Abruzzo - page 2

The abruzzan appetite
Abruzzans have a reputation as good cooks and hearty eaters. It is here that the tradition of la panarda was born-an all-out feast of 30 to 50 courses that lasts for hours, if not all day and all night. The region's chefs were lifted to international fame in the 16th century, when the Caracciolo princes from Naples came to Abruzzo to hunt, discovered how well the local men prepared game and brought them back to Naples. Cooking for aristocrats from afar, the Abruzzans soon gained recognition across Europe. A well-respected cooking school in the mountain town of Villa Santa Maria keeps this culinary tradition alive, training chefs from Abruzzo and the rest of Italy. The most recognized regional dish is maccheroni alla chitarra with lamb ragù, which pairs two of the region's most prized foods: pasta and lamb. Abruzzo's pasta is admired for its superb texture and flavor, attributed to good wheat and pure mountain water. To make the long, square strands of maccheroni, thick sheets of dough are pressed through a system of wires called a chitarra, so named because it resembles the fret board of a guitar. Lamb and mutton are ubiquitous, whether in pasta sauces, stews or simple skewers called arrosticini. Crêpes, or crespelle, are a surprisingly popular primo. Rolled up and served in broth, they take on the regional name scrippelle. Being part of Southern Italy, olive oil is a staple ingredient, as are tomatoes and a host of other wild and cultivated vegetables. More than most other regions of the south, Abruzzo loves hot chili peppers. Called diavolilli or diavolicchi (little devils), sajettini (little arrows) or the standard peperoncini, the spicy vegetables heat up most pasta sauces, pork stews like the spicy cif e ciaf, and a variety of seafood dishes. Peperoncino-infused olive oil is so beloved in this region that it is called olio santo-holy oil. A much subtler spice used widely in Abruzzo is saffron. The crocus plant that produces the spice was brought to the region hundreds of years ago by a local priest after a visit to Persia. Now Abruzzo is Italy's largest grower of saffron, and it appears in many seafood dishes such as cozze gialle, or mussels cooked with saffron and tomatoes. Cured meats and cheeses keep the region's rural population going through long, snowy winters. Mortadella di Campotosto, or mortadellina, is a small, finely ground oval salami with a stick of cured pork fat running through the center. Ventricina, a peppery meat mixture flavored with fennel and orange peel, is usually spread on bread. Regional cheeses include aged pecorino, nutty cow's milk scamorza and goat's milk capruzzo, often preserved in olive oil. Fish and seafood supplement this hearty diet along the coast. The classic Adriatic fish stew, brodetto, is made in the coastal cities using a mixture of local seafood. Saffron, tomatoes and hot peppers flavor many seafood dishes. Native pastry chefs have given Abruzzo an assortment of signature desserts. Soft chocolate nougat, called torrone nurzia, was invented by Ulisse Nurzia in the 19th century in a small town at the base of the Apennines. Made from hazelnuts, chocolate, honey and almonds, the soft, chewy delicacy gets its irresistible texture from the same secret ingredient as Abruzzo's pasta-pure mountain water-evidenced by the fact that Nurzia was unable to reproduce the popular confection when he traveled north to Milan. Another sweet treat, beloved by Americans but unknown to most Italians outside of Abruzzo, are crisp wafers called pizzelle (also known as ferratelle, cancellette, catarrette . and the list goes on). Flavored with anise, the thin, waffle-like cookies are made with a special hinged iron. The town of Sulmona is known as the best place in Italy for sugar-coated almonds called confetti. These candies have become such an integral part of Italian celebrations that they are color-coded by occasion: white for weddings, pink or blue for baptisms and red for graduation. Confectioners in Sulmona have used the same recipe for hundreds of years-one of the most visible links between food and culture in a country that prides itself on both.

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