Joe Trivelli's Recipes for Crostini, Gnocchi, Fig Pork and Amaretto Chocolate Cake

Dad used to criticize us kids when we said we "liked" certain foods because it sounded jarring to his Italian ears. Love was only for people. But it is with love that my father takes care of a hundred Tuscan olive trees and makes the olive oil that the whole family eats all year round. He also delivers three special olive oil bottles to our house for the kids with printed labels that say something like, “This bottle of olive oil is made for my grandson's sole enjoyment…” Elsa says it clicks (her words) with everything. Even foods she doesn't like, like broccoli. She's not wrong.

My brother and his kids helped with this year's harvest and sent us some first bottles of thick green oil. Typical tasting notes are cut grass, raw artichokes and a peppery throaty finish that can take your breath away. All of the recipes here lend themselves to being dipped with this, but an extra grind of black pepper or a pinch of dried chili is what I add if I don't have it on hand.

Cooking with this oil for a few months makes me the happiest and I feel blessed that this food culture found me. All my shirts are paying the price for my oversaturation. Right now I'm happily stained with the stuff.

A selection of topped toast is my antipasto of choice and is a total must-have in the fall. The bean porridge is a favorite of my sister-in-law, who could pour it into a pan and do without the bread altogether. Chianti is perhaps the most appropriate wine for chicken livers, but use any; the sweet wine is particularly good, a hint of vintage at the end to freshen things up. Serves 4

8-slice sourdough bread

For chicken liver crostino: red onion ½ garlic 1 clove, peeled sage leaves 5 salted capers 1 tsp chicken liver 250 g olive oil anchovy fillets 4 chianti, or other red wine 350 ml salt peeled bay leaves some salt olive oil fennel 1 bulb lemon juice from 1 hard cheese finely grated savoy cabbage ¼

For the chicken liver garnish, finely slice the onion and chop the garlic and sage. Rinse the capers. Clean the livers of any connective tissue.

Sweat the onions and garlic in 2 tablespoons of olive oil for 8 minutes over low heat until until they are tender. Add the anchovies, capers and sage and cook for a few more minutes. Now add the livers, increase the heat to medium and cook, turning them over as they begin to change color. At this point, add about 300ml of wine and continue cooking, over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the wine is almost dry and the livers are firm and cooked through. This should take about 10 minutes.

At this point, turn off the heat and, using a spoon, place the livers on a clean cutting board, without waste any of the surrounding food. sauce. Chop the livers by hand or use a food processor (this saves a lot of mess, but be careful not to over-process the livers so they become totally smooth - some texture is welcome). Return them to the pan and turn the heat back on. Stir to combine and after 1 minute add the rest of the wine and another 3 tablespoons of olive...