Liscio come l’olio – The winners

From 11th to 13th of May, at the Nino Bergese Hotelier Institute in Genoa, events were held dedicated to the typical products of our territory with the protagonists being the students of the third, fourth and fifth classes of the hotelier institutes of Italy.

Santagata 1907 supported the event, in particular the ‘Liscio come l’olio’ competition, for which it was the official supplier of extra virgin olive oil. The aim of the event was in fact to promote oil not only as a condiment but as an indispensable ingredient in cooking.

Participants prepared and presented a dish and its graphic representation, taking full advantage of the opportunity to promote the cultural promotion of oil, quality of life and a healthy and sustainable culture.

Among the students from the 11 participating Italian institutes, Barbon Filippo and Thomas from I.P.S.A.R. Alfredo Beltrame Vittorio Veneto, after careful evaluation by a selected jury, which included Cristina Santagata, were declared the winners of the event.

All of the students’ recipes will soon be published in gastronomy magazines and the winners will be hosted on 30th May by the oleologist Luigi Caricato.

We are pleased to report the final press release of the events on our blog:

Subject: Conclusion of the events organised by IPSSA Nino Bergese: ‘Bergese food, environmental sustainability and medical wellness week’.

The week of events organised by Prof. Andrea Cresta of the IPSSA Bergese, under the banner of sustainability and the pleasures of the palate, came to a successful and satisfying conclusion. All the events, supported by USR Liguria, were realised with the contribution of numerous partners, who offered prizes, contest ingredients and equipment.

The first event was the Forum on the ‘Ancient Products of the Genovesato’ on Monday 9th May at Villa Sauli Podestà in Prà; the ambitious aim of the table was to enthuse young people and build a network of Farms in the Metropolitan City of Genoa by involving Hotelier and other high schools of different addresses and restaurateurs, also to create future job opportunities.

The ‘Liscio come l’olio’ competition saw 11 institutes from all over Italy, including the Marco Polo of Genoa, the Giancardi of Alassio, and the Migliorini of Finale Ligure, compete to valorise extra virgin olive oil, the main ingredient of the Mediterranean diet, in their recipes.

The winners of the competition, judged by a jury chaired by representatives of the Federazione Italiana Cuochi (Italian Cooks Federation), which also required the students to narrate their recipe with communicative skills, were the students Barbon Filippo and Thomas from the IPSSAR ALFREDO BELTRAME Vittorio Veneto. All the students’ recipes will be published in gastronomy magazines, as a reward for their commitment and creativity.

The second contest, on the other hand, was dedicated to the art of espresso coffee, in memory of the esteemed teacher Alessandro Bonacci, and was divided into two sessions, the first reserved for two students from the second classes of each Hotelier Institute and Professional Training Body of the Liguria Region. The second in the same way, but reserved for the students of the Nino Bergese Institute.

The events continued with the Forum ‘FUTURE, SUSTAINABILITY AND HOTEL INSTITUTIONS’, in the Sala delle Grida and also remotely on the platform of the San Giorgio Nautical Institute.

Speakers included lecturers from the University of Genoa, Genoa Chamber of Commerce and USR Liguria, who explained what ‘sustainable’ means from an environmental, food and economic perspective.

The spotlight then shifted to the topic of Health, for the eagerly awaited and packed Congress on ‘OBESITY AND DIET,’ in collaboration with the SINU (Italian Society of Human Nutrition) and the Endocrinology Department of the San Martino Hospital.

Finally, the week ended with the lively Agro-Food Market Exhibition ‘The agricultural producer guardian of the Genoese territory’ at Villa Bombrini in Cornigliano, with the presence of 30 Ligurian producers dedicated to the dairy, wine, oil, beer, chinotto, saffron, syrups and pumpkin sectors, accompanied by the Slow Food G. Rebora Convivium.

The event, organised in cooperation with Enoteca Regionale della Liguria, and with the valuable support of the Genoa City Council’s Department of Trade, Craftsmanship, Protection and Development of Valleys, Major Events and Società per Cornigliano, was aimed at promoting agricultural producers and their processors to safeguard the agro-biodiversity of native species and the culture of environmental and food sustainability, enhancing the activity of farmers.

Thanks to the support of Regione Liguria, the 3 Ligurian PDOs were noltr and represented with the Format ‘Assaggia la Liguria’. Thanks to the participation of the Consorzio delle Proloco, the numerous visitors were able to taste typical Ligurian food and wine in an area dedicated to street food and enjoy a cocktail created for the occasion by the students of the Istituto alberghiero Nino Bergese and the Genova Gourmet Bartender, called ‘Il corniglianito’.

In the words of the Vice-President of the Region, Alessandro Piana, ‘The Exhibition has valorised Liguria’s rural tradition by making it known through its excellences, which are the result of a long historical and productive process that plays, at the same time, the fundamental role of protecting the territory.

Agriculture is becoming increasingly aware, conserving biodiversity, preserving the landscape, promoting the preservation of dry-stone walls, monumental plants, the maintenance of pasture-meadows and the specific features of the territory. Regione Liguria, with the Enoteca Regionale della Liguria and the Nino Bergese Institute, shares and supports the objective of the event that puts the value of the guardian farmer under the spotlight of the general public, in a virtuous symbiosis of economy and environment under the sign of social responsibility”.

The Genoa City Council’s Councillor for Commerce and Development of the Valleys also stated with satisfaction that ‘we have supported with conviction the initiatives in the programme that combine training, the valorisation of the territory, and the promotion of our products. Thanks to the synergy between Società per Cornigliano, Enoteca Regionale, and Istituto Bergese, it has been possible to involve many local realities in order to disseminate the knowledge and flavours of our valleys and sea. On Saturday and Sunday, the gardens of Villa Bombrini will come alive with the event The agricultural producer guardian of the Genoese territory, to which I invite all the people of Genoa to discover the excellent productions of the Genoese area and the fundamental role that our producers play, often in a heroic way, in the active protection of the valleys. Next weekend’s appointment is the first important event to be held following the establishment, in which we have believed as administration, of the Enoteca Regionale at Villa Bombrini, a high-level venue that can be enhanced by becoming a pole for the excellence of the territory not only for Cornigliano but for the whole of Genoa’.

Commenting on the week, USR Liguria Director Alessandro Clavarino said “that it is part of a very full calendar of events that have seen a growth in collaboration between institutions, companies and school institutes, which are increasingly protagonists in the dynamics that make the work of the supply chain topical and interesting. The Bergese Institute, which has long been a lively and active educational interlocutor in the Western Genoa scenario, is once again in the limelight. The themes of sustainability, the valorisation of local products and knowledge, and the care of the relationship with cultural excellence make it a point of reference on this occasion too. A demonstration that the school educates active young adults, capable of putting themselves into play with responsibility’.

The famous chef Nino Bergese, after whom the school is named, would be proud of the students who carry on his culinary tradition with passion. As his niece, who spoke at one of the events, put it.

Prof. Andrea Cresta, emphasises the Institute’s satisfaction with how all partners supported the events, realising the importance of creating new and future collaborations, and takes the opportunity for a general thank you, extending it to the entire staff of the IPSSA Bergese, who were instrumental in organising the week of events.

Headmistress Cinzia Baldacci concluded the week with confidence that she would be able to renew the food festival next year, with even more enthusiasm and opportunities for the students.