In Praise of Olive Oil

So many important things in life require olive oil. You can't really make a good vinagrette without a fine virgin oil. You could substitute canola oil, but it would just be disappointing. The key to a hearty minestrone is the green nectar mixed with fresh basil, and the best fresh pasta wants nothing more than a sprinking of good oil and fresh herbs. In the summer I love to drizzle oil on cold roasted vegetables, and in the winter what better marinade for fish or meat? I like to sop up a plate of silky oil with a thick crusty loaf of bread. There are probably other uses I have not mentioned. Life would not be the same without a beaker of olive oil. One should never go two weekends in a row without using plenty of it. Let me be your cook?