Genoans flout terror ban with bumper basil hand baggage policy Heightened security at airports clearly doesn't apply to all liquids, at least not in Italy. An airport in Genoa is now allowing flyers to travel with jars of the local speciality sauce – pesto. Cristoforo Colombo Airport said that receptacles of the green stuff made with basil, cheese, pine nuts and olive oil – even jars over …
Well of course it does because if you can use a Stanley knife (box cutter for the left pondians) then a glass jar or bottle is equally effective. Which then begs the question about duty free bottles of which the expensive ones are still glass the last time I flew though that might be dependent on the airport being used.
You can't have security theatre without fear.
You also can't have slaughter without laughter and finally you can't have happiness without a ?
I've always wondered about that too....
Off the top of my head I can think of at least 3 different ways to make a stabbing/cutting weapon with on-board supplies, many more if I was to include items purchased at duty free...
Yes its a good idea to screen passengers, but keep it sensible, and use profiling to identify risks.
Buying industrial (and probably overpriced) pesto during a trip, when nowadays the necessary, good quality ingredients are so easy to find even at the local Tesco? It is not like ten years ago when I had to go to a speciality garden shop at the beginning of the season, order my basil plant and pamper it like it was my own son until it got too cold for it.
For those interested, the basic recipe goes thusly:
* Get one basil plant at Tesco for about £1.00-£1.50
* Get some pine nuts at Tesco for about £2.00-£3.00
* Get some olive oil for about £5.00-£7.00. It is important to choose extra virgin, cold pressed oil. In general, any oil from Spain should be alright (Carbonell and Borges are high-price brands, not the best but will do the job); conversely, I haven't found any decent oils amongst Greek exports. In a pinch, French brand Puget does the job although theirs is a mix of oils from the EU and Turkey. I get mine from a friend's farm in Italy so I can't comment on what's available at Tesco.
* Get some Parmesan cheese for £2.00-£3.00. This is optional, and if you are going to be storing the pesto for a few days you may wish to mix it in just before consuming.
* Get a small clove (or half clove) or garlic. Also optional.
* A pinch of salt. Optional too.
Now put the pine nuts, the garlic and the salt in the blender with 50-100 ml of oil. Blend it to a coarse / slightly coarse consistency (according to taste). Next pluck the basil leaves, rinse them, and throw them in. Blend again for 5-10 seconds only. Add the Parmesan (to taste, typically between 0% to 75% of the amount of pine nuts), then blend again until obtaining the desired texture (so from 0 to 60 seconds or so). You may also add more olive oil at this point or latter just before serving if you prefer a more liquid pesto. For storage, cover with a thin film of oil to prevent oxidation of the basil at the top of the container.
There are many possible variations: you may also add dried and/or fresh tomatoes, other kinds of seeds instead of or in addition to pine nuts, even other oils. As with all traditional stuff, there isn't a single recipe (I do many different variations myself).
In any event, it takes less than ten minutes to prepare pesto, it can be stored for up to about a week, and fresh, good quality ingredients are easily available locally at reasonable prices. So why bother buying the touristy stuff (plus industrial pesto is just vile!)?
> Did you forget to toast your nuts, or are you leaving that to us?
Toasting (or roasting) the pine nuts? For making pesto? I suppose you could if it strikes your fancy, but personally I do not do it and furthermore it strikes me as something very foreign and removed from the spirit of pesto as a simple sauce made of raw ingredients.
Again, it's your recipe, you do what you want with it, but be aware that there are certain things that will denature the result. A bit like adding chilli to a gazpacho or having escargots (snails) with HP sauce.
"There are many possible variations: you may also add dried and/or fresh tomatoes, other kinds of seeds instead of or in addition to pine nuts, even other oils. As with all traditional stuff, there isn't a single recipe (I do many different variations myself)."
No, no, no, no. a Genovese hit squad is on its way now to punish you.
"What is hot irn-bru sauce?"
Irn-Bru is a carbonated soft drink strongly associated with Glasgow, Scotland. Given that the region's other culinary delicacies include deep fried chocolate Mars bars - then a sauce containing Irn-Bru is perfectly feasible and does exist.
... a sauce containing Irn-Bru is perfectly feasible and does exist.
Hmm ... It calls itself "Iron Brew" sauce, so presumably isn't sanctioned by Barrs, who produce the Irn-Bru drink, and possibly has nothing to do with the drink at all. It's a bit hard to tell as the website of the makers of the sauce (www.necessaucery.com) seems to be a dead link and it seems the company may be defunct.
I did have a (strange, bright orange, but actually fairly palatable) Irn-Bru flavoured cheesecake in Fort William, recently, though.
> ...so we should overlook that firstly it questions the validity of the supposed security protocols
Next time you're flying with a couple of petrol cans (never travel without) all you have to do is donate 50 cents to charity and hey, pesto! (I mean, presto).
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