Foodists

Not Yer Mum’s Macaroni

I recently had pals Monica and Andrew over from Victoria, where they run Ottavio, only the best little deli/gourmet food store on the whole of Vancouver Island. For an afternoon, they took me along on their trapline of suppliers and favourite food places to hit when they are on this side of the pond. So it was that we eventually arrived at Parthenon Importers (3080 West Broadway, Kitsilano,) and I was introduced to more kinds of feta than I can remember, except for one. I went home with the Greek Barrel Feta (among many, many other things) and it was fantastic – rich in texture, and without the overly-saltiness of North American imitations made from cow’s milk. So, the feta’s REALLY good, but what’s even better is the maccheroni calabrese (“Paese Mio” brand, imported by Numage Trading Inc., 894 Edgely Blvd., Concord, Ontario) I am now addicted to and have been scarfing in alarming quantities since that fateful day.

Um, they look kind of like worms, actually, longish and rolled up so they have this bit right down the middle that perfectly sucks up just the right amount of brown butter and sage sauce, which is the only thing I’ve been eating them with – why change up the sauce when you hit perfection on the first try? A little (or a lot) of parmigiano reggiano, and that’s it. Enjoy! All too often, if you’re like me…