Don's coming home with tasty formaggi

One of Gunnedah’s best rugby league footballers will be returning next weekend – not to relive days of glory, but to share the joys of Italian cuisine at Annual Porchetta Day, the food and wine day that is part of Festival Italiano.

Don Bianchino, the eldest son of one of Gunnedah’s treasured Italian families, is arguably the most stylish footballer the town has ever seen, with a deceptive sidestep, chiming runs from fullback and the ability to kick goals from anywhere in the enemy’s half.

But football is just one step in a rich narrative that, in many ways, is the story of modern Australia.

The son of Italian immigrants from Muro Lucano in the southern Basilicata region, Don endured the tough side of growing up in the largely Anglo-Celtic Gunnedah district, yet emerged as a talented rugby league player shoulder-by-shoulder with players from all walks of life and ancestry, often captaining them.

Drafted into national service and rising to the rank of second lieutenant, Don played rugby for Australian services, was discharged from the army and built a successful architecture and design firm in Sydney.

In one of the toughest fights of all – putting football and the army in the shade – Don battled cancer of the throat to continue in business, kept running and exercising every day and, with his wife Sonya, raised a family of three boys, Alessandro, Matteo and Massimo.
Don maintains his links with Gunnedah; his sister Angelina (Barnes) still lives in the town and, coinciding with Annual Porchetta Day, he will be attending the 40th reunion of the Gunnedah High School Class of ’69.

Now, Don is hoping to spread the word on Italian cheeses (formaggi) and other delicacies by running a Salumeria stall (delicatessen) at Annual Porchetta Day.

One of the prime cheeses will be Parmesan Reggiano, the king of cheeses that was once a currency in Italy. This is the world’s best parmesan, aged for a minimum of two years, and can be used as a table cheese or shaved, grated or shredded on absolutely everything from salads to pizzas.

A cousin of the hard Parmesan is Provolone Piccante (spicy), a semi-hard cheese which has been aged for a minimum of four months and is particularly sharp and tasty.

Among other cheeses will be Gorgonzola dolce and piccante (a blue cheese that is either “sweet” or “sharp” in flavour); Cambozola (a smooth mild-flavoured blue with creamy paste texture); Buffalo Mozzarella (fresh cheese made from buffalo milk); Bocconcini (fresh mozzarella that complements antipasti, salads, pizzas and side dishes)

The Bianchino Salumeria stall will also have a range of delicacies such as bell peppers stuffed with feta, char-grilled artichokes and eggplant, semi-sundried tomatoes, sea-salt crisp bread and grissini sticks (unleavened, yeast and preservative free), split green olives marinated with herbs and garlic, and a range of cured meats such as pancetta, prosciutto and salami.
The stall remains a work in progress, with Don hoping to secure a range of goat milk and sheep milk cheeses, such as Pecorino Sardo from Sardinia.