Author: ElevenTwelve Food & Wine
Life & Work with Giorgio Tavecchio
Today we’d like to introduce you to Giorgio Tavecchio. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Giorgio Tavecchio travels back to Italy a few times a year to visit family and coach American Football camps. In 2018, he helped coach the ‘Torino Is Bear Territory’ Football Camp hosted by his alma-mater Cal, where he struck up a casual conversation with a curious on-looker, Paolo Tempo. This conversation led to a friendship rooted in a shared passion for American Football. From the roots of this friendship blossomed an idea; a desire to repay the United States for their unique journeys in American Football. “What do we have to offer?” the two asked themselves. They found their answer in the fertile majesty of their native soil: Italian food and wine.
In true team spirit, Paolo brought on board Davide Merlo, his teammate from the glory days of American Football in Italy, adding over thirty years of wholesale grocery sector experience and the tenacity of a Defensive Lineman to the team. To round it out, Giorgio roped in Sicilian-born placekicker Vincenzo D’Amato, best friend and former college teammate to add a dash of Southern spice to this outfit. Combining their experiences in American Football with their love for Italian cuisine, Davide, Paolo, Vincenzo, and Giorgio bring you the best that Italian food and wine has to offer.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
We launched just before COVID in late 2019 and had to pivot our business model rather quickly, which wasn’t easy. Typical of the startup world, each day presents a different challenge or new issue to address and resolve. This dynamic, fast-paced lifestyle is both thrilling and exhausting, but when you know there’s a delicious plate of pasta waiting for you at the end of the day, all is well with the world.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My journey with American Football has been a deeply impactful experience, from innocent beginnings in high school, to a Pac-12 college football team, to being the first Italian-born NFL football player, and recently even to playing all over Europe. Each chapter of this wild adventure has been like a single stone in a mosaic; it’s only when you view the mosaic in its entirety do you appreciate its true beauty.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
That one of my pet-peeves is when my shoelaces are not of equal length so my knot comes out uneven.
Contact Info:
- Email: gtavecchio@eleventwelveusa.com
- Website: www.eleventwelveusa.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eleventwelve11_12/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElevenTwelve-107420134156530
Original Post:
ElevenTwelve Fusilli with Almonds & Avocado Pesto
Fusilli with Almonds & Avocado Pesto
Preparation
- First thing first, the pesto: In a blender, mix:
- Almonds
- Half lemon juice
- Lemon zest
- Two tablespoons of olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Half avocado
- The pesto must be creamy and uniform. Once the pesto is prepped move it to a different pan where you will later put the Organic Fusilli Pasta.
- Add the Organic ElevenTwelve Fusilli in a pot of boiling water: look at the cooking times indicated on the package for better tasting pasta.
- Drain the pasta, put it in the pot where we left the Avocado Pesto, and stir everything.
Before serving, garnish the plate with little piece of dried up tomatoes.
Ingredients
- ElevenTwelve Fusilli 🍝
- Avocado 🥑
- Lemon 🍋
- Almonds 🌰
- Dried up Tomatoes 🍅
- Onion 🧅
ELEVENTWELVE INGREDIENTS & PAIRINGS
Fusilli
FusilliFusilli
FusilliIngredients: Italian durum wheat semolina
Size: 500gr (17.6oz)
Origin: Piemonte, Italy
For best-tasting pasta, enjoy with ElevenTwelve sauce. See box for recipe and cooking instructions.
Buon appetito!
2019 Piemonte DOC Sauvignon
2019 Piemonte DOC Sauvignon2019 Piemonte DOC Sauvignon
2019 Piemonte DOC SauvignonGrape: 100% Sauvignon
Weight: 0.75 L
Alcohol: 12.5%
Tasting Notes: Sauvignon is a world-renowned white grape varietal extremely recognizable for its richness and aromas.
This Piemonte DOC Sauvignon’s intense straw-yellow color is palatably fresh and light, combining hints of apricot and slight varietal sensations that pair well with fish, white meat, and lightly-cured cheeses.
Popular Dishes in Northern Italy
The vast majority of the nourishment for which Italy is most popular originates from the focal and southern areas of the nation. Thick, rural pasta sauces and customarily made pizza are exceptionally illustrative of Italian food, yet those kinds of dishes aren’t extremely common in Northern Italy. The locales of Northern Italy, which incorporate Liguria, Val D’Aosta, Piemonte, Lombardia, Trentino-Alto Adige, Veneto, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and Emilia-Romagna, are more affected by the cooking from the other European nations circumscribing them. So how about we investigate the most mainstream dishes in Northern Italy by district.
Liguria
The most well known city in the Liguria district of Italy is Genoa, which is most popular for its pesto. Pesto alla Genovese normally joins the green pesto with which individuals are generally recognizable, however pesto bianco (white pesto) is likewise well known in the area. Actually, the greater part of Ligurian food is for all intents and purposes vegan in light of the fact that there isn’t a lot of land reasonable for meat cultivating.
Buy Authentic Italian Foods here at ElevenTwelve
Italian Wine
Italian Pasta
Italian Pasta Sauce
Piemonte
Piemonte (Piedmont) is cherished for its wine, yet that doesn’t mean their food isn’t similarly as great. Here, one of the individuals’ preferred fixings is the white truffle which originates from the city of Alba. By and large, risottos are more famous dishes in Northern Italy than pasta dishes, so Risotto Tartufato Piemontese (white truffle risotto) is presumably the best portrayal of Italian food from this locale. Look at this formula for Folios Mushroom Risotto.
Valle D’Aosta
The Aosta Valley is a little district that is flanked by France and Switzerland. Accordingly, the food here is fundamentally the same as the sorts of European food found in these nations. This district is most popular for its Fontina cheddar, which is regularly liquefied and expended as Fontina cheddar fondue.
Lombardy
Everyone perceives the city of Milan as one of the style capitals of the world, yet there is additionally a lot of rich Italian food to investigate here. The individuals of Milan are as ground breaking with their food as they are with their style, so there are a great deal of present day Italian dishes to be found here. The most unmistakable, however, is Risotto alla Milanese, which is given its strongly yellow shading from the measure of margarine utilized in the formula. In reality, in the north all in all, margarine is ordinarily favored over olive oil.
Trentino-Alto Adige
Trentino-Alto Adige is a locale like Valle D’Aosta in that a large portion of its cooking is practically indistinguishable from European food from its flanking nations. The culinary impact of Austria and Switzerland have made dishes, for example, goulash and polenta staples of this most northern piece of Italy.
Lasagna Recipes from Regions of Italy
In America we have a propensity for taking conventional plans from different nations and diminishing them to their most essential structures. For instance, the most famous elements for lasagna in the states are ricotta cheddar and hamburger ragu. Be that as it may, the Italians really have a few unique plans for lasagna dependent on the district. So here are some conventional lasagna plans from various locales of Italy.
Lasagna alla Bolognese al Forno
There are really two kinds of lasagna alla bolognese al forno, the two of which originate from the Emilia-Romagna area of Italy. In America, we are generally acclimated with lasagna pasta sheets being yellow, yet the more customary lasagna formula really calls for green lasagna pasta produced using spinach. In the two cases, hamburger isn’t the solitary meat fixing in the bolognese or ragu sauce. Other ground meats, for example, veal and pork are utilized for the sauce also. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheddar and Béchamel sauce (white sauce) are likewise essential elements for lasagna alla bolognese.
Buy Authentic Italian Foods here at ElevenTwelve
Italian Wine
Italian Pasta
Italian Pasta Sauce
Lasagna alla Norma
This formula is from Sicily, and kid do Sicilians love their eggplant. Eggplant is a fixing in practically every customary Sicilian pasta dish, so discovering it in this well known prepared pasta formula is nothing unexpected. Lasagna alla norma incorporates broiled eggplant, ground ricotta salata cheddar, pureed tomatoes, and basil. This lasagna formula doesn’t include meat.
Lasagna alla Genovese
The city of Genoa in the Liguria locale of Italy is world-acclaimed for its pesto, so it just bodes well that their customary lasagna formula is made not with ragu sauce, yet with pesto sauce! Truth be told, there is no meat at all in this lasagna sauce, so this dish is completely appropriate for veggie lovers! Still ravenous? Look at these 5 Meals You MUST Eat in Genoa, Italy!
Lasagna alla Napoletana
The conventional lasagna formula from Naples, Italy is really a prepared pasta dish that is normally just served during carnevale, an occasion celebration before Lent. The purpose behind this is lasagna alla napoletana is very wanton and over-the-top. In addition to the fact that it contains the ragu sauce and ricotta cheddar for which lasagna is well known, yet this lasagna formula incorporates full meatballs!
Italian Cheese Guide
From Asiago to Taleggio, our A-Z manage incorporates a far reaching rundown of Italian cheddar, which can be followed back to old Roman occasions. In ongoing decades, numerous Italian cheeses have been given the Protected Designation of Origin status (PDO), which guarantees that the cheddar is made with neighborhood fixings from assigned areas and utilizing customary strategies for creation.
With regards to old world food, each culture has its own custom for getting a charge out of cheddar. In French food, cheddar is filled in as an independent course while Italians like to fuse it into each feast, including breakfast, lunch, and supper. Some Italian cheeses are additionally a most loved for remembering for a charcuterie board or appetizer platter.
Asiago
In a similar class as hard Italian cheeses like Parmigiano Reggiano, Asagio is extraordinarily sharp and nutty enhanced. Produced using dairy animals’ milk from the Veneto area of Italy, this grainy, entire milk cheddar brings pastas, servings of mixed greens, and soups to existence with brilliant flies of flavor.
Buy Authentic Italian Foods here at ElevenTwelve
Italian Wine
Italian Pasta
Italian Pasta Sauce
Caciocavallo
Probably the most established cheddar, this uncommon kind of extended curd Italian cheddar can be followed back similarly as 500 B.C. Created in Southern Italy, its flavor and surface can be contrasted with Provolone, particularly for its incredible liquefying activity in cooking. The enchantment of Caciocavallo is the sharpness that originates from being matured while as yet staying velvety in the mouth. Pair this delightful Italian cheddar with salami, natural product, and toast focuses as a major aspect of a gourmet antipasti course.
Fontina
A semi delicate dairy animals’ milk cheddar from the Northern Italian Alps, Fontina is a phenomenal dissolving cheddar that adjusts the corrosiveness of tomato-based sauces with its velvety surface and unpretentious zestiness. Delivered in the Aosta valley only south of Switzerland, this premium Alpine cheddar is the most sweet-smelling of Italian crude milk cheeses, which makes it a go-to element for livening up exemplary pasta dishes like ziti with Soppressata.
Gorgonzola
Appreciated for its one of a kind tartness, Gorgonzola is a well known Italian bleu cheddar made with dairy animals’ milk from the Piedmont and Lombardy areas of Italy. Created since the ninth century, Gorgonzola comes in two renditions: Dolce, which is sweet and velvety, and Mountain, which is semi-delicate and zesty. The conventional maturing technique creates a shape called Penicillium glaucum, which gives it dashes of blue and an unmistakable chomp. Delicate and brittle, Gorgonzola adds a punch of flavor to dressings, servings of mixed greens, and pastas.
Vegan Italian Recipes You Have to Try
Italian food is a portion of the world’s best food, however a great deal of Italian plans include meat. There are meatballs, ragu sauces, and incalculable kinds of salami and dry restored meat cuts. Then again, what is more Italian than pasta or pizza? There are such huge numbers of veggie lover plans highlighting these two well known dishes alone! So in case you’re vegetarian, don’t surrender! Here are 10 vegetarian Italian plans that taste stunning and will suit your veggie lover way of life.
Veggie lover Artichoke Arancini
Arancini are an amazingly mainstream Italian food. They are smooth rice balls that are commonly loaded down with meat or cheddar and afterward rotisserie. In any case, it is conceivable to appreciate this Italian most loved the veggie lover way. Gourmet specialist Giada De Laurentiis shares an awesome Vegan Artichoke Arancini formula on Food Network that utilizes no cream or cheddar and is rather based on artichoke and basil. Try not to stress, however, she despite everything figures out how to keep up the degree of smoothness each arancini needs!
Pea Pesto Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Arugula
Basil pesto sauce as a rule includes a smidgen of cheddar to accomplish a to some degree rich surface, yet this veggie lover formula by Minimalist Baker utilizes peas. The peas likewise add additional protein to this pasta dish, which is significant for vegetarians!
Buy Authentic Italian Foods here at ElevenTwelve
Buy Italian Wine
Buy Italian Pasta
Buy Italian Pasta Sauce
Neapolitan Pizza Marinara
In America, we consider pizza including three cardinal parts: batter, cheddar and sauce. In any case, in Naples, where the pizza was first made, this isn’t really the situation. There are two exemplary kinds of Neapolitan pizza, one of which is the Marinara, which doesn’t include any cheddar whatsoever! That is correct, just pizza batter, sauce, garlic, basil and olive oil. Need to know what the 10 Best Pizzerias in Naples are?
Focaccia Bread
Focaccia bread is another Italian food top pick. It originates from Northern Italy, explicitly the Liguria area. While most Americans consider carefully garlic bread to go with their Italian supper, focaccia bread is a top contender—and it’s totally veggie lover! Focaccia is a chewy bread that is firm outwardly and regularly enhanced with garlic, olive oil, and rosemary. Look at progressively well known dishes in Northern Italy.
Eggplant, Caramelized Onion and Tomato Pasta
Luckily for individuals who wish to carry on with the veggie lover way of life, Sicily is about eggplant. This formula from Well Vegan for Eggplant, Caramelized Onion and Tomato Pasta is actually similar to a typical dish one would discover in Sicily. Extremely, the more profoundly you dig into Italian cooking, the more you’ll see that veggie lover plans aren’t as scant as you might suspect.
Must Try Italian Spaghetti Recipes
Spaghetti with meatballs, spaghetti with pureed tomatoes, and spaghetti with cream sauce; these are mainstream spaghetti plans everybody has eaten previously. They’re tasty, yet sooner or later it can appear as though there isn’t much else distinctive to attempt. Nonetheless, with some enlivened reasoning, getting caught in a pasta groove is avoidable! Here are nine innovative spaghetti plans you have to attempt.
Firm Fried Spaghetti
Everything tastes better when it’s seared, isn’t that so? Fulfill your next singed food desiring by making fresh seared spaghetti, similar to this formula for Neapolitan Spaghetti Pie. It’s a simple spaghetti formula with a scrumptious crunch and an appetizing taste that the family will cherish.
Spaghetti Beef Pie
To make a spaghetti formula that is new and energizing, put the conventional thought of whirling the pasta on a fork on hold and attempt another structure: pie! Essentially, this resembles causing lasagna, to aside from with spaghetti rather than lasagna sheets. It is safe to say that you are a lasagna darling? Attempt these six conventional lasagna plans from various locales of Italy.
Buy Authentic Italian Foods here at ElevenTwelve
Italian Wine
Italian Pasta
Italian Pasta Sauce
Spaghetti and Meatball Nests
For a charming, reduced down turn on the great spaghetti and meatballs, pull out that cupcake container! Try not to stress, there’s no cake hitter included just eggs, cheddar, pasta, meat and pasta sauce! These are perfect for mixed drink parties as appetizers. Look at a simple formula for Spaghetti and Meatball Nests from Good Housekeeping.
Mushy Baked Spaghetti
Heated pasta dishes make for simple spaghetti plans that despite everything give a genuinely necessary difference in pace, similar to this formula for Baked Chicken Spaghetti from Food Network. Heated pasta is a significant piece of Italian cooking, however a great many people think this methodology is just for specific kinds of pasta, similar to lasagna or stuffed shells. False! (On the off chance that you like stuffed shells, however, attempt these five distinctive stuffed shells plans with caccavelle pasta.)
Spaghetti Frittata
When pondering breakfast frittatas, the standard eggs and spinach formula regularly rings a bell. Make this morning meal staple increasingly brave by consolidating spaghetti and Parmigiano Reggiano cheddar, similar to this frittata formula from The New York Times. Be much increasingly wanton and include a velvety spaghetti sauce, similar to vodka sauce or white sauce.