La Fettunta

Enjoying the first fettunta of olio nuovo season is one of the happiest days of the year at Manicaretti.

Fettunta (meaning "soaked slice" in Italian) is a thick slice of crusty Italian bread, toasted to a perfect golden color, DRENCHED with olio nuovo and sprinkled with sea salt. Look at the picture of the fettunta we had so you can see yourself how much olive oil is doused on the toast.

It's so important to soak it with oil, to splurge, and to make the bread get soft with the oil. There is no better way to enjoy olio nuovo than on a fettunta. You can also top the toast with beans, steamed broccoli or cavolo nero (as we did here), as well as any winter green of your choice. But the simpler the better. And you must always have an oily chin when eating a fettunta otherwise you are not doing it right!