Page 188 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Italian Riviera

186  TR A VELLERS ’ NEEDS

The Flavours of the Italian Riviera

The quintessentially Mediterranean cuisine of the Italian
Riviera can be sampled in sophisticated upmarket restaur ants,
but it is best enjoyed in simple local trattorias using age-old
recipes. The hallmark flavours are the exceptionally delicate
local olive oil and herbs such as marjoram, oregano, rosemary
and sage that grow wild, perfuming the inland hills. Symbolic of
Liguria is the bright green aromatic basil that is pounded in a
mortar with garlic, olive oil, pine nuts and pecorino cheese to
produce pesto, a local speciality. Fish, either fresh, dried or
preserved in oil, is another of the region’s many culinary assets. Fresh basil

milk. Poultry is also raised houses that flank the coastline.
for meat and eggs. More than meat, or even
Olive and citrus trees, and fish, Ligurian cooking is
even vines, manage to thrive dependent on a wide range
on almost vertical terraces, of fresh vegetables, including
carved centuries ago into artichokes, pumpkins (squash)
the hillsides. The mild winter and courgettes (zucchini). Wild
climate and year-round mushrooms and herbs are
sunshine provide the perfect picked and dried to provide
growing conditions for the distinctive flavours throughout
commercial production of the year, while local almonds,
fresh produce in the green- walnuts, chestnuts and
Delicious foccacia bread made
with Ligurian olive oil Crab Clams Sea bass Sardines Mussels Octopus Prawns
Food from the Land
Liguria’s narrow belt of steeply
terraced land, sandwiched
between the sea and the
mountains, has always been
a challenge to farmers. This
is not cattle-grazing country;
lamb and goat are much
better suited to this terrain.
Menus feature lamb, kid,
hare and rabbit either stewed Salt cod
or roasted, and cheeses are
made from ewe’s and goat’s Some of the seafood to be found in a Ligurian fish market
Ligurian Dishes and Specialities
Pansoti is a type of ravioli, stuffed with spinach,
ricotta or offal and often served with a creamy
walnut sauce (salsa di noci). Meat and fish
courses include chicken or rabbit alla
cacciatore (with olives, wine and herbs),
and red mullet is braised with olives, too.
Vegetables are given the grand treatment
in torta pasqualina (Easter pie) filled with
layers of different vegetables and sometimes
egg or cheese. Many foods are cooked in
local olive oil: gattafin is fried vegetable-
Olives and olive oil filled ravioli. Friggitorie (from friggere, to fry)
sell flaky pastry pies stuffed with cheese and vegetables. Farinata is a Cuippin, from Sestri Levante, is a
pancake made from chickpea (garbanzo) flour – crispy outside and puréed soup made from fish and
moist inside. Cooked in a wood-fired oven and topped with onions, shellfish, tomatoes, parsley, wine
cheese and herbs, it is eaten by the slice as a snack. and garlic.

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