Culinary Delights of the Cinque Terre

When grapevines and olive trees cover the hillsides, wine and oil are a must on the tables and an essential part of the Cinque Terre cuisine. They prove excellent companions for the salted anchovies of Monterosso served in olive oil as well as the many specialty fish dishes, authentic gastronomic delights.

Troffie is a kind of pasta made from chestnut or wheat flour and is one of the forefathers of modern and more sophisticated pasta. Its condiment is still 'pesto' sauce; an original Ligurian sauce made from basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil, grated cheese, pine nuts, and marjoram.

Tagliatelle, a broad handmade pasta, is used with sauces that contain mushrooms, cabbage and potatoes, beans, chickpeas or sometimes with pesto.

The vegetable pies, prepared with a stuffing containing borage (borago officinalis) and other local herbs that grow spontaneously in the Cinque Terre during the end of winter, artichokes, Swiss chard, zucchini, potatoes, and leeks are combined with egg and ricotta cheese or with stale bread soaked in milk or béchamel sauce (depending on each family's traditions), parmesan cheese, Italian parsley, and marjoram. The piecrust is very thin, because flour was a very precious commodity.

Egg 'fritatte', or flat omelettes, were eaten frequently. Today the frittata has been rediscovered as a tasty antipasto dish and is a regular part of the menu in just about every restaurant in the area. Another important dish on the tables of the Cinque Terre population was the 'cotoletta di acciuga', anchovies stuffed with a breadcrumb based filling and then fried. The 'fritelle di bianchetti', fritters made from tiny newborn anchovies or sardines were also highly appreciated. Following the seamen's gastronomic traditions, other dishes included stewed cuttlefish, stuffed calamari and spiced octopus.

The ANCHOVY and OLIVE OIL FEAST, held in Monterosso al Mare each year over the second weekend of September.

Useful Tip: Charges in some restaurants apply for each slice of bread removed from a breadbasket. Always ask prior to ordering at restaurants whether there is a charge for the bread or any other nibbles placed on the table. Knowing there is a cost involved means you are less likely to nibble. Charges also differ depending where you have a meal or even a drink. The cost of a simple cup of coffee can be 50% more to drink outside than inside. Always ask before purchasing.

Oregano is very important in the local cuisine. It is often added to fish dishes but it is mainly used by the inhabitants of La Spezia to enhance the flavour of tomatoes. Oregano is picked in summer at the edge of the woods and tied together in little bunches to dry in the shade. The dried flowers are put into jars and stored for later use.

The fame of the Cinque Terre is largely due to its products, the dry white wine, simply called 'Cinque Terre' and the 'Sciacchetrà', a prized dessert wine made from prime grapes dried to the point of holding only a few drops of sweet juice. A colourful addition to the Cinque Terre products is 'limoncino'; a dessert wine made from steeping lemon peels in pure alcohol and then added sugar and water to make a fragrant and fresh liquor. The lemons, another famous product of the Cinque Terre are prominently on display in the many 'limoneti' (lemon groves) and at the annual Lemon Festival held each year in Monterosso during the season of Pentacost.

"Cinque Terre" is a dry white wine, with a delicate bouquet and a nice finish. It's a coastal wine with a bit of sea tang to it, and compliments the local fish and shellfish admirably. For that matter, it also goes quite well with the essentially vegetarian diet the people had when the catch of the fishermen was poor (things such as ravioli or pasta with pesto sauce). However, in off years Cinque Terre can be thin and acidic, and then one wonders why people go to all the trouble.

The "Sentieri dell'Uva" (Grape Routes) are still as they once were with fig trees planted in strategic positions to give shade during breaks from work, agaves planted to mark boundaries, to line the footpaths along steep, stony steps and to indicate the rail terminals of the recently installed monorails which are the only vertical structures emerging from this seemingly completely, horizontal landscape. Many dry stone walls support this terraced landscape.

The large wicker baskets of grapes (corbe) are arranged along the "pose" (little walls, as wide as tables, built solely for this purpose). These include Albarola (Trebbiana), Biancorotto, Bruciapagliaio, Piccabon (Pizzamosca). To make white table wines the following are used: Fiore di Bosco, Rappolungo, Fogiaccia, Ruspara, and Sesagra. Baskets full of Magnagra (Albarola), from which the famous "Black Sciacchetrà" is made, are handled with extreme care.

Because of "Sciacchetrà", a dessert wine made by selecting the best grapes from the harvest and setting them to dry on mats (like Vinsanto). Drying concentrates the sugars in the grapes, which are pressed during October. The resulting must is fermented, and what emerges is an amber-colored nectar, with a flowery bouquet and an intriguing taste - though sweet, it can have a fairly dry finish, and is an excellent dessert wine. Its complexity increases with age and it can be a rare treat.

Comments:

   |    Copyright © 2007-2008 Digital Design Concepts Limited    |    Privacy & Copyright