reductions. Fresh Italian bread, check. Vanilla yogurt, check. Anything chocolate, check. When it comes to pasta, Italians are the world champions, averaging 60 pounds of pasta a year for every man, woman and child. Vigo imports 10 types of pasta, including such organics as rigatoni, penne and linguini, all made from the fine durum wheat semolina and cut by bronze dyes. Some of the fun shapes are orecchiette (little ears), cavatelli (small shells that look like miniature hot dog buns) and casarecci (loosely rolled little scrolls). Italian cooks say you can’t rush risotto, but Alessi turns out a woodsy, Italian Arborio rice and Italian Porcini mushroom blend that is considered a great starter meal when there is no time for “from scratch.’’ Instructions are easy peasy. Alessi also markets a large number of aromatic spice blends, three varieties of gnocchi, bread sticks and a number of fix-itfast soup blends. Even tested lines like Alessi have to compete for new consumers. While Alfred and Tony’s loyal customers appreciate the oils and vinegars, the business always has to compete for new customers the age of Laura’s children, 50 years younger. Millennials are also drawn to organics, clean labels and fastand easy mixes, adds DeLuca. This generation wants to get in and out of the kitchen, choose not to measure ingredients, prefer perfect-portion bags, foods without preservatives, and no artificial colors. What's old is new, again. Last year, farro was named as a top food to achieve "superfood" status. The ancient grain has a long history of cultivation and use. Millennials favor farro, the parent of all durum wheat, as a nutritional powerhouse. It’s punched up with familiar flavor profiles such as porcini mushroom, beet and spinach, butternut squash and kale. Packages of Parmesan, Romano, Asiago and provolone jazz farro’s debut later this year. The Vigo label is the other half of the importing business that spans an international line ranging from familiar Italian products to global items, including Bulgarian feta cheese, hearts of palm from Ecuador, artichokes from Peru, and Spanish, Argentinian and other Latin American sources. While yellow rice is a company legacy, there is nothing stereotypical about Vigo’s ethnic rice mixes. Cuban black bean, seasoned Mexican and Jambalaya Cajun seasonings speak in other accents. Cilantro rice and coconut ginger rice will join in by Christmas. Visitors, including hundreds of fifth grade students on tours every year, are slack-jawed at the bells and whistles of Vigo’s machinery. A favorite part is the space ship-like machines that sort bread through grinders to make crumbs and then blow them through tumblers to dry, past special tiles that withstand the intense heat like those used on a space missions. “We call it the Discovery because the machine looks like a space shuttle and roasts the mixture at 1,200 degrees,’’ says DeLucia. Her grandfather wanted her to lead the student tours, a job she has relished more than two decades. “My promise to him is rarely missed,’’ she adds. National sales manager John Richards says Tampa is an excellent market. The products continue to grow in popularity throughout the Northeast corridor, Chicago, Dallas, New York and are making their way to California. The company’s website gives cooking ideas for quick dinners. Bacon-Wrapped Balsamic Shrimp, a perfect complement to a warm Florida dinner, is a Richards’ favorite. Both Alessifoods. com and Vigofoods.com offer recipe ideas. You’ll find French Bread White Pizza, Ricotta Spinach Manicotti, Alessi Lamb Chops, Panko Baked Mac N Cheese and more. To get ideas for new recipes, DeLucia says she looks at others and modifies with her own versions. Fans on its web page like the company. One testimonial from Vicki: “Make it Alessi, or make it yourself. Love their sauces. Wonderful infused balsamic vinegar combinations too. Alessi salt & pepper grinders are always on my table too. Great products!” During the holidays, Alessi and Vigo gift boxes are popular as they include a variety of favorite products. Of course they hold yellow rice and olive oil. It’s important because their rice packets and liquid gold turned history for both the Alessi and Vigo lines as legacies of west Tampa. 24 localsDISH SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2017
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