An inside look at the world of olive oil

The making, buying and selling of olive oil is invariably described as, ahem, a slippery business. That's not the half of it, it turns out. If you're curious about just how slippery, Tom Mueller's "Extra Virginity" offers a smart, well-written crash course. As Food editor Russ Parsons writes in this week's Book Review:

Mueller, a New Yorker writer who lives among olive groves in Liguria, is clearly besotted with great oil. That is a typical reaction from those who have been fortunate enough to have been exposed to the real thing. Great olive oil is beyond mere ingredient. Like great wine, it seems to have a life of its own.

Of course, there's a lot of not-so-great olive oil around too that is very definitely a mere ingredient; olive oil is one of the most widely used cooking fats in the world. And therein lies the rub.

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3 Events: Fig & Olive, Descanso Gardens, Ombra

'Extra Virginity' tasting:  Olive oil authority Tom Mueller and Fig & Olive owner Laurent Halasz will be hosting a complimentary olive oil-tasting as well as a signing of Mueller's new book, "Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil." After the tasting, executive chef Pascal Lorange and pastry chef Andrew LeStourgeon will serve a four-course olive oil-driven menu for $85 per person,  including wine pairings.  The menu will feature such items as zucchini carpaccio with olive oil, lemon pine nut and parmesan, paired with Chemlali olive oil from Tunisia; striped bass papillote with zucchini, eggplant, fennel and saffron, served with olive oil-mashed potato and chives and paired with Arbequina olive oil from Portugal; and roasted veal tenderloin with fig chutney paired with Manzanillo olive oil from California.  Mueller and Halasz will share their extensive olive oil knowledge during the dinner. Dec. 5.  Reservations are recommended, as there are only 40 spots. 8490 Melrose Place, West Hollywood, (310) 360-9100, www.figandolive.com.

Breakfast with Santa: On Dec. 10 and 11, children can visit Santa and enjoy a sweet three-course breakfast.  The menu includes crêpes with assorted fillings, including sliced strawberries; vanilla ice cream; and warm maple or blueberry syrup; brown  sugar-baked sweet potatoes with toasted marshmallows; gingerbread people cookies; and holiday sugar cookies with warm apple cider to wash it all down. This morning activity is complete with a picture with Santa. ($45 for members; $53 for nonmembers, $19 for children ages 4 to 12). 1418 Descano Drive, La Cañada Flintridge, (213) 864-2241, www.patinagroup.com/descanso.

Vignalta dinner: Chef Michael Young is highlighting the Vignalta wine label in a five-course dinner with wine pairings ($89 per person) on Dec. 7.  The menu is centered on Vignalta founder Lucio Gomiero's garden-grown radicchio. Dishes include savory radicchio pastry with bitto cheese, cannolicchi pasta with gorgonzola cream and yellow radicchio, and stuffed and braised radicchio leaves with beef. Reservations can be made by calling (818) 985-7337.  Ombra Ristorante, 3737 Cahuenga Blvd., Studio City, www.ombrala.com.             

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-- Leah Rodrigues

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Photo: W.W. Norton Publishing