Taste of Italy

When members of my local men's cooking club expressed interest in the culinary vacation I leapt at the opportunity to host them on a trip to what I consider to be one of the great food regions of the world Puglia, in southern Italy. Welcome to Italy! We're gonna cook the food of the region which if somebody were visiting nova scotia now they would go to a farmer's market and pick products Steve found these really beautiful artichokes. And it's very traditional in Italy to actually leave the stems on the whole way and then we're going to drive around and see historical sites and to fill out a culinary vacation with an exploration of the culture of at the same time. Mangia Mangia Pomodori compare. These are the tastiest ones. This quiet patch of gravel road is a forgotten piece of the world's first superhighway The Appian Way. Nestled among historic olive groves is a new type of vacation destination Villa Cappelli is an agriturismo A haven for food loving visitors with a open invitation to harvest some olives gather fresh fruits and herbs from lush gardens, cook Puglian cuisine and dine alfresco in the villa. What the Italians have done is they've they've figured out a way both through government regulation and also the creativity of the chefs and cooks and homemakers create value-added products out of basic foodstuffs You know what they say is that you eat the ones with a bite because the birds know what the best fruit is. Owner Paul Cappelli is a Manhattan ad man who's returned to his ancestral homeland with a plan Local melons He's trading commercials for sun-dried tomatoes and so much more We're always creating new products These are grapes that we're drying. Mappo is in a hybrid fruit which is a combination mandarin and grapefruit. These are our red chili peppers. Local peaches. Red onion jam. Dried mint. Bell pepper jam. Lemon flavored sea salt. Red chili oil. Some of these have sun-dried tomato oil. This is a great example of a foodie destination A knowledgeable host, a beautiful kitchen antique unique selection of some of the finest artisanal foods in the region has to offer. I have this romantic love affair with these products from my childhood so I'm still producing them. We soaked them in lemon juice, blanched them let them cool off then toss them with extra *** olive oil and garlic, some herbs and throw them on the grill later. It's fun cooking over wood. There's no comparison. This is spicy sun-dried tomatoes spread the traditional way that it's made in this part of the world Bravo! Bellisimo! Again! Terlizzi is an old world town of some 20,000 in habitants. bear no chain grocery stores no fast food restaurants, no trendy cafes Here local food is tradition a living culinary philosophy that's ingrained into the daily life of Italians everywhere. Value-added meat and dairy products are found everywhere in the form of hundreds if not thousands of local cheeses and cured meats. Pancetta and freshly made mozzarellas Italians demand quality service equal to the food they buy. No mass produced poultry is sold in any macelleria People wanna know where they come from when they were made, how fresh they are. Chicken *** are cut from a fresh bird right before your eye. It's foreign to our hurry up culture in North America. To be patient enough to appreciate this level of quality. We've been in here 20 minutes now and he's only served the second person in this line. Yes, but here it's not about speed. It's about quality and trusting your local butcher Look at this food! bus tours hotel chains of all-inclusive buffets are out experiential tourism is in. ho-ho-ho, look that one right there sweet As much as I cook with lemons I've never picked one off a tree and cooked with it. When you combine and the travel together something special happens meals become memorable events and hosts become fast friends The culinary traveler where the complete food experience is the key travel motivator It's tasting the authentic experience right. Its why it is why it is because of where. Not just because of the people, not just because of the land, but because of that integral union of food and life and we want to touch that.