All things, CHEESE!

Hello and boun giorno!  We hope you are enjoying our journey.

Today after breakfast we head to THE caseficio Orsara Cheese.  Our host, Peppe, has been talking about building his very own cheese house for several years.  Finally, after two years he has succeeded!

Explaining the process, prior to our cheese tour.

 Not only did he build a cheese house but he has hired his own cheese maker, Matteo. Matteo has been making cheese since he was 10. He grew up watching his mother make cheese from their animals.  Once he was an adult he decided to further his studies and attend a school in the art of cheese making.

Matteo making mozzarella. 

Scamorzza

The cheeses were amazing! We sampled the fresh mozzarella, which is burrata, a typical cheese of the Puglia Region. We enjoyed caciocavallo, scamorzza, ricottoa and more. The ricotta was a special treat, truly delectable!  

Making Burrata

Ricotta

Caciocavallo ready for the salt water brine.

Caciocavallo at 2 months old. 

Notice the deep colors on the aging cheese.  The use whole milk with full fat to give that deep yellow color. 

Making the Ravioli

Stuffing the zucchini blossoms.

Back in the kitchen, Antonio prepares a cheese ravioli with the grano arso flour.  Zucchini blossoms are stuffed with cacioricotta and then topped with shaved black truffle. There is also a veal ravioli stuffed with a fresh cacioricotta and fresh potato chips.  We ate fresh ricotta with pickled onion, talk about a sensory overload for the tastebuds!

Pickeled Onion and Ricotta