A modern Lent: lean, trendy, and flavorful.

Living the Lenten precepts does not seem easy today, in this hyper-technological modern era. In many cases, if one does it outside of the religious context, it is only to preserve traditions, the customs of the past, to breathe in something from a time that has gone but which represents for many a comfort and a way to halt its rapid passage.

Today, contemporary Lent has the flavor of Masterchef and the many food bloggers revolving around the social media galaxy. Furthermore, the melting pot society imposes completely different dietary habits than a few years ago. But for those who want to witness the time and Christian culture, as well as the Italian popular tradition, we are here to suggest some "liturgically legal" products.

We're crazy about bread

Let’s start with bread, which could be your element through which to taste the many products we are going to introduce. Well, our bread is extraordinary and very suitable for slicing. We are crazy about the potato bread from Panificio Maria Rosa Vittoria, located in Molise, which offers top-quality products that arrive at your home freshly made and still crunchy.

A creamy Lent

If we think that today it is hard to eat during the Lenten period, we are greatly mistaken. It is no longer the time of herring hanging from the beams where rustic bread was rubbed. Today we have such a wide variety of choices that Lent becomes mostly a period of food detox with intriguing and delightful products. One particular compote that I would like to introduce to you is the Herb Infused Onion Compote from the Le Spiazzette company in the Monti Sibillini. This family was severely affected by the earthquake that hit Arquata del Tronto and the surrounding areas. Yet, they managed to rise again and find the strength to produce extraordinary creams for delightful bruschetta.
Fontana Bio then gifts us an endless array of organic vegetable spreads of rare goodness. All “handmade” and artisanal, such as the leek cream, radicchio cream, delicious asparagus cream, or the more exotic Jerusalem artichoke cream. Great during this period is the Bio Radicchio Pear and Walnut Cream, as well as the black and green olive cream from Umbria by Redoro.

Vegetables in glass: the Giardiniera

The practice of preserving what we will use in winter during summer is typical of the entire Italian gastronomic tradition. Methods of preservation have always been studied and invented to give longevity to foods. Glass-preserved vegetables with condiments based on Extra Virgin Olive Oil are definitely the most common, as are the sour and sweet giardiniera. Let’s start with the sour and sweet small onions produced by Corrado Benedetti in Valpolicella Classica: a product that comes from the Veronese plains where the soil is ideal for giving flavor to this small, delightful vegetable. Let’s then move on to the many giardiniera in Redoro Extra Virgin Olive Oil or the Sour and Sweet Giardiniera always from Corrado Benedetti. The eggplants in oil, sun-dried tomatoes in organic oil, the peppers in organic oil also from Redoro. Very interesting is the eggplant caponata which also becomes perfect for a hearty and delicious pasta. If we want to stay in Sicily, we can have fun with the preparations from Frantoi Cutrera: the Hearts of Violet Artichoke, the cherry tomatoes dried in their Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Pasta, rice, cereals, and Quinoa

It is undeniable that we Italians are lucky. Even throughout the year, our lunches or dinners are “liturgically legal”: pasta with tomato seasoned with Extra Virgin Olive Oil is something that is “more Lenten than this cannot be”. But we never lose sight of pleasurable delight. Here comes the pasta made from various types of durum wheat semolina, Senatore Cappelli, from Gragnano and Alto Adige. Alternative pastas made from legumes like the products from Pastificio d’Alba. Rice in its various versions or Quinoa which is becoming the superfood substitute for many animal proteins. In short, you can indulge yourself here in our portal as well.

Bernardo Pasquali