ROCKPORT — The next program in the Rockport Public Library’s “foodie” series  will be presented on Wednesday, May 1, at 6 p.m. Food writer and cookbook author Nancy Harmon Jenkins will present an olive-oil program entitled “The Extra Virgins: How to Choose Them, How to Use Them.” The event will be limited to 40 participants, and registration is required by calling the library at 207-236-3642.

The program will provide a broad introduction to extra-virgin olive oil – explaining what it is; how it is made; why it is more expensive than many other oils; what its health properties are; how to choose quality oils online and at local markets; and how to use it in the kitchen. There will also be an opportunity for the audience to sample a few olive oils for comparison.

Jenkins’ knowledge of olive oil and Mediterranean cooking is extensive and informed by first-hand experience. About 20 years ago, she established a small plantation of 150 olive trees on property her family owns in Tuscany, where they now produce their own high-end extra-virgin oil. The oil is often featured in special menus at Rockport’s Nina June restaurant, owned by her daughter, chef Sara Jenkins.

Camden native Nancy Harmon Jenkins has traveled the world looking for connections between what we eat and who we are. She has been a staff columnist for The New York Times, editorial director of The American Institute of Wine & Food, and founding director of Oldways Preservation & Exchange Trust. She is the author of numerous book about food (including Virgin Territory, about olive oil, and The Four Seasons of Pasta, co-written with Sara Jenkins), and countless articles for publications like Saveur, Food + Wine, Eating Well, the Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. Her weekly Substack column, “On the Kitchen Porch,” can be found at nancyj.substack.com.