“It all starts with a dream.” Ask Mike Piazza about his goals for baseball in Italy and he’ll likely find his way back to this thought. The Hall of Fame catcher has already made multiple noteworthy contributions to help support the country’s baseball ambitions, representing Italy both on the field and in the dugout during previous World Baseball...

A contingent of leaders from the Italian American Baseball Foundation traveled to Italy for several youth baseball clinics and transformational meetings, further extending the organization’s impact, growth, and potential abroad.  As a board trustee of IABF, I chronicled the journey with video and images on social media throughout the week. This is...

The producers of Grana Padano PDO cheese and Prosciutto di Parma PDO are at the center of a joint promotional campaign that seeks to raise awareness about these unique European foods among American and Canadian retailers, chefs and consumers. The program, which has been named “Distinctly Deliciously European,” will emphasize the importance of quali...

The Marilyn Horne Museum at the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford will host a bit of Italy in Bradford during a multimedia lecture by opera author and speaker August Ventura. The presentation will be entitled, “There’s Something About Verdi.” It will be held at 1 p.m. June 15 in Bromeley Family Theater in Blaisdell Hall. The presentation will of...

It’s going to be a Verdi extravaganza at the Italian Institute of Culture in New York. The FESTIVAL VERDI DAY on Wednesday, May 29, will kick off at 5pm with a lecture-recital by renowned scholar Francesco Izzo, Director of the Accademia Verdiana. At 6 pm, the Festival Verdi and Verdi Off 2024 presentation will start, followed by a 7:30 pm Cocktail...

I’ve had the privilege of writing and talking about many of Italy’s little gems over the past few years, but few could be more "gem-like" than Parma, a lovely corner in the heart of Emilia-Romagna where art, history and food get along almost too amiably. You sense it as you stroll through Parma: the beauty of the city’s streets, with their elaborat...

Foodies flock to the Parma area for its spectacular gourmet blockbusters like Parmigiano Reggiano cheese,  Prosciutto di Parma ham, Lambrusco wine, and more; while cyclists love the area because it’s relatively flat compared to much of the rest of Italy and easy to explore on two wheels.  But there’s another great reason to visit the area: the incr...

Everyone knows a bit about Italy’s breadbasket, the Emilia Romagna region, even if they don’t realize it. It’s the home of several of Italy’s most important foodstuffs: balsamic vinegar of Modena, stuffed pastas like tortellini, Lambrusco wine, and perhaps its most famous: prosciutto di Parma and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. These last two are from...

The XXXI edition of the Pizza World Championship has just concluded, featuring 718 competitors representing 55 nations. With 1078 challenges to determine a single winner across various categories, the city of Parma served as an exceptional venue. Italy emerges triumphantly from the competition, with near absolute dominance in several specialties. G...

The Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium, the governing body for Parmigiano Reggiano Protected Destination of Origin (PDO), marks its 90th birthday this year. Founded in 1934, the Consortium’s efforts throughout the last century include quadrupling Parmigiano Reggiano production and working to promote the Made in Italy designation globally, according to...