{"id":129,"date":"2010-12-14T10:44:00","date_gmt":"2010-12-14T10:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.leilappetit.com\/blog\/?p=129"},"modified":"2011-08-07T21:06:35","modified_gmt":"2011-08-07T21:06:35","slug":"gourmet-girl-goes-to-valvona-crolla","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/?p=129","title":{"rendered":"Gourmet Girl goes to Valvona & Crolla"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A wee bit of a Christmassy themed one from December’s Bite Magazine<\/b><\/a>. <\/b><\/div>\n
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My first visit to Valvona & Crolla<\/a><\/b> <\/a>was back in 1989. Having recently bought an Imperia pasta machine, Mum had my sisters and I in tow to find the elusive \u2018OO\u2019 flour. And so we entered the hallowed portals of Scotland\u2019s longest-established deli. I remember the towering shelves, the \u2018tasters\u2019, and dunking more than my fair share of bread into olive oil and Balsamic vinegar. This iconic Italian-Scottish emporium is the perfect pick for the Christmas column, and I was lucky to meet up with V&C\u2019s Mary Contini who gave me a sneak preview of this year\u2019s festive treats.<\/div>\n

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For her, Christmas is the time to share her family\u2019s passion for food with V&C\u2019s customers. The year is spent sourcing ingredients and products, from the tangy Parmigiano-Reggiano, to seasonal items such as Calabrian-baked fig balls, and panettone ordered directly from a family-run company in Milan. As she says, \u2018It\u2019s the time to indulge the senses in the joys of good food\u2019.<\/div>\n
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Not forgetting wine! Recently awarded Scottish Wine Merchant of the Year, here you\u2019ll find the perfect opportunity to avoid generic supermarket plonk over the festive season. With a proud focus on Italian wines, there\u2019s everything from aromatic Pecorino (\u00a37.20), luscious Chianti, and vintages for something special. For a different bottle of bubbly, try Concerto which is a dry red sparkler from Medici, only \u00a39.99.<\/div>\n

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For Mary and the family, the Christmas meal might start with a selection of their prosciutto and cold meats, marinated artichokes, and some of Fife-based East Pier\u2019s hand-sliced smoked salmon. Then roasted quail with pancetta, accompanied by polenta, spinach, and escarole greens.<\/div>\n

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On to sweets, and with its shiny wrapping there\u2019s pannetone, with its soft flavours of vanilla and candied fruits, then a cheese board. The perfect finale for the evening has to be lazily nibbling chunks of nutty panforte, with a glass of raisiny Moscato d\u2019Asti in hand.<\/div>\n

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I have to admit to being the least imaginative present-buyer in the world, and these days friends & family expect the inevitable combination of food and\/or wine!  From Baratti Milano\u2019s Gianduja chocolate truffles, extra virgin olive oil, Alpine chestnut honey, V&C\u2019s own luxe mince pies, and \u2018Port of Leith\u2019 Finest Reserve Port, there are a million ideas awaiting at Valvona & Crolla.<\/div>\n
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Buon Natale and happy eating to all!<\/div>\n
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A wee bit of a Christmassy themed one from December’s Bite Magazine.  My first visit to Valvona & Crolla was back in 1989. Having recently […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[20],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=129"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":294,"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129\/revisions\/294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/leilappetit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}