How the Verdurabrand frozen gourmet vegetable line began… 

Angela Gismondi of Verdura Brand Frozen Gourmet VegetablesVerdurabrand was founded in February 2005 by Angela a descendent of a long line of Italian Chefs and Restaurateurs, dating back to the late 1800’s in Italy. Growing up in a restaurant family, dinner was at 3:00 pm and usually consisted of a meat, fish or fowl entrée and at least one green vegetable (sautéed in garlic and olive oil) and a salad. Angela’s family followed a Mediterranean diet. Her Nonni (grandparents), who spent winters in Florida and summers in Italy, often brought vegetables such as broccoli rabe, zucchini flowers, Swiss chard, escarole, dandelion, endive, cabbage, cardoons and tomatoes from their Orto (garden) to these meals. They made friends with local vegetable farmers in the South Florida area to get tips on cultivating these quality vegetables. Angela’s grandfather always said it is important to eat “le Verdure” (vegetables). “It helps the digestion,” he said. When Angela would visit her Nonnos and Nonnas in Italy, they would take her to the large open vegetable markets in the Piazza to select the vegetables for the afternoon meal. Small local farmers from the surrounding towns supplied the vegetables. The Nonnas would Triple Wash their vegetables to remove all dirt. Vegetables were then prepared with simple ingredients like garlic and extra virgin olive oil.

Being in the Restaurant business, Angela never realized how time-consuming it was to prepare these items at home on a daily basis until she took time off to raise her two daughters. She found that with raising two little girls, there was little time to shop, wash, cut and prepare vegetables to maintain a healthy Mediterranean diet. The frozen vegetables available were sub-par and the frozen prepared vegetables were not conforming to a Mediterranean diet.

Angela realized there were few frozen vegetable options for a harried new mom who wanted to eat healthy and enjoy fresh quality vegetables. She searched the frozen food section of many grocery stores looking for alternatives to broccoli & cheese or bland frozen broccoli, cauliflower, peas, and carrots.

Realizing the limited options, Angela was determined to develop a product line that would help busy people maintain healthy lifestyles. That was when Verdurabrand was born. With a little help from her family in one way or another, she was able to develop the Verdurabrand product line, which uses only the finest farm fresh vegetables, garlic and extra virgin olive oils. The vegetables are sautéed in garlic and olive oil, just like Nonna did, then vacuum-bagged and immediately frozen to preserve that just prepared flavor. All you need to do is boil or microwave them and your Verdurabrand Vegetables are ready to serve in just minutes and with none of the preparation hassles!

 

Healthy frozen gourmet vegetables available.  Great in paleo recipes, healthy vegetarian food, farm fresh and non GMO.