Liguria

Herbs reign supreme in the cooking of Liguria: marjoram, basil, parsley, and other wild species abound, flavoring everything from pasta stuffings to sauces to meat and fish. Basil finds its ultimate expression in a delicate pesto made with pine nuts, garlic, and the local prescinsoeua cheese, often served as a sauce with thin tagliatelle called trenette or trofie, tiny dumplings. Pansouti alla noce, plump ravioli stuffed with a mixture of wild greens called preboggion and cheese and served with a creamy walnut sauce, are traditional. The flat coin-like disks called corzetti, often made with a dough that includes white wine, are frequently sauced with a mushroom ragù. Cappon magro, an impressive combination of seafood, fish, vegetables, hard-boiled eggs, olives, and anchovies spooned atop garlic-rubbed bread, is one of the towering glories of Ligurian cuisine.

Not to be missed are cima alla genovese, stuffed veal that is slowly poached; torta pasqualina, with spinach and eggs; sardeinaria, a flatbread topped with tomatoes, olives, and anchovies and farinata, an extremely thin pancake made from chickpea or corn flour. Traditionally it is eaten hot, even on the street, at any time of the day. In Liguria, farinata is a widespread custom, a sort of fast-food made with very few ingredients: flour, olive oil, salt, and water. Farinata, just like pizza, can be stuffed or garnished with any vegetable, cheese, or sauce. It is very interesting to see an old farinata oven work; copper baking pans are placed over the flames of burning wood and left to bake for a few minutes. Unfortunately, many of these old ovens have been replaced by more modern ones. In Savona, farinata is still cooked in an open oven.

An important element of Ligurian cooking is its simplicity, and the mixing of poor but very flavorful ingredients such as vegetables and legumes, eggs, and aromatic herbs. In the case of farinata, chickpea flour is used. This flour is obtained from chickpeas, ceci in Italian, which are used extensively in the Mediterranean, India, and the Middle East.

The region produces a delicate olive oil and excellent table olives, and pandolce is a traditional Christmas dessert. Wines include Vermentino di Ponente, Pigato, Cinqueterre, Rossese di Dolceacqua, and Brachetto d'Albenga.