A land full of flavours
The Italian Lakes stretch across several quite different regions. Northern Piedmont and northern Lombardy have a number of similarities and many foods in common, whether from the Alps or the Po Valley, with an abundance of cheese and cured meats. To the east, the province of Verona, in Veneto, encompasses the eastern part of Lake Garda. While the Venetian lagoon is characterised by its abundance of fish and seafood, inland and on the edge of the first Alpine reliefs, this region offers a very different gastronomic landscape. Finally, while Trentino-Alto Adige has a decidedly Germanic profile, the autonomous province of Trento, which borders the north of Lake Garda, remains culturally very Italian and is closer to Veneto.
Of course, charcuterie has pride of place. For example, mocetta, a dried meat prepared with chamois, more rarely with veal or goat, is found in Piedmont. Another specialty is salame piemonte IGP, which is produced throughout the region. In the Lombardy Alps, there are two types of cured meat: IGP bresaola della Valtellina made with beef and slinzega, which is made with beef as well as pork, horse or deer. Luganega, a Lombardy cooking sausage, is also sometimes found dried in Trentino. Prosciutto Veneto Berico-Euganeo DOP is made in several provinces in northwestern Veneto.
Among the cheeses, the powerful Gorgonzola DOP is made in Lombardy and Piedmont. Gorgonzola is the second best-selling PDO cheese in the world, after Grana Padano PDO. Grana Padano DOP originates in northern Italy, but is also produced in the Veneto, Trentino Alto Adige and Emilia Romagna regions. It is also produced in the Veneto, Trentino Alto Adige and Emilia Romagna regions, as is Provolone Valpadana DOP, which is shaped like a purse and left to mature in a net. Piedmont also produces castelmagno DOP, ossolano DOP and toma Piemontese IGP, tangy and crumbly mountain cheeses. In Lombardy there is quartirolo lombardo DOP, a square cheese that can be fresh or more mature, and strachitunt DOP, a blue-veined cheese. In the province of Verona - but also in Trentino-Alto Adige - asagio, a slightly crumbly tomme, is made. The monte veronese, produced in the Lessini mountains near Lake Garda, is similar.
Northern Italy is famous for its polenta - made from cracked corn - and arborio rice, which is used in many recipes. In addition, there is a multitude of vegetables. Breadsticks were created for the son of Italy's King Victor Emmanuel II and soon took over the bakeries of Turin and the rest of Italy in the 19th century. The thick forests are perfect for mushrooms, especially the white truffles from Alba in Piedmont, which are adored by gourmets and can fetch prices of over €6,000 per kilo. Miele Varesino DOP is harvested in the province of Varese between Lake Maggiore and Lake Lugano. The Italian lakes have a very mild microclimate which allows the cultivation of the olive tree and therefore the production of olio extra vergine d'oliva Garda DOP.The gastronomy of the Italian Lakes
As an antipasti, to start the meal, we will taste a multitude of cold cuts and cheese. There are also a few sciatt della Valtellina, casera cheese croquettes or giardiniera campagnola, vegetables (carrots, cauliflower, green beans, etc.) in vinegar. Crayfish or gamberi di fiume are also popular.
Polenta is a wonderful accompaniment to dishes in sauce. Gnocchi di polenta are also made and served with butter and grated cheese. In Lombardy, polenta concia is made with a considerable amount of mountain tomme, while polenta taragna contains buckwheat flour. With arborio rice, the delicate risotto alla piemontese is prepared with beef stock, white wine and grana padano. Risotto alla milanese is enhanced with a touch of saffron. The version alla monzese combines saffron and sausage meat. And let's not forget the risotto al pesce persico, with perch from Lake Como.
Although pasta is less common than in southern and central Italy, there are a variety of recipes, such as casoncelli alla bresciana, half-moon-shaped ravioli filled with a mixture of parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs soaked in broth. They are usually served with a burro e salvia (sage butter) sauce. More surprisingly, casoncelli alla bergamasca are filled with a sweet and sour stuffing made of ground beef, pear and amaretti powder. The scarpinocc di parre are filled with a mixture of grana padano and parsley. Tortellini di Valeggio sul Mincio - filled with a mixture of pork, beef, chicken and vegetables - come from the town of the same name south of Lake Garda. Soups such as minestrone alla milanese, which is made with vegetables such as potatoes, green and white beans, squash, cabbage, leeks and tomatoes, are also popular.
In this lake area, freshwater fish are common: pike, eel, trout, whitefish, carp, etc. The most famous specialties of Lake Como are the missoltini or shad, a type of salted and dried fish, which is served grilled with polenta.
On the shores of Lake Garda you can enjoy baked trout with mushrooms or anguilla alla gardesana, simply fried and drizzled with lemon juice. Alborelle fritte is a small fish fry, while lavarello in carpione is a fried fish served with a light sauce of pickled vegetables. The abundant forests of the region are perfect for hunting, and lepre in civet or hare civet, simmered for a long time in red wine and vegetables, is a delicacy. The recipe for coniglio (rabbit) alla bergamasca, which also contains pancetta, is quite similar. A classic of the region, escalope alla milanese or cotolette alla milanese is very popular, as is ossobuco, a veal shank stew with a white wine and vegetable tomato sauce served with risotto and gremolada, a mixture of lemon zest, garlic and parsley. Fritto misto alla milanese is a mixture of fried meat and offal. Capù bergamaschi is a recipe for cabbage stuffed with minced beef and pork in tomato sauce.Dolci e caffè
The desserts are made up of biscuits or pastries, such as panettone with candied fruit and colomba di Pasqua with Lombardy almonds, or the Venetian pandoro with icing sugar. The torta russa di Verona is a soft pie with an almond paste flavoured with lemon peel and almond liqueur, while the torta Donizetti is a ring-shaped cake with candied fruit. In Bergamo, you can enjoy polenta e osei, small balls of polenta cake soaked in rum, filled with chocolate cream and covered with yellow marzipan and decorated with chocolate. Mandorlato is a white nougat with almonds typical of Cologna Veneta near Verona.
There are many desserts such as tiramisù from Veneto or panna cotta from Piedmont, accompanied by a red fruit coulis. The sabayon (zabaione), an egg and wine mousse, as well as the spoon biscuits or savoiardi, also come from Piedmont. This region is known for the quality of its chocolates and is the birthplace of the sublime gianduja, a cocoa-hazelnut cream, the ancestor of Nutella. This paste is used to make gianduiotto, a melting chocolate bite, and the delicious torta gianduia. Stracciatella is an ice cream with vanilla and chocolate shavings that was created in Bergamo.
Coffee in Italy is a real institution. In fact, it was a native of Piedmont, Alfonso Bialetti, who was born in Omegna on the shores of Lake Orta, who created the famous Moka Express, which has sold nearly 200 million copies since its creation in 1933. In addition to the classic espresso, macchiato and cappuccino, in Piedmont you can try the marocchino, a mini-cappuccino with cocoa powder.Between wines and beers
The sunny slopes and fertile valleys surrounding Italy's lakes offer ideal conditions for winegrowing, which has been practiced in the area for thousands of years. In Piedmont, for example, there are the vineyards of Valli Ossolane and Valsusa (barbera and dolcetto) for red wine lovers. Not forgetting the Colline Novaresi DOC, whose production area is in the province of Novara, south of Lake Maggiore. In central and northern Lombardy, there are Valtellina rosso, rosato and bianco. The prestigious Moscato di Scanzo o Scanzo has a DOCG, the highest quality label for an Italian wine. Its production is only allowed around the municipality of Scanzorosciate, in the province of Bergamo. The sparkling wines (spumante) of the Franciacorta region - south of Lake Iseo in the province of Brescia - are very famous. They are made from a blend of chardonnay and pinot. South of Lake Garda, between Lombardy and Veneto, the Lugana wine region offers two white wines, the classic Lugana DOC and the sparkling Lugana Spumante. In the Veneto region you can also find the excellent Bardolino produced between Verona and Lake Garda.
Also in northern Italy is the powerful grappa, a grape marc brandy averaging 42°, named after Bassano del Grappa in the Veneto. Vermouth - a type of wine mutated by the addition of brandy - with a strength of 16-18° originates from the Turin region. Beer is also a popular alcoholic beverage, especially around the Alps. Among the best-known brands brewed in the region are Peroni, Poretti, Menabrea and Birra Moretti.
