Our friend, Ermo Bissini, passed away several weeks ago.  I have been thinking about how to pay tribute to him, and finally hit upon a solution that represents who Ermo was and shares his passion.  Ermo was a Modenese.  He lived, breathed, and lauded his beloved city of Modena, Italy in the region of Emilia-Romagna.  Along with his lovely wife, Nazzarena, he represented Modena with his dignified and refined manner.  He honored the city by creating typical food products featuring the trebbiano and lambrusco grapes.  Ermo was a supporter of organic agriculture, and was our first maestro; introducing us to the wonders of his most beloved condiment-aceto balsamico di Modena.  Most of all, he was kind and giving, and it will be a pleasure for me to share some memories of him with you.
We'll celebrate his life by creating a wondrous pallet of flavors with three types of balsamic vinegar; using it to awaken a trio of foods-a salad, strawberries, and vanilla ice cream.  We'll toast Ermo with Lambrusco, the typical wine of Emilia-Romagna, plus enjoy a crispy Frico made with parmigiano reggiano.  One other surprise dish will round out our trip to this region famous for its culinary delicacies. [Click "Read more" below to continue reading.]Also, in the first part of the show we'll visit with local food coordinator, Jan Swinton.  Jan coordinates activities in 12 counties, including Jefferson County.  Her mission is develop relationships between farmers, consumers, retailers, and other food producers that will result in a vibrant local food economy.  Of course, that's my distilled interpretation.  Really, she's an expert traveler, salesperson, diplomat, and juggler.

We'll hear about the local Farm Crawl set for this Sunday, September 9 from noon-6 pm, plus a number of other projects.  Click here to find a complete list of farms and activities for Sunday's event.

Catch GREAT TASTE'S stream at www.kruufm.com.