The countryside of Emilia Romagna in northern Italy is not as famous as its sexier neighbour Tuscany, but it is the producer of much of the country’s best-loved food. It’s the home of Parma ham, Balsamic vinegar, Parmesan cheese and tortellini to name but a few. And was, for a long weekend last summer, home to me for four merry food-filled days.
Bologna is the capital of the region and the main airport if you’re flying from the UK. And so, if you’re thinking food, you may be thinking ‘spaghetti bolognaise’. Don’t. It’s an aberration of Italian cooking and Italians have never heard of it.
What we know as ‘bolognaise’ is ragu in Italy; a simple tomato sauce, cooked with a mixture of pork and beef. It forms part of my first Italian lunch in a small village called Dozza, about three quarters of an hour’s drive from the airport, taken to break the journey to Ravenna, another half hour away.
At an atmospheric trattoria called La Locanda del Castello, in the shadow of a medieval castle, we eat home-made pasta with the ragu sauce, served alongside one of the regional specialities, capellitti pasta stuffed with three cheeses, served in a creamy Parmesan sauce.
In Emilia Romagna, tomato sauce contains nothing more than tomatoes and basil. It follows Pellegrino’s Artusi’s classic recipe from his La scienza in cucina e l’arte di mangiare bene – The science of cooking and the art of eating well – first published in 1891 and revised by him into 15 subsequent edition to include regional delicacies and reader recipes from around the country. It was Italy’s first national cookbook, collecting together classic dishes from the diverse city-states of which Italy was previously formed. And still today, you will find a much-thumbed copy in every Italian kitchen.
How to make Artusi’s tomato sauce
Saute a few thick slices of onion in 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When the onion has browned, remove it from the saucepan. Stir peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes into the pan, add fresh basil, salt and pepper. Allow to simmer for half an hour, by which point the sauce will have thickened.
We get a chance to experience Artusi’s culinary wisdom and put it into practice at the Casa Artusi institute in the town of Forlimpopoli. Northern Italy is famous for its pasta, the south for its pizza, so it’s fitting that we learn how to make several different types of pasta – from simple shapes and twists to the more elaborate filled capellata, similar to tortellini.
It’s surprisingly easy to do and definitely easy to recreate in a UK kitchen, without the need for complicated pasta-making machines. All that’s required is strong white flour, eggs, a rolling pin and strong arm muscles (don’t worry if you don’t have them before you start – they’ll have developed by the end!)
As well as the cookery school, the institute houses a library, museum, wine cellar, shop, event space and restaurant, founded in the name of this famous gastronomist, a living celebration of home cookery. For lunch we eat the pasta dishes we’ve just made and are delighted with our newfound skills – there’s talk of setting up a Facebook competition to compare our future efforts.
How to make pasta
Using the ratio 100g of strong flour to one egg; pour the required amount of flour onto a large wooden board, make a hole in the centre and break in the eggs. Using a spoon, mix the eggs into the flour and once blended, use your hands to knead the mixture vigorously for about 10 minutes. Then cover and allow the dough to rest for up to 15 minutes.
Once rested, roll the pasta into a large thin disk using a rolling pin – the trick is to keep turning the dough to get an even spread that won’t break; Italians also like to hang part of the dough over the edge of the table, to stretch it out, ready to roll. Finally cut your pasta into the required shapes and cook, or stuff with cheese/meat/vegetables to make tortellini.
Casa Artusi arranges bespoke cookery lessons for groups of up to 20 people. Email info@casartusi.it for information and prices or visit the website at www.casartusi.it.
Taking a wine tour
‘Regional’, ‘local’ and ‘food from just down the road’ has always been at the heart of Italian cooking and not just the buzzwords they’ve become for us in recent years. It’s all part of the ‘kilometre zero’ approach to cooking; and ensures menus change with the season. Here even the wine is likely to have been produced just a few minutes away from where you’re sitting.
So you should definitely make time for a tour of some of the region’s wineries, and sample the grape varieties of Aballa – for white wine – and Sa – for red. There are lots of local wineries in the area, where production takes place on a small-scale level and bottles are sold and drunk locally. If you’re looking for some unique ‘money-can’t-buy’ (at home) gift ideas, here’s where you’ll find them.
Fattoria Paradiso is a family-run vineyard close to the beautiful medieval city of Bertinoro. Today, three generations of the Pezzi family work to make wines from a variety of grapes, including the famous Sangiovese, which fast becomes our favourite tipple for the rest of the trip. I would suggest it’s almost worth a trip to this part of Italy to try it out the Sangiovese of Romagna.
If wine is your thing, it’s worth hiring a guide to take you around the local wineries – more information at www.vinotour.it
Sampling the local cuisine in Ravenna and Rimini
When you’re not hand-rolling your own pasta to eat, try the lovely Osteria del tempo Perso, a traditional trattoria with net curtains, dark wooden furniture and plenty of locals, in the historical centre of Ravenna.
Or opt for a traditional lunch of piadina in Rimini – Italian flatbread with meat or vegetarian fillings – at Nude Crude, close to the historic quarter.
And once on the coast in Rimini, make use of the great sea views at an upmarket restaurant like Club Nautico, with its views of yachts tied up on the marina outside. Rimini is a bit of a party town and a popular seaside holiday destination for Italians; the beach strip has plenty of buzzing restaurants and bars.
What else is there to do in the region?
In-between meals you mean? Well, there’s plenty to do, from marveling at the beautiful mosaics for which Ravenna is world famous, to touring the medieval castles of the Malatesta and Montefeltro lands nearby.
Visit Castello di Montebello to hear its chilling ghost story. On the summer solstice 1375, a little girl disappeared in the castle storeroom and was never seen again. But every five years on summer solstice, she can be heard crying within the castle. On a guided tour you will be played recordings of what sounds like the plaintive cries of a child, made on recent solstices – it’s extremely eerie and a bit unsettling.
Less spooky is the Fortress of San Leo where, on the day we visit, a medieval re-enactment of life in the castle is taking place, complete with a medieval baby playing in the kitchen as women prepare a banquet and men demonstrate weaponry.
It’s a steep hike up to the fortress, so you’ll be wanting dinner after that. La Sangiovesa, is located in the picturesque town of Santarcangelo, wonderfully inventive Italian cooking produced with local ingredients.
Ravenna has eight UNESCO world heritage sites, which are the churches showcasing the wonderful mosaics that date back to the early part of the first millennium. Talk to a local about the Renaissance and they’ll dismiss it as recent history; the early Christian churches here date back to the 5th century. Back then, Ravenna had over 200 churches, and many of those remaining are clustered close together amid winding streets and large gardens.
You’ll need a ticket to visit the churches, but they’re well worth a look – it’s hard to believe that the shimmering colours and arresting images on the soaring ceilings, walls and domes, were worked in mosaic over 1600 years ago.
Back on the modern city streets, visit a mosaic workshop and see contemporary craftsmen at work, creating mosaic panels to hang on walls. You can buy them to take home with you or sign up for a mosaic workshop to create your own mini works of art. Visit www.kokomosaico.com for more information.
The region is also a great base if you want to go further afield for a day trip; Florence is just 99km away, Rome an hour and a half on a fast train. It’s well worth hiring a guide to show you the sights – and the best places to eat! We used the services of three during our four-day trip; for more information contact them individually: Paola.Golinelli@ad-arte.com, Nadia Smanio: nadiasm@tin.it, barbarastolecka@msn.com
Where to stay
We stayed at the Bisanzio Hotel in Ravenna – B&B from €80; and at Hotel Lungomare in Rimini, from €120 in peak season, €70 low season
Getting there
There are regular flights to Bologna with easyJet and British Airways from London Gatwick, and Ryanair from Stansted, Manchester, Bristol, Edinburgh and Dublin.
More information
For further information on Emilia Romagna, visit www.emiliaromagnaturismo.it/en – follow on Twitter @ERTourism