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March/April 2023 XIV MAGAZINE AT PAGE 46 ON THE ROAD Cooking without borders OUR CULINARY JOURNEY CONTINUES AS WE DISCOVER THE GREEN VALLEYS OF TRENTINO ALTO ADIGE, A REGION THAT IS HOME TO ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AND EVOCATIVE MOUNTAIN AREAS IN EUROPE by Alessandro Vergallo Trentino, a wonderful land that Italy only managed to redeem from Austria at the end of the First World War when, by then, Austro-Hungarian culture had become firmly rooted in the local social fabric, influencing customs, traditions and language. Its mountains represent our country’s natural border with continental Europe and delineate the meeting of two cultures, Mediterranean and Central European, which, although different, are clearly evident in the recipes of the grandmothers and mothers from Trentino and South Tyrol who still knead and fry for their families. On this tour, in the shadow of the Adamello glaciers and the rocks of the Dolomites, we wanted Stefan Guglielmi , a young and promising chef at the Hotel Aurora Compet in Vignola-Falesina (Trento), to join us as a culinary guide to explore indigenous cuisine and its ingredients. WANDERING AMONG THE ALPINE PASTURES Trentino is a land rich in dairy products, which, together with salami, are eaten at various times of the day. Most of the cheeses come from the small alpine huts scattered here and there throughout the region. The best known are Asiago , Grana Trentino , Vezzena , Fontal , Taleggio , Ricotta , Spressa delle Giudicarie DOP and Puzzone di Moena . Another delicacy to add to the list of local delicacies is butter from the Primerio alpine pastures . Asiago is a semi-cooked cow’s milk product. It is PDO, as its production takes place within a circumscribed territory, with milk coming only from farms in the province of Trento and some areas of the Veneto region in the provinces of Vicenza Padua and Treviso. Asiago can be pressed (fresh) or d’ allevo (matured) and in this case the ageing time varies from three months to two/three years. Based on the ageing time, three types of Asiago can be distinguished: mezzano, vecchio and stravecchio. Cream cheeses are also renowned in these parts, many of which are used to fill ravioli or to season Canederli (dumplings) and Spatzle (egg noodles). THE TRIUMPH OF FIRST COURSES Canéderli are similar to gnocchi but a little bigger. They are a typical first course in Central European cuisine and their origin is very old, as confirmed by a fresco in the castle chapel in Eppan dating back to 1180. “The base is stale bread,” says the chef of the Hotel Aurora, “it is soaked in milk and mixed with eggs, parsley and diced speck, but many also mix it with cheese, polenta, fresh sausage or liver. Once the right consistency is reached, balls are made, which in turn are dipped into the meat broth obtained from the beef scraps. Similar to the base of the Canederli is the Strangolapreti, which have a more tapered form. The bread is always soaked in milk and kneaded with eggs to which spinach, nutmeg, Trentingrana cheese, salt and pepper are added. Another first course typical of the area is Spatzle, the base of which is wheat flour, wholemeal flour, spinach, ricotta, herbs or red turnips. Beer or milk can also be used instead of water to mix the flours. When the mass becomes sticky, it is ‘grated’ onto a plate with holes in it, to obtain balls resembling irregularly shaped drops. Spatzle come from Germany but have established themselves as a typical local dish. In South Tyrol they are called Spatzen or Spatzln , or Tyrolean dumplings in Trentino ( Spatzle) . Unlike in Germany, where they are served as a side dish with game and with meat rich in gravy, here they are served as a starter with fresh cream or melted butter, or with gorgonzola or simply in broth. ON THE HUNT FOR TYPICALITY There is no area in northern Italy where polenta is not eaten and here, in the valleys of Trentino Alto Adige, it is its ideal home, where it is prepared as it always has been, brought to the boil in copper pots on a wood-burning stove. The flour is first mixed with a whisk, then stirred from the bottom up for about an hour with the canarola (wooden ladle). Excellent as a side dish with stew, rabbit, braised beef and pork cheek. But, to accompany the delicious meat, there is not only polenta.... It is well known that the rather harsh temperatures at high altitudes do not favour the cultivation of vegetables such as tomatoes, aubergines, courgettes and peppers, but this does not prevent the locals from growing the most common vegetables such as salads, cabbage, leeks, onions, carrots, potatoes and sauerkraut in their gardens. Vegetables that Stefan Guglielmi often uses to garnish his beef stew and roast rabbit. Among the area’s signature dishes is Gulash, the well-known creamy, spicy and aromatic stew that came to these parts from Hungary (its original name, Gulya, which translated into Italian means herd of cattle, confirms this ) . ‘The piece of the animal I use is veal shoulder, ’ explains Chef Stefan, ‘from which, before