Make Passata Like An Italian At Melbourne’s Tomato Festival
Remember the “Tomato Day” scene from iconic ’90s film Looking For Alibrandi? Of course you do.
That seminal Australian drama introduced many non-Italians to the idea of Tomato Day – a day where Italian families join together to rejoice and praise the almighty tomato plant with a whole lot of cooking, squashing and bottling. Well, now the wider community can join in on the fun. The Melbourne Tomato Festival is back for its second year of red, saucy glory, packed to the brim with tasty tomato treats and generous lashings of gelati.
The festival comes to Edendale Community Farm in Eltham, Melbourne, on February 21 with local produce, cooking demonstrations, workshops, passata-making sessions and heaps of delicious Italian food to eat. Passata, or tomato puree, is an essential part of any pasta sauce and it’s as vital to Italian culture as parmesan cheese is to bolognese.
The festival has a focus on local food, farmers and producers, and it will feature chefs Guy Grossi, Matt Wilkinson, Scott Pickett, Liz Egan, Karen Martini, as well as representatives from 400 Gradi, Dolci Momenti and Bar Idda.
You can grab your tickets here, but be quick – their inaugural event sold out last year.
(Images: supplied)
