Lately I’ve been dying to cook up a big pot of rich, red, gutsy tomato sauce to cure my Italian food cravings. Maybe it’s because I’m working on recipes for my upcoming Culinary Journeys in Sicily and Tuscany and it reminds me of why I love Italian food so much.
My last trip to Italy was one I won’t soon forget. I was filming (and eating!) my way from the North to the South, on a mission to discover one particular ingredient that makes Italian food so special—tomatoes. Joined by my film crew and friends, Juan Pablo, Katia and Francesco, we started in the Parma region of northern Italy, where the tomato harvest was in full swing.
Picture this: A girl (me) who loves tomatoes and wrote a whole book about them, walking through fields of ripe Rotundo di Parma tomatoes with a medieval castle in the background!! The crew claims that it was blistering hot that day and yet I don’t think I noticed the heat. I was so taken with the aroma of ripe tomatoes… it was intoxicating!
If that wasn’t enough, then we traveled about an hour south of Naples for the San Marzano tomato harvest. Named for the village of San Marzano sul Sarno, these tomatoes have been given the coveted Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status. Ever wonder why cooks and chefs love them so much? They have much more pulp and less seeds than Romas -- perfect for creating rich and bold tomato sauce. With their sweet, bold flavor, I knew this variety was special, but I was surprised to learn that, even in giant fields, they’re harvested completely by hand according to when they ripen. I was blown away!
At the end of our filming, we went to one of the tomato grower’s homes where we sipped spritzes by the pool and noshed on a gorgeous capreze salad. Then we sat down to steamy bowls of rigatoni with tomatoes, basil and the creamiest buffalo mozzarella on the planet. Of course, I had a second bowl. How could I resist?
I’m back home for now and just because our tomato season is a few months away, let’s not let that stop us from cooking tomato dishes. Instead, grab a few cans of high quality Italian tomatoes and give these recipes a try. They might just make you feel like you’ve escaped to the tomato fields of Italy with me:
P.S. If you'd like a bit more inspiration, take a virtual trip with me to the tomato fields in Parma and now download the Tomato episodes of Plates & Places from my Vimeo channel and watch online, anytime!
P.S.S. Many thanks to my good friends at Mutti Pomodoro for guiding us through your exceptional farms and allowing us to share your story with viewers! Mutti Polpa is now my favorite go-to canned tomato!!
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