Italy is once again enjoying a moment in the sun.
The magnificent country that boasts some of the world’s most treasured art, fashion, scenery and arguably the world’s fi nest food, is now the focus of Netfl ix’s latest binge-worthy series.
The most recent adaptation of Patricia Highsmith’s 1955 novel The Talented Mister Ripley has brought a sumptuously stylised vision of 1950s Italy beaming into living rooms across the globe.
Starring our own Andrew Scott as the eponymous shape-shifter Ripley, the latest incarnation of the psychological thriller paints the Italian piazzas, villages and villas in gorgeous monotone shades of black and white that make the viewer want to step into the screen, pull up a wicker chair and enjoy a traditional dish with a nice glass of vino rosso.
And what could be more traditional than the classic Neapolitan pizza? A handful of simple ingredients, lovingly caressed into a familiar yet always satisfying and replenishing meal.
In Battipaglia, a small municipality about an hour’s drive from Naples, they have perfected the craft of pizza and now, thanks to their partnership with Dunnes Stores Simply Better, that authentic Italian experience can be enjoyed in homes around Ireland.
Mauro Mandia set up the company, F.I.A.D, with Elisabetta Benesatto, his wife and business partner, in 2006, but the journey to where they are today – a local success story – began decades earlier. Mauro worked for the Italian Trade Commission as a go-getting 23-year-old.
“My father was an old-school Italian communist,” says Mauro. “He was working in trade unions, but I had the passion for food, and found the patience to become an entrepreneur and the vision to go on this mission.”
Headquarters for the mission concerned is the F.I.A.D. facility, where they employ 148 staff , “all young people” as Mauro stresses, “and more than 95% of them come from the Battipaglia area. It’s amazing because when I was young, I was studying the most important philanthropists of the last century. I was impressed by them and now I have the opportunity to be an entrepreneur today – a small entrepreneur – which means I like to be a philanthropist for my territory, too.” Giving something back to the community – in particular the commune of Battipaglia – is an important part of the ethos and philosophy behind Mauro’s business. The other unwavering factor is the quality of the ingredients that he puts his name to. There is no compromise.
THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET
When it comes to healthy eating, Battipaglia (like many other parts of Italy) can be considered the epicentre of the Mediterranean diet beloved of nutritionists. For centuries, habitants of this region have been happily consuming a life-affi rming variety of fresh, unprocessed, traceable foods. The key to this particular regimen is the integrity of produce across Italy. Each region has its own specialty foods: Tropea in Calabria is famous for the fi ery red chillies used in the local spicy ‘nduja sausage; white asparagus is cultivated around Bassano in the province of Vicenza, and if you look at the back of the Simply Better pizza box, you’ll see the map of Italy with the San Marzano tomatoes and Fior di Latte mozzarella, both of which hail from the Campania region. The elements that make up Mauro’s pizzas, therefore, include some of the fi nest indigenous Italian produce and couldn’t be any more local. “For the pizzas, 80% of the raw materials – the dough, the wheat, the tomatoes – come from right here,” Maura says. Indeed, the company that produces the famed San Marzano tomatoes is right across the street, less than 500 metres from the F.I.A.D. premises.
IN A STONE GROOVE
In the cooking process, everything is done to replicate the style of pizza you’ll fi nd in a downtown Neapolitan osteria or a rural roadside restaurant. The oven, for example, has to be Sorrentino-style, and there are rules that govern the type of stone that can be used and under what conditions the pizza must be cooked. “The cooking and baking has to be very fast; between 60 and 90 seconds at a temperature of 520 degrees,” Mauro says, pointing to the oven that was handmade by a local blacksmith. The intense heat, airy dough and delicious premium toppings make for a fi lling, and yet light, repast. “I always say to my customer that you can have three or four Mauro’s pizzas – Simply Better pizzas – at ten o’clock in the night and then you can sleep like an angel. That is just because of the quality of the raw materials and, especially, the fermentation of our pizza. It’s unique – believe me,” Mauro says.
The dough is handstretched by a master pizzaiolo, ensuring that there is enough aeration in the base. This results in the crunchy light crust and the familiar air bubbles that characterise the true Neapolitan style. After this, the passata tomato sauce from pulped San Marzano tomatoes is ladled onto the awaiting pizza bases. No other tomatoes will do. “San Marzano is famous for wine but also a style of tomato; the long one, not the round, sweet one. San Marzano is very acidic. It is orange. If you see our pizzas, you will see that it is diff erent because the tomato is more orange than red.” This sun-ripened, acidic note from the tomatoes contrasts perfectly with the sweet creamy elasticity of the warm Fior di Latte mozzarella, the pesto, fresh basil and other ingredients to create the unique taste
experience.
ANYONE FOR PIZZA?
Pizza from Battipaglia has been a hit all over the world even in USA Those who fi le through turnstiles at US Open Tennis Championships Queens New York have best selection of pizzerias on their doorstep anywhere outside Italy so when Mauro was approached by one most important Napoletana York to supply pizzas spectators village Open he happy oblige He asked me 20000 and I said Im gonna ll container with 30000 tournament takes place two weeks rst Thursday my were sold out This year we are going send 110000 them story is indicative appeal Neapolitan pizza but also Mauros exacting standards At very beginning friend mine said dont worry about mozzarella because they Americans told me you dont need use stuff understand I listen price you gave OK make any compromises Again these kinds conditions where it massmarket approach never change not mythology believe me our philosophy star that follow says So there it fans tomato fans if youre looking delicious authentic experience zero compromise ball rmly your court Discover Simply Betters genuine artisanal Italian frozen goods section local Dunnes Stores today
