Creminelli Mortadella — Pure Porky Pleasure!

I tasted some absolutely sensational salumi on Saturday, and I must share it with you!

At a meeting of the group Food Bloggers L.A. (FBLA, for short), we were treated to a visit from a representative from Creminelli Fine Meats, a purveyor of artisanal Italian cured meat specialities.

Swooning ensued, as the foodies stuffed papery thin slices of salumi into their gaping maws. (What is salumi? Simply a word for Italian cured meats and meat products. Not to be confused with Salami, which is a specific type of sausage.)

I am not kidding. There were eyes rolling back in heads, there was moaning, and a few of of us were speechless. This stuff was transcendent — wildly good!

I fell in love with the mortadella and the prosciutto. It was the best version of either of those meats I have ever had. I could envision building a party around a large plate piled high with these meats.

Oh, the Mortadella!

The mortadella was improbably light, soft and fluffy, if you can imagine meat having those characteristics. Mortadella is the ancestor of American baloney, but Creminelli Mortadella is pure porky pleasure, and the polar opposite of ordinary rubbery supermarket baloney.

Oh, the Prosciutto!

The prosciutto cotto was also a revelation, a lower-salt, airy version that allowed the true hammy quality to emerge.

Where can you find it? There’s a page on their web site into which you can insert your Zip Code or your city, hit “send” and it will return a list of local venues that sell the brand.

To this foodie potluck I brought my latest obsession — Rosemary Rice Krispies Treats, an updated variation on the version you recall from childhood, only with three times the butter, which you have thoughtfully browned, and some finely minced fresh rosemary from your plant out back.

Yeah, they’re scary good.

Tagged as: charcuterie, Creminelli Fine Meats, Food Bloggers Los Angeles, mortadella, prosciutto, pure porky pleasure, salumi