Umbrian classic recipes?

Question

A close friend lives in a new country and I want to make a true home style meal for him. He is Italian born and bred in Umbria Italy but left thirty years ago. Can anyone tell me what he would really miss from home? A recipe would be very helpful as well.

Thanks Jackson.

Answer 1

Umbria is a region in central Italy, called "the green heart of Italy" because of its central location and the fact that it is really green... The two largest cities are Perugia and Terni, with a series of towns. The east side is mountainous, the west side generally more hilly, and the river Tevere (Tiber, which then goes to Rome) forms a large valley through the center, which is the most populated corridor.

Farming traditions are the most important in the regional cuisine. Meat cooked in the oven or on an open fire and cured meats are kings on the tables, and the pig is without a doubt our favorite animal. In fact sometimes it is difficult to reproduce some recipes somewhere else in Italy (and even worse abroad), since they depend in a crucial way on some ingredients (like sausages and prosciutto) which in Umbria have a particular taste. In any case, this "Umbrian" cuisine do not contain a lot of ingredients and they are rather easy to prepare, most "Umbrian" recipes came from mom or grandma.

Main Couse

Baccala' arrosto (grilled stockfish)

Very, very simple. Soak the stockfish for 24 hours, then put olive oil, lemon juice and rosemary on it and grill it over a medium fire.

Baccala' alla livornese (stockfish Leghorn-style)

Soak the stockfish for 24 hours, the stir-fry it for 10 minutes in a bit of oil and garlic, eliminate the skin and bones, pass it in flour, then put it back in the oil and cover with a bit of tomato sauce (and possibly olives) and finish to cook.

Stuffed tomatoes, bell peppers and zucchini/courgettes

Empty the vegetables (eliminate the seeds, liquid, etc...) prepare a dough with ground meat (beef and a bit of sausage), two eggs, two tablespoons of olive oil, breadcrumbs and 1/3 cup of cheese, then stuff the vegetables with it. Bake at 350F until the vegetables are cooked.

Lentils with sausages

Pan fry a bit of thinly sliced onion un a tbsp. of olive oil, 2 tbsp. of white wine and a bit of black pepper. Add 12oz. of lentils, cover with water, add salt and let it simmer for 20 minutes on medium heat. In the meanwhile to get rid of some sausage grease, cook 2 long sausages (or 4 short) for a few minutes in a pan or grill making holes in the casing so that the fat drains. At this point slice the sausages in 1cm thick rounds, add them to the lantils and also add 12oz. of diced tomatoes or tomato sauce, and a pinch of cayenne pepper/chili pepper. Let the mixture cook for 30 minutes or until the lentils are tender.

Rabbit in "white"

Cut the rabbit in small pieces, put it in a pan with garlic and rosemary over medium heat and drain all the liquid formed, take out the rosemary and garlic, add salt, pepper, onion and sage finely cut, white wine and when this has evaporated add some water to complete cooking.

Dessert

Torcolo normale

Torcolo is a kind of very simple cake, that can then be used (like a pound cake) as a base for more complicated recipes. Make a dough with 1lb. of flour, a glass of milk, 2 eggs, 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a little bag (two teaspoons) of baking powder. Cook in the oven for 1 hour without opening at 350 F.

NOW THE ONE HE GOING TO MISS THE MOST --- PIG

Ya, PIG. Why?

For the Umbrian peasant the pig (or porchetto) has been for centuries one of the main sources of soustenance. If you are brave go with pig dish below  

Coppa

Take the head of the pig, scapulae, skin of the lard taking out as much fat as possible, other bones, in practice all that has not been used so far excluding the feet. Boil everything with salt in a very large pot (we used something that looked like a witch's cauldron) with abundant water. As soon as it is cooked, take out all the meat from the bones, cut it fat in small pieces, add salt, pepper, nutmeg, orange and lemon finely ground peels. Then put it in a cloth bag (they can be found in stores in Italy, otherwinse you will have to make it with a white cloth sown on three sides). Once filled with the meat, the bag should be closed with a packaging wire on the open side, then put under a weight to get rid of all the fat in excess. The next day it is ready to eat.

Sanguinaccio (black pudding)

Pour 6 cups of pig's blood in a salad bowl and immediately add a pinch of fine salt to avoid coagulation. Cut in small cubes 1/2cup of fat taken from the collar, add 1/3 cup of bradcrumbs, 1 cup of pine nuts, 1 cup of raisins, 3 tablespoons of sweet cocoa, 1 cup of sugar and an orange peel cut in very small cubes. Let the mixture rest overnight. Wash very accurately the intestines of the pig, the larger ones. Then leave them to dry and tie them with a wire on one side, fill them with the blood mixture, tie them at the other end, then put them in cold slightly salted water. Boil on a low fire for half an hour. Check them every now and then by piercing them with a needle, also to let some air out, otherwise they can pop. When they are cooked, take them out and hang them from a stick.

Answer 2

i surfed the net for some umbrian recipes site in english... but they only say bullsh*ts! they got no idea of what italian cuisine is! i can find some italian site and translate the recipe for you... let me know...

Answer 3

Go to italianfood.about.com for lots of nice recipes.