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Travel | Italian Food
 Valle
d'Aosta Food, typical food of Aosta Valley: The flavors that emerge from
fontina cheese
summon images of the fresh herbs and flowers the cows graze on in
the high Alpine meadows of the Valle d'Aosta. This semi-cooked,
straw-yellow cheese, with tiny holes and a supple, soft texture,
is perfect for melting and is used to make fonduta,
or fondue, one of the region's famous dishes. For an authentic
antipasto, toast small squares of country bread, rub with
a clove of garlic, top with little chunks of fontina
and an anchovy, then pop the toasted squares into a hot oven for
a minute, and serve piping hot.
Providing hearty sustenance, carbonade
is a classic Valdostan stew. The meal is made with salt-cured or
fresh beef, onions, red wine, butter, and nutmeg, and often is served
with polenta. The name – derived from carbone, or
coal – refers to the dark gravy that results after the meat
is cooked.
Eaten in soup, with
lardo (spiced bacon), or savored alone with a pat of
fresh butter, pane nero (black bread)
is a staple food for families in the typical food of Aosta Valley. Made
with rye and wheat flours, this bread was baked traditionally in
the communal oven just once a year and was dried to preserve it.
Today, residents and visitors consume so much of the satisfying
pane nero that it is made fresh on a daily or weekly basis.
After a delicious and satisfying fonduta,
friends and neighbors may be found sipping a cup of grolla
dell'amicizia, or cup of friendship, to keep warm
on a chilly night. More than just an after-dinner drink, grolla
consists of wine and espresso that are mixed and spiked with grappa
and served hot in a wooden goblet with a lid to keep in the heat.
 Valle
d'Aosta typical food:
Capriolo alla valdostana: venison stewed in red wine with vegetables, herbs, grappa, cream.
Carbonade: salt-cured beef cooked with onions and red wine in a rich stew.
Minestra di castagne e riso: thick soup of rice cooked in milk with chestnuts.
Polenta alla rascard: cornmeal cooked, cooled and sliced, then baked with layers of Fontina and a ragout of beef and sausage.
Risotto alla valdostana: Fontina, toma, Parmigiano Reggiano and butter make this one of the creamiest of rice dishes.
Seupa de gri: barley soup with potatoes, onions, seasonal vegetables, salt pork.
© 1997-2010 Enrico Massetti
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