Abruzzo on the table

The "Pizzonte", Crispy Fried Dough: queens of the festivals

Pizzonte - Abruzzesi pancakes are leavened pancakes. The term "Pizzonte" derives from the dialectal jargon of the province of Teramo and translated into Italian means "crispy fried dough".

The recipe for these fritters is handed down in Abruzzo from generation to generation and each family has its own version: they are prepared by all the Abruzzo grandmothers for the grandchildren's snack!

These delicious fried pizzas are one of the typical dishes of Abruzzo, so much so that there is no say where a banquet is not set up to fry and distribute these pizzas.

The "pizzonte" originated in the peasant tradition, where the dough left over from the bread or focaccia was used to create this dish.

It is, therefore, a poor food, a recycling recipe, which comes from the concept of "zerowaste", which our nadmen knew before it became a fad. You wouldn't throw anything away and you shouldn't throw anything in the kitchen!

The virtuous women of Abruzzo of past generations, knew how to create delicacies with leftovers, with what little they had. So, when they made bread and a little dough was left over after making the loaves, they created balls, spread them with their hands and fried the pizzas in the lard.

Once golden and drained, they side them with salt or a little sugar to please the children. Today we no longer use lard but oil and they are prepared as a whim, no longer to feed the family, but these fried pizzas continue to be so loved by young and old!

The dough is the classic one of bread: water, flour, yeast and salt, even if someone gives himself the poetic license to add a little milk. Once portioned it is fried and then, if you want, seasoned, even if smooth it is already so good that it makes you forget any diatribe about the origin of this stitzy.

They are brought to the table still hot, just fried, and are often accompanied by a few slices of raw ham.

A few simple ingredients are needed to make these savory pancakes that always sell like hot cakes and conquer everyone, adults and children.

"Tacchino alla Canzanese", Canzano-style turkey in aspic: history and tradition

Canzano-style Turkey in aspic is a typical dish of the territory of the province of Teramo, in Abruzzo, in particular of Canzano, from which it takes its name. It is part of the traditional agri-food products of Abruzzo.

A tradition and an original recipe handed down from generation to generation, since the chance discovery (in the mid-1800s) that the turkey broth, prepared in the morning the same evening had become gelatin and enhanced the flavor of the meat. Only the female turkey is used, which has more tender and flavorfly meats and a gross weight of about 6/7 Kg, a weight that will be reduced by a couple of kilos after the initial phase of boning.

In fact, after cleaning the animal well and eviscerated, the delicate phase of separating the flesh from the bones begins, starting from the side of the sternum.

Even the binding of the largest part (the torso) is a rite of only apparent simplicity: precise and harmonious movements designed with grace and ancient elegance.

The animal, clean, boned and sewn to prevent it from falling back, is subjected to a long cooking in water together with the crushed bones and garlic, bay leaf, peppercorns and salt. The cooking takes place in a wood or high temperature combustion oven in order to obtain a roast cooked in its broth. At the end, the cooking broth, filtered and cooled, turns into gelatin.

The turkey is served cold, together with the gelatin obtained by resting and cooling the cooking broth of the same.

This dish is widespread and marketed throughout the Teramano, although the industrial recipe differs from the traditional one.

Canzano-style Turkey in aspic has been included and recognized in the Mediterranean diet by Prof Alberto Fidanza.

There is a Canzanese Turkey Consortium.

'Pipindune e ove', Peppers and eggs: a bomb of flavor

The area of origin of this dish of traditional Abruzzo cuisine is Collecorvino, a village that offers a wonderful view of the surrounding nature.

After having pampered the soul with so much wonder, a taste of pipindune and ove cannot be missing, whose roots sink, again, in the aforementioned peasant tradition.

Specifically, you have to look at that breakfast that the laborers made in the fields in the middle of the morning because, awake for a few hours already, they needed a recharge of energy to get to lunch.

This flavored side dish was made with what the land offered generously, the peasants did not have large amounts of money available for meat, but they needed energy in sufficient quantities to work in the fields. And that's why the healthy and energetic eggs have been added to the tasty peppers. The resulting mix is definitely remarkable.

And in terms of energy, this mix of peppers and eggs is second to none.

Perfect as a side dish, today it is also found as a filling in sandwiches and, even if in summer it can be difficult to deal with, it knows how to repay the brave with an explosion of taste and colors.

To make them you need red and yellow croissants, eggs and extra virgin olive oil. They are simple to make, but the imperative is to use fresh and seasonal products. The sweet tooth can also use this delicious dish to fill a sandwich.

They are not very easy to digest but this dish is certainly one of the most characteristic of our land.

To prepare them, just wash and dry the peppers well. Remove the stalk and the seeds inside. Cut the croissants into strips, cook them in a very large non-stick pan with half a glass of extra virgin olive oil.

Cook over high heat so they don't burn. Once withered, you can remove excess oil, depending on your taste. Season with salt and pepper and finally add the previous beaten and salted eggs. The eggs will have to curdle, resulting in small and irregular pieces of omelette. The dish is ready to be enjoyed.

To enhance the taste, it is recommended to enjoy them accompanied by a glass of Montepulciano wine.

Cheese and egg balls, meatballs from Abruzzo without meat

A culinary treasure that contains the history, culture and tradition of Abruzzo are also the cheese and egg balls.

These meatballs, simple in their composition but rich in flavor, have become the testimony of how poor cuisine can turn into a rich and significant cultural heritage.

Soft and tasty, the cheese and egg balls are a dish that tells of a territory rich in culture and flavors.

Composed of bread, eggs (the eggs from which they take their name) and cheese, these small balls are served with a simple but delicious tomato sauce. The contrast between the strong flavor of the cheese and the sweetness of the tomato creates a harmonious mix, which tickles the palate of anyone who tastes it.

The ingredients used in the recipe are a clear reflection of the local tradition. To give the characteristic strong note to the balls is the pecorino cheese very widespread in Abruzzo, a land of shepherds and transhumance.

In this recipe, pecorino plays a fundamental role: with its strong and slightly spicy flavor, it manages to balance the pleasantness of the bread and the softness of the eggs. Its grainy consistency and the ability to melt easily make it perfect to be mixed with other ingredients: the key to tasty and compact pallets.

The combination with eggs is also another distinctive feature of Abruzzo cuisine, linked to the peasant and pastoral tradition of the Apennine areas.

These simple, but flavorful ingredients are the basis of many typical dishes of the Region, both salty and sweet.

How the cheese and egg balls were born

Even the cheese and egg balls were born in times of need, from simple and poor ingredients and then became symbols of the culinary tradition of a territory.

The cheese and egg pallets are a perfect example of how poor cuisine has generated a surprising dish, demonstrating that great ideas can be born even when you have few ingredients or poor products available.

This dish was also born as an alternative to the lack of meat during times of war. It is said that during World War II, to preserve food from looting and seizures - as often happened during the Nazi occupation period - peasants used to hide bread and cheese.

It was precisely using these few ingredients at their disposal that the people of the Abruzzo coast invented the recipe for the pallotte cacio and ova, a creation so delicious that it survived the war and became a pride of local cuisine.

These special meatballs, which have become - especially in the immediate post-war period - a nutritious and inexpensive packed lunch for rural workers, are today an essential dish in the menus of the trattorias of every corner of Abruzzo.

The simplicity of the ingredients of the balls - bread, cheese, eggs and tomato - that are found in every pantry, even the most unguarded, makes them a dish accessible to everyone and easy to make.

In short, if you go to Abruzzo, you can't miss these tasty dishes of the peasant tradition: genuine flavors that tell stories of simplicity, land and passion.