Why Chefs Are Raving About This Duo Of Pantry Essentials

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Gathering together around a table filled with homemade dishes is one of life's simple pleasures. In a fast-paced world where plans to cook at home can often fall by the wayside, making the time to prepare a thoughtful and high-quality meal might seem like a dream. That's where a handful of key ingredients can make a world of difference—two of which, olive oil and tomatoes, are the unsung heroes of great meals, from salads and pizzas to stews and pasta.

Enter a new collaboration between Corto Olive Co. and Stanislaus Food Products: the Corto x Stanislaus Chef's Essential Kit brings together two high-quality, California-grown pantry staples that can elevate your cooking instantly. Owned by the Cortopassi family, who has been crafting the finest, freshest Extra Virgin Olive Oil and specialty canned tomatoes for decades, Corto Olive Co. and Stanislaus Food Products have collaborated to create the Corto x Stanislaus Chef's Essentials Kit, which provides cooks from all walks of life with the same ingredients that professional chefs love. Pairing together two chef-loved farm-to-table additions that these brands know best, the kit includes one 500 ml bottle of Corto Truly Extra Virgin Olive Oil and four 16-ounce jars of Stanislaus Piccolo Datterini Baby Plum Tomatoes. 

The Corto x Stanislaus Chef's Essentials Kit retails for $85 and is available on the Corto website and Amazon.

EVOO is a cooking staple in many households, but not all brands are created equal. Corto's Truly Extra Virgin Olive Oil stands out among a crowded market as a superior choice due to the freshness and care that goes into each bottle. With deep roots in Northern California, Corto goes to great lengths to ensure its olive oil is as fresh as possible, including picking olives at the peak of freshness. The oil is cold-extracted within hours of harvest at temperatures less than 27 degrees Celsius, helping to preserve its nutrients and natural vibrant flavor. Finally, to make sure customers only get the best of the best, Corto performs a rigorous taste test before storing the extracted oil in a climate-controlled cellar. Only once an order is placed does the oil get packaged in dark glass bottles or air-tight FlavorLock™ boxes to protect it from the mortal enemies of olive oil: light, air and heat. It's no wonder that Corto is a favorite of top chefs, including multiple James Beard Award winners.

Making up one important half of the Corto x Stanislaus Chef's Essentials Kit, Corto's Truly Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a knockout of full-bodied flavor and pleasing floral notes. And thanks to its freshness — which contributes to its high smoke point of up to 400 degrees! — cooking with it is a dream. So, whether you are sautéing vegetables, dressing a salad, or drizzling Truly over a rich tomato bisque or bruschetta, this is the one oil you'll need.

Another gem of the Cortopassi family, Stanislaus has dedicated over 80 years to growing, harvesting, and packaging Italian-style tomatoes picked at the peak of freshness. Until recently, these Piccolo Datterini tomatoes were a secret, gifted only to family and close friends of the Cortopassis. Now, their irresistibly sweet flavor and crave-worthy melt-in-your-mouth consistency are available widely for the first time in the Chef's Essentials Kit. 

The number of different uses for these intensely flavored tomatoes is staggering: Start with a Piccolo Datterini and Olive Oil Pizza recipe to really see how simple it is to make something special when you're cooking with the best ingredients. But that's just the beginning: Between the Truly Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Piccolo Datterini Baby Plum Tomatoes, your weeknight meals just got a flavor lift. Still looking for inspiration? The kit also includes a booklet of Cortopassi family recipes to breathe new life into your recipe routine.

It's important to remember that incredible meals don't have to be complicated. Sometimes the simplest recipes are the best. Try a quick sauté of veggies from the farmer's market, Piccolo Datterini baby plum tomatoes, a generous splash of Corto's Truly Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and a sprinkle of flaky salt. Add the tomatoes to traditional stews, soups, and sauces to build rich layers of flavor, or liven up a weeknight with the family by tossing pizzas in the kitchen.

Whether you're cooking for a group or just making dinner for yourself, the Corto x Stanislaus Chef's Essential Kit makes it easy to prepare and serve something memorable without a lot of prep work or special skills. The simple recipes included in the kit underscore that quality cooking doesn't have to involve a pantry packed with exotic ingredients. Sometimes, it's just about knowing how to use a few quality ingredients to their full potential.

Whether you're new to cooking or have spent years in the kitchen, the Corto x Stanislaus Chef's Essentials Kit is an absolute must for simple and simply delicious meals. 

Get yours today on the Corto website or Amazon.