A borlengo is an Italian flat bread made from flour, salt and water, with no leavener. Some feel that it is better described as a crêpe rather than a flat bread. It is generally thin and somewhat crisp, rather than soft and doughy. Sometimes it is made so thin that it is translucent. Borlenghi (the…
Culatello is a pear-shaped, air-cured ham made the province of Parma in the region of Emilia Romagna, Italy, particularly the towns of Busseto, Colorno, Polesine, Roccabianca, San Secondo, Sissa, Soragna, and Zibello. All these villages are on the right bank of the Po River. The ham is made from November to February from rear parts…
Garganelli is an Italian pasta from the Emilia-Romagna region. It is small tubes of pasta that look like penne, but with ridges that go width-wise rather than length-wise. There is a flap is visible where the pasta was rolled up to form the tube. The dough is made from flour and egg, with a touch…
Pecorino Ginepro is cheese flavoured with juniper and balsamic vinegar. It is made from unpasteurized sheep’s milk curdled with calf’s rennet in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. The cheeses are aged a minimum of four months. During the first month of aging, they are washed with whey several times. After that period, they are then washed with oil…
Piadina is flat, round, unleavened soft bread made in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is made from white wheat flour, salt, and lukewarm water. There are a few variations on ingredients and actually no authoritative version. The recipe varies from town to town, and from family to family: some recipes use milk instead of water; many recipes…
Prosciutto is an Italian ham that is cured and seasoned. The curing process “cooks” the ham, thus you can eat true “prosciutto” raw. Prosciutto slices are always sliced razor thin, and they are so flavourful that a little truly goes a long way. Though cured with salt, prosciutto generally ends up tasting sweeter and far…
Prosciutto di Modena is a version of Prosciutto ham. It is raw, but it is eaten uncooked because of the aging process. It can be made in three provinces of Emilia Romagna: Modena, Bologna and Reggio Emilia. A whole ham is pear-shaped. The meat is bright red and aromatic, and less salty than some other…
Squacquerone is an Italian fresh cream cheese with a tangy taste. It is very white, and soft, fluffy and spreadable. There is no rind. It is very perishable; it has a shelf life of only 4 to 5 days refrigerated. Squacquerone is made year round from whole pasteurized cow milk. The milk is heated to…
Tigelle is an Italian small, round, thickish flat bread that is traditional in Modena (in Emila-Romagna.) The dough is made from white wheat flour, water, and salt. The ingredients are mixed, let rest a bit, then the dough is formed into small circles about 2 inches (5 cm) wide. The circles are cooked for a…
