CRIVELLI ITALIAN SALSA
PRODUCTS INTERNATIONAL
East Bay woman's salsa may be a hot commodity
OAKLAND TRIBUNE Apr 30, 2005
by
Erin Pursell CORRESPONDENT
ALAMEDA -- Caroline Kennedy was up late one night with her grandmother in Dixon talking
about their family's rich Italian and Latino history when the two women headed into the kitchen and started creating all kinds
of noise and smells.
Half an hour later they had produced a batch of traditional Italian salsa, also known as "chili"
to the family, which has passed the recipe down through the generations.
"I wanted to remember some recipes so they
wouldn't get lost with time," Kennedy said recently in her Alameda apartment.
The salsa has helped Kennedy not only
keep her family's mixed heritage alive, it has helped her economically. Her Crivelli Italian Salsa is headed for mainstream
grocery shelves in coming months and each jar will bear an image of Mary Magdalene, as painted by her most famous ancestor
-- the Italian Renaissance artist Carlos Crivelli.
"It's definitely been a journey," says the 46-year-old, who has
steadily built her business during the last 10 years. She hopes it will become a product people all over the Bay Area will
be able to enjoy.
The salsa is already a hit at the Lincoln Market in Alameda, a neighborhood grocery store where
owner Sunny Sahini said every customer who has tasted it has come back.
"I really like her product," said Sahini,
who described it as tasting very fresh and different than the larger salsa companies whose products he carries.
Kennedy's
Italian roots reach back to the 1400s, when original works of Carlos Crivelli were first being hung in the Vatican.
Kennedy's
great-great grandfather, Vincent Crivelli, set sail for Mexico in the late 1800s to start his family. His son, named after
Carlos Crivelli, born and raised in Mexico, became an Italian chef and was the creator of the family's salsa recipe.
The
salsa was such an important part of her family's heritage it "was served at every meal at Grandma's house," she said.
Kennedy
was a graphic artist for 12 years and has started several other small businesses, including designing renaissance clothing,
all of which she said have prepared her for her biggest step yet. When Kennedy was 32 and in her second marriage, she learned
to make the traditional salsa, which her friends encouraged her to keep making.
After such a positive response from
family and friends, she decided to make a more serious attempt at legitimizing her business.
Kennedy said she'd never
forget the moment when she found the painting she wanted to use for the label.
"It was like angelic," she said of
the famous Crivelli painting of Mary Magdalene, which she incorporated into the design of the label on her salsa jar.
Using
her on the label brings this thing full circle not only for my great-grandfather's recipe but also for Carlos Crivelli."
Kennedy
hopes now, 500 years later, her product also may help raise awareness and help people appreciate the art of Crivelli, who
has been overshadowed by many other Renaissance artists.
Everything comes to me in bits and pieces but its all coming
together," she said, "It's been an interesting journey."
Interesting and certainly a journey just beginning.
©
2007 FindArticles™ - LookSmart, Ltd. · About Us · Privacy Policy · Terms of Service · Advertise with Us · Site Map ·
RSS Site Map
Yahoo Quick Search
This page has been visited 
times.
Send e-mail to:
libraryofsophia3@lycos.com
This page created using the webpage creation facilities of Webspawner.
Copyright © 2007 CAROLINE E. KENNEDY. All Rights Reserved
