Our Love of Parmesan Cheese, Bosa Foods and Italian Eats in Vancouver

BC’s Restaurants Indulge Diners with Parmigiano Reggiano – Italy’s Finest Cheese

Each fall the Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano (The Consortium of Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese) now hosts a Parmigiano Reggiano Week, a celebration of the world-famous, northern Italian cheese, and select Vancouver and Whistler restaurants participate with special parmesan cheese-based dishes and menus.

To celebrate Bosa Foods presented a Parmesan Cheese Cracking and Chef Carmen from Novo Pizzeria cooked up some delightful Parmesan-filled dishes at this gourmet grocery store, one of our favourite food stops in the city. Bosa’s a great place for not only cheese, but also olive oil, meat and pretty much all good things food, check out their gift baskets if you’d like to spread some real cheer this holiday season.

BC’s Parmigiano Reggiano Week was official at the listed restaurants below, who are known for their expert use of Parmesan Cheese, so if you have a craving for that fruity nutty cheese flavour, check them out. Vancouver: Seasons In the Park, Novo Pizzeria & Wine Bar, Ask For Luigi, Water Street Cafe, Giardino, Italian Kitchen, La Cucina. Squamish: The Salted Vine Kitchen and Whistler : Araxi

Our culinary experts and tour guides also weighed in on the Italian food situation in the city and suggested the following Italian spots for Vancouverites and visitors alike to get their Italian food fix. Caitlin recommends Adesso near Stanley Park, Christina, Pronto, and Savio Volpe , which just made the EnRoute Top 10 Restaurants in Canada List, and Cassandra would add Cioppiono’s  at the the top of any list of restaurants in Vancouver, Italian or otherwise, and suggests Novo Pizzeria in Kitsilano for pizza or pasta before a movie.

A little about this King of Cheese so you can impress your friends: Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is produced at 3,272 farms in Italy and is named after the producing areas, which comprise the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Bologna, Modena, and Mantua (in Lombardy). Under Italian law, only cheese produced in these provinces may be labelled “Parmigiano-Reggiano. The name “Parmesan” can legally be used for cheeses similar to Parmigiano-Reggiano, with only the full Italian name unambiguously referring to Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Some call it the called the “King of Cheeses” and it’s certainly worthy.

Chef Carmen from Novo’s Pizzeria shared this very tasty way to experience Italy in your home.

Spaghetti Alla Chitarra

Ingredients

140  grams Fresh Spaghetti or 125 grams of dried pasta

2 Tablespoons  Olive oil ( a fruity one preferably Sicilian)

3 Tablespoons Parmigiano Regianno

Zest of one lemon

1/2 Tablespoon of lemon juice

3 turns of freshly cracked pepper

2 ounces of pasta water (water you cooked your pasta in)

As needed for topping

Parmigiano Regianno

Freshly cracked pepper

Lemon zest

Olive oil

Step 1 Cook Pasta until about 1 minute from all Dente. Note: Salt pasta water – it should taste like a lightly seasoned broth – add little at a time until you get to this

Step 2 In a frying pan combine – olive oil, lemon zest, lemon juice, and cracked pepper and keep off heat

Step 3 When pasta is one minute before al dente add to the pan along with 2 ounces of the pasta water

Step 4 When the mixture starts to boil sprinkle the parmigiana as evenly as you can over the pasta and keep stirring vigorously with tongs until you have a sauce. Reduce until it the sauce coats the pasta nicelly periodically moving the space around.

Note: you should not have any liquid left when you are done the pasta and the sauce should be done. if it becomes a little to dry add a splash of pasta water and mix.

Step 5 Plate and top with some Parmigiano Reggiano, lemon zest, freshly cracked pepper, and drizzle of olive oil.