olive oil

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Making Olive Oil

January 28, 2013 in Travel by traveleatlove | 7 comments

We may never be able to eat regular old olive oil ever again. Between the beautiful oil sent to me by Frances Mayes from her Bramasole Olive Oil Convivium and the freshly pressed, fruity oil we enjoyed visiting family in Italy, we have definitely been enjoying some of the best oil I have ever had. I’ve even been taking two tablespoons of olive oil every morning; it’s said to do all sorts of things including making the skin glow, cleansing the body, and helping to prevent illness.

After our amazing visit to Masciarelli, we headed home to have lunch and play time with our nephews. When my sister-in-law arrived home from work, we all piled in the car and went for a drive, ending up at the facility where their family makes the oil we were enjoying all week.

olives

It may have been the evening, but the olive oil facility was full of activity. Giant crates of olives were being transported in, and people from all over the valley were there using their own olives to make family olive oil.

olive oil production

It was fun to see the process from start to finish. Here, the olives are being separated from the branches and leaves.

image

Massive stone wheels ground the olives into a paste. That’s some olive tapenade right there!

olive oil press

The olive paste was then spread into thin layers that were stacked in a press, as seen below.

Olive oil press

At that point, you could really see the olive oil coming into its own. The smells in the facility were incredible! I wish I could have just filled a big jug to bring back to Boston.

making olive oil

The process of making olive oil was definitely a fun one to witness, and it was even more special because it was at the place where our family has made their oil for a long time.

We went home and had another amazing dinner which included olive oil, of course. This time around, we sampled an oil that my sister-in-law’s mother had infused with hot peppers. It was amazing and something I definitely plan on trying soon.

I’m officially ready to go to Italy again. . . or to Sonoma or somewhere that’s not dealing with single digit temperatures! Do you have any travel planned in the near future?

Tags: family, Food, Italy, olive oil, Travel

Rosemary Olive Oil Cookies

January 5, 2011 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 31 comments

I realized yesterday afternoon that the new cookie sheets that I got for Christmas had been sitting off to the side, all wrapped up and unused. Since we were fresh out of Sachertorte, I decided that I wanted cookies and, specifically, olive oil cookies.

I found a New York Times Recipe of the Day recipe for Olive Oil Cookies with rosemary and black pepper. All flavors that I love, combined with a comparatively small amount of sugar made these cookies super appealing, and since I had all of the ingredients in the house, I went for it.

cookie ingredients

There was no lemon in the recipe; it was in other recipes and somehow it got in the photo. However, I would add lemon zest the next time. I think it would work wonders with the other flavors.

measuring cups

I started off with all of my dry ingredients, including rosemary and black pepper. The smell of fresh chopped rosemary reminds me of a spa. Lovely. . .

As I measure and mix, I now always keep in mind learning to bake at King Arthur Flour this past fall. I learned SO much that I bring to my at home baking.

rosemary

Once the dry ingredients were blended, I added in the liquid ingredients. I actually ended up subbing milk for the red wine in the recipe, which it suggested as an alternative. We all know that I have more than enough wine in the house, but I just thought the red wine was a strange addition. I think I will give it a try next time.

cookie dough

The recipe said that it made about two dozen. I ended up with 18. Smile My cookies were pretty big, but that’s okay. One or two makes the perfect snack.

And my, are they delicious! Moist, a little dense, and fragrant, with a kick of black pepper every now and then, these cookies could use a lot MORE black pepper. As I mentioned above, lemon would fit in perfectly with these cookies.

olive oil rosemary cookies

I had two right away and two later in the evening. Because these are not super sweet, they are ideal for those of us who don’t have a sweet tooth.

Do you consider yourself to have a major sweet tooth?

Have you entered my restaurant giveaway?! It ends on Sunday, so be sure to enter!

Ingredients
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • Pinch salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or 1/2 teaspoon dried
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup olive oil, plus a little for cookie sheet
  • 3/4 cup , or a little more, dry red wine
Method
  • 1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Combine the dry ingredients. Beat the eggs with the olive oil and wine. Use a rubber spatula to stir the liquid mix into the dry one, just until well combined; if the mixture is stiff, add a little more wine.
  • 2. Drop by rounded teaspoons onto a lightly oiled cookie sheet and back 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool a couple of minutes, then remove the cookies to a rack to cool further.

Tags: baking, cookies, Food, olive oil, rosemary

The Olive Press Giveaway

May 5, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 57 comments

Before I get to the winner of the case of Honest Tea, I wanted to give you a little introduction for my next giveaway. As you know from my post on Saturday, I am celebrating Mediterranean Month with Oldways and the Mediterranean Foods Alliance. You may also know that one of THE most important elements in the Mediterranean diet, one that can lead to good health, great skin, beautiful hair, is olive oil. Olive oil is a very good fat that, when used in moderation as part of a healthy diet, can potentially lower risk of heart disease and certain types of cancers. Plus, good olive oil tastes great and is a satisfying addition to a meal!

 I am SO excited that The Olive Press, with tasting locations in both the Napa and Sonoma Valleys, was willing to partner with me for a Med Month giveaway. Here is a little information about The Olive Press:

 The Olive Press is the maker of America’s most Award-Winning Fresh California Extra-Virgin Olive Oil.  Inspired by the olive pressing facilities in Italy and Southern France, Ed Stolman and Deborah Rogers, both olive growers and producers, opened a completely unique state-of-the-art production facility in Sonoma California, complete with an artisan gourmet gift shop and complimentary olive oil tasting bar.  Dedicated to “all things olive” The Olive Press continually produces oils honored with accolades and awards from prestigious competitions both here in the U.S. and abroad. 

 The Olive Press was just recently awarded “Best of Class” “Best of Show” and “10 Gold Medals”  at the prestigious 2010 Yolo County Fair Olive Oil Competition in April.  Of the 10 Gold Medals, six of them were Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: Arbequina, Mission, Sevillano, Italian Blend, Marquesa and Lunigiana Estate Certified Organic.  Four gold medals were awarded to Citrus Olive Oils: Blood Orange, Lime, Limonato and Jalapeno.

 

As you can see, The Olive Press’s high standards have paid off, resulting in award winning, extremely high quality products.

 The Olive Press is offering one lucky Travel Eat Love reader a $30 gift certificate to their store which not only sells their olive oils but also offers vinegars, sauces and spreads, and spa products to name a few.

 This giveaway starts now and will go through Thursday, May 13.

 To enter:

1)   Visit The Olive Press website, shop around, then leave a comment on this post telling me what you would buy with a $30 gift certificate. While you are there, check out their recipes, blog, and news. It is a beautiful website!

2)  If you are on Twitter, follow The Olive Press.

3)  If you are on Twitter, tweet about The Olive Press giveaway with a link back to this page.

4)  If you have a blog, link back to this post as well as to The Olive Press website.

5)   For an extra entry, tell a friend. If  they participate in the giveaway and mention you in the comment, you will have 2 chances of winning!

 Spread the word! It is Med Month, and it is time for trying new and delicious Mediterranean inspired recipes, hopefully with some award winning ingredients from The Olive Press!

 And before I leave you hanging any longer, the winner of the Honest Tea giveaway is comment #22, Rebecca from How the Cookie Crumbles! Rebecca please email me your contact info so that I can pass it along to the great people at Honest Tea.

Tags: Food, giveaway, Med Month, olive oil

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