This year has not been great for olive oil producers in Abruzzo. An early spring freeze damaged many groves, strong winds during the flowering season, heavy rains and the olive fruit fly attacks made the situation worse. Regional production dropped by over 20% this year. Some organic oil producers couldn’t do the harvest at all because of the poor fruit quality. One producer said to me: “A few more years like this and we might have to give up organic oil production.” Let’s hope it never comes to this. How can we help? By buying high quality extra virgin olive oil from Abruzzo! Here are a few things to know about olive oil if you want to buy the best.

1. Extra virgin. Always buy extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). All other grades of olive oil are held to a lesser standard. EVOO has no defects, acidity level of no more than 0.8g per 100g and is cold pressed using only mechanic methods (pressing or centrifugation). EVOO should taste fruity, has a peppery bite to it and a bitter note. The slightest hint of stale walnuts, mustiness, soil or pond water means the oil is defective and is not extra virgin.
2. Healthy olives. If you are buying directly from a producer, go to the olive mill and check the olives that are being pressed. Do they look healthy? Are they in perforated boxes rather than plastic sacks? The sacks make olives “sweat” and drastically reduce their quality. Surprisingly, many farmers in Abruzzo still use plastic sacks to transport their olives and sometimes store the fruit in them for several days. To make EVOO, olives have to be milled within 12 hours after the harvest otherwise they’ll lose their nutrients and flavour and could begin to ferment.
3.  Press type. Ask or see for yourself what kind of press the producer is using. The old style machinery with stone grinders and hydraulic presses that use round grass mats might look romantic but they significantly reduce the quality of oil. Those grinding stones and mats are very hard to clean and residues can spoil olive oil. They are also slower and the production chain is more exposed to air, so the olives oxidize quicker than in more modern machines.
4. Filtered vs unfiltered. Unfiltered oil doesn’t always mean better. If you are buying large quantities of EVOO, choose filtered oil as it will last longer. Unfiltered oil tastes good and is often marketed as healthier but because of organic residues it has a very short shelf life, not more than a few months.
5. Colour doesn’t matter. Our brain likes the colour green and people tend to think automatically that greener oil tastes better. So much so that some industrial scale producers tint their cheap olive oil green to help sales. The truth is the colour never reflects the quality. That’s why professional tasters use blue glasses, so the oil’s colour doesn’t affect their judgements.
6. DOP. Look for “DOP” (Protected designation of Origin) on the label as it is a guarantee of quality. It means that the oil was was produced, processed and prepared in a given geographical area following strict standards. There are three DOP areas for oil in Abruzzo: Aprutino Pescarese, Colline Teatine, Pretuziano delle Colline Teramane.
7. Single cultivar vs blend. You’ll find different olive cultivars in each Italian region. In Abruzzo, the most prevalent are Gentile, Intosso, Toccolana, Leccino, Dritta. Each varietal has particular characteristics and a unique taste. For instance, Dritta oil is milder than others, with a note of artichoke. Intosso olive oil is characterised by intense taste, with a hint of fresh walnuts and tomato leaves. If you after an olive with a strong character, go for a single cultivar (it will say “monocultivar” on the bottle). Blends tend to be milder and tamer.
8. Cooked or raw. Single varietals tend to have more character and a stronger taste, so you might want to use them raw, e.g. on salads. I cook and bake with an oil, which is a mild blend of Dritta, Leccino and Gentile. I find that the peppery Toccolana and more bitter Intosso are best generously drizzled on a slice of fresh bread or on raw vegetables.
9. Heat, light and air. These are olive oil’s enemies. Never buy olive oil in a clear glass bottle even if the label says “extra virgin olive oil”. Light trigger the oxidation process and it quickly becomes rancid. Keep your EVOO in dark glass bottles in a cool place where the temperature never exceeds 20C (ideally it should be between +14C and +18C), so a wine cellar or a dark basement would be the best places. I keep bottles of olive oil in a refrigerator. It solidifies (a good sign, which means it is monounsaturated, the real deal!) and the natural waxes crystallise. I take it out of the fridge 30 mins before using it and it becomes liquid again without any harm to the flavours. In proper conditions, extra virgin olive oil should keep for up to two years.
10. Bitterness is good. Olives are bitter, so a bitter note in EVOO is a sign of quality and freshness. Younger olives make more peppery and bitter oil. Certain cultivars can be bitterer than others, so train your palate and find the level of bitterness you love. If you like bitter chocolate or beers like ale, stout, porter, you will find it easier to enjoy fresh stronger EVOO.

Christmas is almost here! Have you decided what you are serving for the festive family feast? If you are looking for ideas for traditional Christmas dishes from Abruzzo, here is a list of my favourite ones.

Thistle soup

Cardoon soup (zuppa di cardo) is considered a lighter festive dish, although, as calorie count goes, it is still quite rich. In Abruzzo, thistle stalks are called “Christmas greens” and the soup is traditionally made for pranzo natalizio, on December 25. Check out the recipe in my post about the Christmas thistle soup from Abruzzo.

Baccalà fritto in pastella

On Christmas Eve, most households in Abruzzo sit down for a meat-free meal. The tradition is to have fish instead. Baccalà (salted cod) is devoured in large quantities on December 24. I am very fond of fresh baccalà fritters, or baccalà fritto in pastella. In old days, they were made in large quantities to last until the Epiphany on January 6. Although, you can buy baccalà fritters in some supermarkets, the best ones are made at home and eaten hot. Click on the image below for a video recipe that shows you step by step how to make them (in Italian with English subtitles).

Parrozzo

Parrozzo is a relatively recent addition to the regional cuisine. Luigi D’Amico, a pastry shop owner in Pescara, created the first parrozzo cake for his wealthy customers in 1919. He was inspired by the ancient corn bread called “pan rozzo” with a distinctive semi-spherical shape, bright yellow inside and a burnt black crust. D’Amico’s sweet luxurious version of the poor shepherds’ bread called for many of eggs, almonds and dark chocolate. You can buy an industrial boxed version of D’Amico’s parrozzo but, naturally, the best ones are made by artisans in small bakeries across Pescara. See this recipe for parrozzo in English.

Torcinelli

Torcinelli abruzzesi is another traditional Christmas treat. Different versions and shapes of this deep-fried dough with boiled potatoes dessert exist across Italy. Torcinelli is one of my favourite Christmas dishes from Abruzzo not only because they are tasty (especially freshly fried and hot!) but also because, like many other tipical dishes here, they remind about the region’s humble past when peasants came up with delicious recipes using simple local ingredients. Torcinelli were made on Christmas Eve while fasting, so it was a torture for kids to see chests full of these treats and not being able to eat them until next day. Watch this video recipe to learn how to make torcinelli abruzzesi. Don’t worry if your Italian is not up to scratch, it is easy enough to follow.

Caggionetti

As you can see, there is a lot of frying going on in Abruzzo coming up to Christmas. It takes a while to make these deep-fried sweet dumplings but they are totally worth it. The most common filling of chickpeas, cacao, grape must and cinnamon might seem like a strange combination for a modern palate but give it try. There is also a version with nuts, grape jam and must, which is popular in the Chieti Province. In supermarkets you’ll also find caggionetti with… oh, horror, Nutella! See the recipe for traditional caggionetti here.

For more traditional recipes see Recipes from Abruzzo e-book.

Have you tried ventricina del Vastese from Abruzzo yet? It is famous across the region and, unlike many other cured meat artisan products, is never produced on industrial scale because of the costly meat cuts and labour-intensive preparation.

Large, between one and three kilos, round or pear-shaped pork salami with a strong intense flavour and bright orangey colour that comes from the ground red pepper has been produced in the southern part of the Chieti province since the 19^th century. Lean noble meat parts (70%) are cut with a knife into medium pieces, combined with fat pieces (30%) and, after a night’s rest, mixed with salt, black pepper, wild fennel seeds, garlic and red pepper (depending on the producer, it can be sweet or spicy). The salami has a natural casing, normally pig’s bladder. After being air-dried for 100 days, the ventricina is cleaned from the mould, dipped in lard and dried for another 3-5 months. In old days, ventricina del Vastese was cased in a pig’s stomach (hence the name, “ventre” = “stomach”) lining and each salami weighed up to 10 kg.

Traditionally, ventricina was never cut but broken into chunks. It was kept for special occasions, such as a grape harvest, local saint’s festivals, baptisms. Often, farmers gave the precious salami as a payment to a doctor or lawyer.

The ventricina della Vastese has a rustic chewy, on the hard side, texture. Like with many local artisan products, its taste and flavours vary from one producer to another, so make sure you try different ones to find your favourite. Locals eat the ventricina in thick chunks of hot pizza bianca (focaccia-style bread with no toppings) or traditional leavened bread, sliced tomatoes and Montepulciano d’Abruzzo wine.

Every year, in July, Vasto hosts a Ventricina del Vastese Festival during which you can taste the famous salami from local producers, watch cooking demonstrations and go on a walking tour of the city.

Join my food tours to taste ventricina alla vastese and other traditional cured meats.

Where to find:         

Macelleria Di Nanno Paolo, Via Histoniense, 204, Vasto

Macelleria La Genuina, Via Provinciale, 8, Carunchio. Web: www.laventricina.it

Agriturismo Fattoria dell’Uliveto, Contrada Ragna, 59, Scerni. Web: www.ventricina.com

Agriturismo Villa Olmi, Contrada Santa Giusta, 1, Roccaspinalveti.

Check out the video below to see how ventricina della vastese is made:

All photos are by Ventricina.com

On my food tours I am often asked “What are the must-try traditional dishes in Abruzzo?” I have been eating my way around the region for many years and came to realise that every single dish here is a history lesson on a plate. While most of them are delicious, some might be too alien to foreign palates. If you want to embrace Abruzzese culinary traditions I suggest that you look for the following typical dishes that you can find in most rural family-run restaurants.

Arrosticini

Synonymous with Abruzzo, arrosticini are small chunks of castrated mutton or young sheep alternated with pieces of fat cooked on wooden skewers over hot coals. Surprisingly, the dish’s origins go back less than 100 years. It is believed that peasants in the area around Civitella Casanova and Villa Ciliera started cutting tough old sheep meat into tiny cubes to make it easier to chew. The first photo of arrosticcini is dated to 1930 (see below). You can find arrosticcini in many traditional restaurants all year round. The moment the weather turns warmer, Abruzzese dust off their “fornacelle” (a long narrow metal barbecue) and grill arrosticini outside. Eating them with a fork is frowned upon as you are supposed to slide the meat off the skewer into your mouth using the teeth. A few bites of bread drizzled with olive oil, a generous sip of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo and you will fall in love with the hearty simplicity of the local cuisine. Abruzzese men love bragging about the amount of arrosticini they consume in one sitting. I have met a few who say the can gobble down 100 skewers without blinking an eye.

Archivio AIS – Berna Paul Scheuermeir

Pasta alla chitarra

Another iconic staple, the square spaghetti are made using a special tool called “la chitarra” that reminds a guitar. Although the recipe is simple, rolling the dough over the chitarra requires some practice. Usually pasta alla chitarra is served with a rich tomato and meat sauce alla ragù.

Where to find: Most rural restaurants in Abruzzo make excellent pasta alla chitarra. In one of my favourite restaurants, Il Tholos, the chitarra is made by hand with solina heritage grain flour.

Pallotte cacio e uova

Often called “the poor man’s meatballs”, the pallotte are made with cheese, eggs and breadcrumbs. The best cheese and egg balls have to be soft and melt in your mouth. Some old-fashioned deli shops sell them pre-made, all you have to do is just simmer the pallotte in a tomato sauce. You can learn how to make this dish in our Cooking with locals classes.

Where to find: Col di Gotte makes excellent pallotte and serves them as a starter. In Pescara, Taverna 58 does a good job.

Sagne e ceci

This pasta and chickpea soup is a winter dish. Easy and cheap to make, the recipe calls for short flat pasta (sagne), chickpeas (or beans) and an onion. This ancient dish is also common in Lazio, Campania and Puglia with slight variations in the recipe (e.g. in Rome anchovies are added).

Where to find: One of my favourite places to have pasta and ceci is in Trattoria La Tavernetta in Chieti. There the chef throws some toasted dry sagne pasta to the soup, which adds a lovely crunch to the texture.

Coratella

This ancient dish is made from finely chopped lamb lungs, kidneys, heart and liver. While in other regions coratella is cooked with artichokes (in Rome) or in a tomato sauce, in Abruzzo, the organ meats are simply pan fried with onions and, sometimes, with eggs. You are more likely to find it on the restaurant’s menus around Easter time as, traditionally, locals eat it for Easter breakfast with cheese bread (pizza di Pasqua), salami and hard-boiled eggs.

Where to find: Antica Taverna in Navelli has coratella on the menu all year round and it is delicious.

Pasta alla pecorara

Hard to find beyond the Teramo province, this ring-shaped pasta is one of my favourite. Thick chewy dough rings are simmered in a rich tomato and vegetable sauce and served with sheep’s milk ricotta. The area around Elice and Atri is where the pasta was born, so head there if you want to try the most authentic version of it.

Where to find: Hostaria Zedi in Atri makes good pasta alla pecorara, although, they are not very generous with the ricotta topping.

Brodetto alla Vastese

As the name suggests, it is a fish soup typical for the Vasto area. Historians trace the origins of this recipe back to the 19th century when fishermen traded with farmers some of their catch for vegetables. The soup has fewer ingredient than other similar ones cooked along the Adriatic coast: fish, tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and local spicy red pepper. Traditionally, a local variety of tomato “mezzo tempo” was used, however, it has become hard to find in recent years, so often it is replaced with other varieties.  A good brodetto alla Vastese should have at least seven types of fish, which is always cooked whole in a large terracotta pot called “la tijella”. The soup is never stirred but slightly shaken during the cooking process to make sure that the fish does not break.

Where to find: The famous Trattoria Da Ferri is one of the best places to try the brodetto. It is always full and it is better to book in advance, although, you might still have to wait for your table. Trattoria Zì Albina also makes excellent brodetto since 1907.

Scrippele

The Abruzzese version of crêpes is called scrippele. Thin and delicate, they are made without milk, just flour, eggs and water. Typical for the northern part of Abruzzo, the Teramo province, scrippele origins go back to the 19^th century when the French ruled the region. A local cook while preparing a meal for French officers by accident put some crêpes in a bowl with chicken broth. The dish scrippele ‘mbusse was born: small crêpes sprinkled with cheese, rolled up and served in broth. They are also served stuffed with ricotta or as part of timballo (see below).

Where to find: Not easy to find nowadays but some restaurants around Teramo still have scrippele ‘mbusse on the menu. La Cantina di Porta Romana is one of them. Want to make them at home? Watch this video on how to make scrippele ‘mbusse (in Italian but easy to follow).

Want to know more about traditional food in Abruzzo? Sign up to my food tours or book a foodie weekend.