Typical dishes and ricipes

Polenta

(Feeds four.) Boil two litres of water in a large pan and add salt and 500 grams of maize flour, stirring continuously to avoid the formation of lumps. Cook for an hour to obtain a compact consistency. Take a wooden board and cover it with a cloth. Pour the polenta onto this and place a cover over it to keep it hot.

Goat's meat

Sausages made from goat's meat are relished by those with strong palates, because they have a very strong taste. The salametti have a finer taste, since the goat's meat is mixed with bacon. Another goat speciality is leg or shoulder pickled in brine and matured like dry meat. Another recipe for goat's meat is a "bogia", i.e. one in which it is marinated for several days in wine, salt and spices (a practice which used to extend the shelf life of meat in the days before the arrival of refrigerators). The marinated meat is boiled prior to eating.

Roast "cicitt"

This dish is comprised of sausages of goat's meat and fat and sometimes has other meats added to it too. In the upper part of the valley, the tradition is to cook it on a spit held over an open fire and to tear little bits off and eat them one at a time as cooking progresses. Lower down the valley, the pieces of meat are roasted whole on a grill.

Apples in Merlot (Mele al Merlot)

Using an appropriate implement, make a number of small balls out of Golden Delicious apples and immerse these in boiling Merlot wine for about a minute. Add a little sugar and a stick of cinnamon. Place the apples in a refrigerator and leave them there for approximately 24 hours. Before serving, warm them up again and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Marrons glacés

Shell two kilos of chestnuts, but leave the inner skins on them. Place the chestnuts in a pan with 200 grams of flour, fill with water and allow to boil for 20 minutes. Drain the chestnuts and then boil again a second time. In the meantime, boil 0.8 litres of water in a separate pan and add a kilo of sugar and 4 grams of vanillin. Drain the chestnuts, remove their skins and place them in the vanilla syrup. Boil on a slow flame for approximately 16 hours. As soon as a soft crust forms on the surface, drain the "marroni" and allow them to cool.

El süghètt

This is a sweet pudding, originally from Corippo. Take a copper pan, pour half a litre of red wine into it and bring it to the boil. Whilst stirring thoroughly, add 150 grams of maize flour and 100 grams of sugar. Allow to boil for 15 minutes. At the end, add 30 grams of butter. Serve hot.