A few weeks ago I saw something new in the grocery store. It was called "cacio e pepe tarallini." I'm no linguistic expert, but this sounded a bit Italian to me. A closer look at the label confirmed this--it was called an "Italian selection," and that it was "made in Italy." So I gave it a go. It was from the Orsini brand.
I often complain that the official company website offers little to no information about the founders, or the history of the business itself. Which was definitely true for today's post topic. But it went a little further. Even after a while of Googling the brand name, and its parent company name, I never did see the product I ate on any of the official websites. The rest of the products listed seemed to fit in, and I did learn about some Orsini wares, but still, it was weird. Anyway, according to the product label for the food I sampled, Orsini is a brand of the CDM Food S.R.L. company. Other business-related online resources indicated that Orsini was originally started in 1987 by a Gregorio and Lucia Nuccia (a married couple?). At some point they either were bought up by, or became part of the CDM Food parent company. CDM, in turn was apparently founded by someone named Alessandro Tatone in 2013. Other Orsini/CDM products include balsamic vinegars, baked goods, jams, olive oils, pesto and bruschetta products, spices, sauces and pasta dressings, nuts and dried porcini mushrooms, and pastas and rice.
As for what tarallini is, this is a smaller form of taralli. Which is a wheat-based cracker snack common in Southern Italy. The texture is often compared to breadsticks. The flavor can be either sweet, or savory. The shape of this cracker is a ring, or oval, with a space in the middle. The sweet versions of this are often eaten around Easter or Christmas. Moving on, "cacio e pepe" means "cheese and black pepper" in Italian. This type of pasta is believed to have been developed by shepherds in the 18th or 19th centuries, in the Lazio region of Italy. The cheese used in cacio e pepe is usually Romano. Or, to sum up, what I tried were small crackers flavored like a particular pasta dish.
Orsini cacio e pepe tarallini: These looked like tiny, light brownish-yellow doughnuts, as they were ring-shaped. Their diameters were about 2.5 cm. (about 1 inch). Their texture was dry and crunchy. The flavor was very savory, as they were noticeably salty and peppery. I didn't find out until researching these a bit that they could be savory, so I was quite surprised that they weren't sweet, like the little doughnuts they appeared to be. At first I thought they were just okay, but they kind of grew on me. By the end I kind of liked them. They're not great, but they were solid. A bit weird, but it kind of worked for them. So overall I'd give them a slight recommend.
I'm happy to announce that another one of my stories should be published quite soon. My story "Blissful Knowledge" is slated to be part of HORRORSMITH: The Magazine, from Horrorsmith Publishing. The planned publishing date is June 30th, or just a few weeks from now. I'll be posting the cover image, author list, story blurbs, etc., as I get them. Stay tuned!
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