Start the New Year with Lunch at DeLaurenti's!

Today's Panini Special is an homage to our friends to the North: Le Nordique - Zoe's Roast Beef, Quebec Vintage Cheddar, Sauteed Onions & Dijon.

Today's Hot Soups: Beluga Lentil & Saucisson, and our classic Minestrone.

Our Meat Primo Pizza: Alps Prosciutto, Pomodoraccio, Roasted Garlic & Baby Arugula. The Veggie Primo: Roasted Criminis, Smoked Mozzarella & Fresh Italian Parsley, both on an Olive Oil & Garlic Base.

Buona Fortuna & Buon Apetito!!

Join us Saturday from 2-4pm upstairs in our wine department for a free wine tasting! We'll be enjoying wines from the old country - Italy. The always demure and effervescent Naomi from Noble Wines will be pouring.

See you at the store!
Stephen

Traditions in Italy are like noses: everybody's got one. Indeed, food traditions are plentiful and of course we spend our time thinking about them more than others. This time of year, food traditions hang thick in the air like fog in the Po Valley. One tradition we care deeply about is that of the Olio Novello.

You've probably heard of Beaujolais Nouveau in France. The greatest marketing shtick of all time, probably. Below average quality wine is cranked out in sassy packaging with balloons and count-downs and you "just-gotta-have-it" faux enthusiasm reigns. The disappointment in the final product is fraught with guilt because you know some people worked really, really hard to produce this wine and it just is never that good. In the end, it was a fun party though. Olio Novello deserves all the pomp and circumstance of Beaujolais Nouveau because the pay-off -the quality of the end product - is mind blowing. And we aim to give the Novello its due.

Harvesting olives for olive oil is hard, physical work - it's farming for Pete's sake! You work all day picking olives by hand as they fall into nets below the trees. You then gather up the nets and transfer the fruit to containers which you carry over uneven ground to a tractor that takes it to a truck that takes it to the frantoio - the place where the olive press turns the fruit to oil. You're working into the night and you work until all the olives are picked or until it rains (water on the fruit begins the fermentation and rot processes so one doesn't pick wet fruit). Oh, and it's really cold (at least in Umbria and Tuscany). The best meal you'll ever eat, though, is in the olive orchard. Fresh sausage, fresh wine (literally bubbling as it ferments) and cold sunshine make your once daily meal worth all the toil. Back to farming: The olive oil is pressed and the result is an iridescent green, molasses in May looking liquid that is truly nectar. Toasted bread is turned to fetunta; dipped into the nectar and tasted. These first bushels of olives go directly from the press into bottles, are labeled then shipped throughout Italy (and to us!).

Now all this work comes at a cost. Yet it's so much hard work producing olive oil that it is a wonder olive oil doesn't cost more than it does. The contributing cost of flying this Olio Novello ("new oil") over here is dwarfed by the flavor and tradition we are fortunate to experience this time of year, every year.

So here's what we're going to do...

We've invited (and they graciously accepted) a few local chefs to present an Olio Novello in a recipe during the first few weeks of December. Below is a schedule of chef demonstrations which will be held at DeLaurenti Food & Wine using exclusive Olio Novello from different regions of Italy.

Ethan Stowell (Union, Tavolata, How to Cook a Wolf) will work his magic using Sicily's Olio Verde Saturday, December 20th from noon - 2pm. Ethan will prepare three dishes:

Mozzarella Bruschetta with Olio Verde Novello
Handmade Spaghetti with Olio Verde Novello and Parmigiano Reggiano
Hamachi crudo with Olio Verde Novello, lime and chilies

Jeff Bergman (Infamous Gastronome and amazing chef) will dance with Tuscany's Laudemio Frescobaldi Sunday, December 21 from noon - 2pm. Jeff plans to present his renowned Slow Cooked Gigante Beans with Sage.

Armandino Batali (Salumi) will caress Tuscany's Tenuta Capezzana Monday, December 22 from 2-4pm. Armandino will prepare two dishes for his demonstration:

Whitefish with Meyer Lemons and Tenuta Capezzana Olio Novello
Salumi Cotecchino with Lentils and Tenuta Capezzana Olio Novello

Garrett Abel (DeLaurenti's) will engage in culinary ballet with Umbria's Ponticelli. Garrett will prepare his famous Cannelini Bean Soup with Bruschetta using the Ponticelli Olio Novello Friday, December 19th from 2-4pm.

Do not miss a chance to taste these earthly works of art. We have a very limited quantity of these precious Extra Virgin Olive Oils so mark your calendars!

It's eating time and we have some great suggestions for the cook! Over the next several weeks, we will presenting cooking and product demonstrations at the store. Below is a schedule of events with more to come. Please take note as the times and days of the week are all over the board. See you at the store!

29 November - (Saturday) Frank and Janet Madarano will presenty their balsamic glaze with Barilla Pecorino Gran Cru from 1-4pm..

December 11th – (Thursday) The charming and elegant Elyse of Ritrovo will be introducing our new DeLaurenti Reserve Balsamic and the La Bottega Panforte. from 1-4pm.

December 19th – (Friday) Sue Burns will be back with her world's best English Toffee, tasting from around 12 to 4.

December 19th – (Friday) Once again the lovely Rebecca will return to showcase the divine Macrina stuffing mix from 3-5pm.

December 20th – (Saturday) Rebecca again with Macrina's bread pudding made with the chocolate brioche noon to 1:00pm.

The Seattle Cheese Festival will return for the fifth year, May 16th and 17th, 2009. As artisanal cheese production grows, so does the festival! Come taste more than 200 cheeses from local and international producers along the cobblestone street of Pike Place Market. The Seattle Cheese Festival is the first of its kind on the West Coast with artisanal cheese at center stage.

What's New in Cheese
What's New on the Shelves
What's New in Wine

What's New in the Deli
Upcoming Wine Tastings
Recipe: BLT

What's New in Wine
What's New in the Deli
What's Shakin' on the Shelves
Recipe: Risotto with Fresh Herbs, Pancetta and Asparagus

In this issue:
Introduction
What's New in the Deli
What's New on the Shelves
What's New in Wine
Recipe: Ragu alla Bolognese