Campari; in fact, I thought the liquor was bitter, fowl, and just unappetizing. I remember ordering a Negroni (made with gin, sweet/red vermouth, Campari, and bitters) at a fancy New York restaurant and thinking this drink is strong, but it's really not doing much for me on the flavor / experience side of things.

Fast forward a couple of years to present day and I love most Italian amari and/or digestivos. The "loving" part came about slowly and I still prefer to mix a liquor like Campari with other ingredients to create the perfect cocktail. One recent cocktail experiment yielded what I believe is the definitive pre-dinner drink or apéritif; namely, the "Scordoni"

(photo: Scordoni ingredient from left to right: red vermouth, Campari, St. Germain, and unsweetened white grapefruit juice)

Here's what you'll need to create the Scordoni:

- 1 tumbler glass filled with 5-6 ice cubes (or about half way up the glass)

- 1 ounce of Campari

- 1 ounce of red vermouth (Martini and Rossi is fine)

- 1 ounce of St. Germaine (a French liquor made from elderflower blossoms)

- 2-3 counces of unsweetened white grapefruit juice

(photo: the ingredients and tumbler glass chilling)

Add the ingredients to your glass and stir well; you can add a twist of lemon, if you'd like. I like to serve the Scordoni as an apéritif (you can whip up a pitcher and serve it before a large dinner party; I guarantee it will stimulate everyone's appetite!). The cocktail is also very refreshing and especially tasty during the summer months.

(photo: mixed Scordoni)

(photo: mixed Scordoni in tumbler glass)

Tarallini: The Perfect Italian Snack Food

2010-02-08T16:54:17Z

(photo: tarallini made with red pepper flake)

I'm going to ask the inevitable question; how many bags of chips did you consume this weekend? And did you include some dips like sour cream and chives or salsa to go with the multiple bowls of corn and potato chips? Well, I'm not going to scold you because it was Super Bowl weekend and what better to go with a cold beer than some salty chips (my favorite beer/chip combo is Brooklyn Lager with Cape Cod Chips; don't tell any of my foodie buddies!). Oh, burgers go great with beer as well; here's my recipe!

When I'm not consuming chips and beer, however, my favorite all time snack food are taralli (sometime called tarallini or Italian pretzels). Tarallini are very popular in Southern Italy and go well with wine. Tarallini are formed into tiny rings and baked and have a crunchy texture and the better varities are made with wine, olive oil, and any number of fresh spices (including red pepper flakes, fennel seeds, and black pepper).

Like buying a good quality extra virgin olive oil, the selection process for finding a good quality Taralli can be hit or miss (unfortunately, this is the case for many Italian specialty products). Most Italian specialty shops carry a local product, probably made from a near by bakery (this is the case in my area) or have the bread snacks imported from Italy. Most of the Taralli that I've tried in the NYC/NJ area have been poor representations of the original product that I first tasted in Calabria. Taralli should have a crunchy and flavorful consistency and the olive oil and wine components should be nicely pronounced. Moreover, the bread flavor shouldn't be stale or flat. When Taralli are made with a particular spice, such as fennel seed, then the spice should be baked throughout the taralli and really stand out as the main flavor component.

(photo: Aroma Antico tarallini and aroma stix made with red pepper flake, sesame seed, and fennel seed)

Recently, I had the chance to sample some taralli made by a Lynbrook, NY company called Aroma Antico (translated as "traditional flavor"). Aroma Antico makes a wide range of products, but their bite size, and flavored, tarallini (branded as Rallini) stand out as one of the better Italian bread snacks I've tried in the US (and believe me my mother kept a well stocked Italian pantry!).

Aroma Antico's Rallini are made without preservatives, artificial flavorings, and GMOs. Aroma Antico also uses real extra virgin olive oil, NY Finger Lakes region white wine, and unbleached Dakota wheat flour to make their product. The spices used in the Rallini are also top notch and include red pepper flake, black pepper, garlic, and fennel seed.

(photo: tarallini made with black pepper)

I sampled all four of the spiced Rallini and each tarallini had the spice baked all the way through the product and the flavor component was huge. The red pepper flake Rallini was nice and spicy and you could see how the olive oil and red pepper flake baked into the product when examining the Rallini closely. The black pepper variety had a pronounced flavor and was quite good, but my favorite, slightly ahead of the red pepper flake flavor, was fennel seed. Like the Columbus' Artisan Finocchiona salami), the Rallini fennel tarallini had great fennel seed flavor and were nutty, vibrant, and slightly tart. I went through a bowl of the Fennel Rallini within minutes; they were that good.

On a separate occasion I had my parents over for a quick taste and we consumed the remaining Aroma Antico Rallini with some cacciatore, extra sharp provolone, and a bottle of Morellino di Scansano. My father enjoyed the fennel variety while my mother was impressed with both the garlic and red pepper flake flavors. We also sampled the Rallini without meat or cheese. Rallini are especially good as a sort of wine cracker.

(photo: aroma stix made with extra virgin olive and tons of sesame seeds)

Aroma Antico also produces Aroma Stix, Pastelle - tea cookies, and Friselle. Without sounding overtly bias, I didn't try a product that I didn't think was well made and incredibly authentic (in relation to the same varieties made in Italy). The sesame seed Aroma Stix were particularly good (and full of sesame seeds!) and both my mother and wife enjoyed the tea cookies (and commented how "home made" the product tasted).

You can order Aroma Antico products via their web site or via Amazon in 6 pack bundles (at a great $16.00 price).

OpenSky and Shopping with Scordo.com

2010-02-04T18:51:39Z

Do you remember what it was like to buy something? No, I'm not talking about filling up the tank at your local gas station or going out and buying some other commodity, rather I'm talking about the important buying decisions (such as buying a new car, a new stove, a few cases of wine, etc.). I threw the cases of wine into the example just to make sure you were paying attention (note I do take wine shopping seriously)! What was common about buying stuff before the web came around was that, in most cases, you asked the opinion of a family member or neighbor before handing over your hard earned money. Purchase factors like reliability, value, customer service, subjective experience with the product, etc. all play important roles in buying products and who better to tell you about how a product performs than a trusted friend or family member (can Amazon or Wal-Mart do this?).

With the above notion in mind, I've partnered with a new eCommerce shop called the OpenSky Project to help recommend products that I've personally used and endorse (read: really, really love). Having written on the topics of living a practical life and saving money (it's, after all, what my immigrant parents taught me) earning an endorsement or recommendation from Scordo.com is no easy feat. In fact, the items that you'll see in my personal OpenSky storefront have all been stellar performers in my household for years. And none of the OpenSky shopkeepers are paid to promote any of the products sold in his/her shop; this is what makes the OpenSky so special and unique (you'll only see products that have been tested, used, and approved by passionate experts in their respective fields).

For example, you'll see shops from Michael Ruhlman (the well known food expert) and KathEats.com (a blogger who shares her personal recipes, tips, and healthy lifestyle views). What Kathie and Michael have in common is that the "stuff" they're selling is the stuff they use and love (period) - with no gimmicks or runarounds. I hope you get the sense that I share the same viewpoint, namely, that my endorsement means I want to help share some of my favorite consumer products with my readers.

You can read more about OpenSky here, including a little bit about their operating principle and beliefs.

My storefront will continue to grow and I hope to begin offering some of the speciality items I've written about including salami, pasta, wine, coffee products, and other great home and garden items. For now, you can have a look at the chef's knife I use to prepare all of my southern Italian meals (I've owned it for 10+ years) or the cutting board that I meticulously maintain after each use (it's 12 years young). I also recommend a few larger kitchen appliances like my favorite hot water kettle (you'll be amazed at much I use the device, including coffee, tea, boiling water for pasta, etc.), mixer, and food processor.

Have a look at the Scordo.com storefront on OpenSky and, if you need something for your home or kitchen, see if I have a suggestion (I promise only to share what I have used and tested in my own house).