Vella Pasta: Amber enjoys a visit to this classic family food producer in the Adelaide City region of South Australia

You simply can't visit Italy without falling in love - with the food that is. Italians just love their food after all it's a way of life. Being half Italian, I'm grateful that the wave of post war migration brought with it a feast of Italian food and flavors - so different to the meat and three veg Australia was used to.

The Italian influence is especially alive and well in Campbelltown - a suburb well-connected to its Italian roots. In true Italian tradition - Vella Pasta is a classic family affair. Sarah and Carmine Vella own the business but Carmine's mother and father, Antoneta and Lorenzo are never far away.

Each day, Vella produces a difference pasta dish which is packaged and sold fresh or snap frozen and shipped. That includes individual serves of fresh lasagna which are increasingly popular in school tuck shops.

All the dishes are based on Antoneta's original home recipes as the Vella family blends generations of food passion with the freshest ingredients and latest technology.

Carmine Vella, Vella Pasta: "We started the pasta business at my house in a little room at the back. One machine making linguini, fettuccini, lasagna sheets - that's how we started off - we ran out of room.

"I've always been involved in the food industry. I did an apprenticeship before we got into pasta. We always eat it at home and Sunday was a special day when mum used to make meat-filled ravioli or ricotta filled ravioli and I thought, well I have that everyday - why not open up a factory and whatever we make that day we sell that day."

It's a real tribute to Italian food that traditional home recipes, passed down through the generations can be reproduced on such a large scale.

Carmine Vella, Vella Pasta: "Most of the recipes are sauces my mum used to make and still does. We just multiply by a lot. Instead of a little 2 kilo pot - multiply it by 300 kilos but it's the same ingredients - fresh vegetables, good meat, and quality ingredients - that's all it is."

Sarah Vella, Vella Pasta: "That's what people want - they want the homemade taste and they want the homemade feel of the pasta. We use durum wheat semolina and egg in the pastry. It's a lot lighter - most people can tolerate it better than white flour."

You can't get much fresher than Bolognese sauce straight from the pot and at the end of the shift in true Italian tradition, the whole staff sits down for a bowl of pasta.

They are just one of a dozen of food producers on the Campbell Food Trail - Flavours of Campbelltown. Pick up a copy from the Campbelltown Council office on Montacute Road, the library or download one online. If you have any further questions please email info@postcards-sa.com.au

'Flavours of Campbelltown'
Campbelltown Council Libraries

Published 18th July 2010