Rustichella pasta lessons in Cyprus! 7 dishes created by chef Zonfa from Abruzzo

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On March 15th the University of Nicosia in Cyprus held a lesson/demo event on pasta organised and sponsored by the Culinary Arts Department of Intercollege and Rustichella d’Abruzzo. The company was represented by Abruzzo’s 1 Michelin star Chef William Zonfa, who prepared a live demo consisting of seven courses: six dishes of pasta and one risotto. More than eighty people witnessed the event in the ‘Copernico’ hall of the University, the majority of them being Cypriot chefs and professionals in food service, hôtellerie and distribution chains, together with several journalists and a group of culinary arts students of the last year. Two students helped the chef from Abruzzo prepare the dishes for tasting.

The event kicked off with the greetings by the University’s management who introduced the guests. Rustichella d’Abruzzo’s export manager Giovanni Intilla presented the company and its territory through a video and explained the peculiarities of the shapes and recipes during their preparation.

Our export manager stimulated the whole auditorium in analysing the way some future trends could affect the industry: first of all its increasing multiculturalism. The spread of the ‘made in Italy’ culinary culture abroad crossed long ago the geographical boundaries of the Countries targeted by the Italian immigration and conquered Asia, India and, it’s safe enough to say, the whole world. On the other hand, the culinary habits of the Far East have long been part of Europe and America.
Therefore, it is very important for a modern chef to catch the essence of the Italian culture through knowledge and correct use of authentic top quality ingredients.

Should this explanation still leave some doubts, Chef Zonfa’s outstanding performance wiped out any preconception, wowing all the professionals in the room.

The starred chef interpreted our Fregola Sarda, a new entry in the Cypriot market, with a recipe consisting of almond basil and ricotta cheese foam, the Tonnarelli al Nero di Seppia with lemon cream, scampi and asparagus cooked in mozzarella water, the fresh Stuzzicarelli al Limone with orange granita and passion fruit, Paccheri stuffed with raw mullet in saffron and pea cream, the innovative Paccherini all’Ananas with red tuna tartare, crispy celery and Caesar dressing, Tonnarelli al Peperoncino in duck ragu and porcini mushroom broth. As final dish of the cooking show, risotto in red turnip stock, balsamic vinegar and slice of foie gras.

“The aim is teaching tradition and creativity”, the RdA export manager stated, “witnessing Zonfa’s performance has been a real . First of all, I really hope we inspired them and managed to show them the essence of the real culinary tradition from Abruzzo and Italy”.

At the end of the event, University management gave a gift plaque to Rustichella. Giovanni Intilla thanked on behalf of the Peduzzi family, who has had a long tradition in the agribusiness field since 1924. Furthermore, the company from Abruzzo was delighted to invite the best student of the last year, chosen by the teachers, to be part of PrimoGrano Tour 2018, alongside people of high prestige who are Rustichella supporters in the world. For Rustichella, the future is now and lies in the hands of these young talents, future customers, new estimators.