Now that we are in full swing of the autumn season there is certainly plenty to get excited about in regards to food and wine.  This past week I headed west to California, a week back in the Napa Valley for work on a couple new food projects.  The timing is perfect – a very good friend and Chef has a few dozen Prosciutto legs that are ready for processing, in addition to a handful of other specialty Italian meats such as Bresaola, Wine Salami and Duck Prosciutto needed to fill the curing room for the upcoming winter. I am very excited to visit with old friends and be embraced by this wonderful culinary time of year in Napa.

As soon as I crossed into Napa County a flood of memories came back as I passed vineyards full of farm workers picking grapes while navigating the county roads dotted with harvest trucks carrying this years grape harvest.  The air is heavy with the smell of new fermentation, the morning air is crisp and the vineyard vines reflect gold, amber, orange and red colors from this morning’s sun rise and beginning of a new day.

A call this morning from Lorenza Pasetti brought some very exciting news; our seven month long project has reached ‘final’ approval and has been released this November.  And just exactly what have we been up to?  I am very excited to finally be able to let the word out on the first book written for the Volpi family.  It is a special Italian cookbook – Authentic Volpi!

Lorenza had the vision for an almanac style book that would outline some of the stories, traditions and recipes of her family along with the history of the specialty Italian meat business they have created and passed along from one generation to the next.  The Volpi family is America’s oldest “family owned” manufacturer of artisan hand-crafted Italian  meats.  It has been three generations in the making that have honed their skills and perfected their craft as ‘salumieri’s.  You will be able to follow the steps of John Volpi, an immigrant from Milan that placed his roots in St. Louis, soon to follow his nephew Armando Pasetti that would stand by his side in creating this American dream.

The book follows along with the seasons of the year, focusing on the bounty of fruits and vegetables along with cooking methods which incorporate many of the Volpi family’s dry-cured Italian meat products.  The recipes are simple in form and function, but this is more than a typical cookbook.  It is a collection of recipes that honors the traditions and history of the Volpi family.

It has been a wonderful journey these past few months getting to know and work side by side with everyone at the John Volpi Company.  The family and passion for their craft is intoxicating and certainly a place and time in my life I will hold very special.