The wealth of its edible riches has earned this beautiful region the honored title of Italy’s “food valley.” The regional dishes here, whose variety and taste rival those from any part of Italy, form one of the world’s most elegant – yet alluringly simple – cuisines. Barilla has made its home here for more than 125 years, in the city of Parma. The shimmering lakes, lush mountains, and verdant pastures of the Po Valley cut a swath through Parma, and it is here that prized Emilian cows graze, chickens lay fresh golden eggs, and fields yield the ingredients that play a part in the region’s mouthwatering foods. Romagna, the mountainous country that stretches to the Adriatic Sea in the east, offers aromatic herbs, hearty game, and fresh fish from the coast.

Although olive oil plays a prominent role in the cuisine of Emilia-Romagna, just as often cream, butter, and cheese are the basis for many dishes – a fact that explains another of the region’s enduring nicknames, Italy’s “Butter Line.” Each of the major cities here contributes a classic to the menu:  Parma proudly presents its famous prosciutto; Bologna its delicious mortadella and meat-based ragù; Piacenza its brilliant tortellini; and Ferrara its sausage; and everywhere are pasta fresca (fresh pasta) and pasta secca (made from durum semolina) in countless varieties. Although the foods of this remarkable bounty are now exported around the world, nothing compares with tasting them here, over a glass of red wine or with a piping hot piadina.

Specialty Foods of Emilia-Romagna

It is difficult to imagine an antipasti plate without prosciutto di Parma, the delightful ham named for one of the region’s culinary capitals. Made from carefully raised local pigs, prosciutto di Parma is simplicity personified: salted, cured with air descended from the Apennine mountains, then aged in special underground caves and closely tended to by Parma’s salumieri. This meat has a pure, unadulterated flavor that is an abiding passion for many. Its silky consistency and rich, clean taste can be enjoyed draped over a plate in thin, ribbon-like slices; wrapped around crunchy, delicate grissini (bread sticks); or tossed with pasta, cream, herbs, and vegetables.

The production of nutty, savory Parmigiano Reggiano cheese is limited to the Emilia-Romagna region to ensure authenticity.  It takes about eight quarts of milk to make one pound of this delicacy, the so-called ‘king of cheeses.' Aged for a minimum of 12 months and up to 24 months, Parmigiano Reggiano is made according to the age-old traditions passed down from generation to generation. The cheese is delicious alone, in vegetable-laden soups and salads and in many pasta dishes, some of which claim a literary pedigree. In the Decameron, Boccaccio speaks of “…mountains of grated Parmigiano, on which people did nothing else but prepare maccheroni and ravioli. ”

The piadina, also known as piada or “piè,” came into being as peasant bread, yet today it is the queen of snacks on the Romagna Riviera.  For the many tourists who have stopped in at least once at the colorful kiosks lining the Adriatic coast between Rimini, Riccione and Gabicce, the flavor will always bring to mind sun, sea and holiday memories. This unleavened flatbread is best eaten piping hot; filled with greens, pan-fried vegetables, cheese or ham, and cured meats of all kinds; then folded in two, cut into four, or rolled up. One variation, the crescione, is filled to bursting with sausages and vegetables sautéed with garlic and oil, then folded in two. This gastronomic delight has gone on to conquer all of Italy with endless street stands now preparing them, and today piadina can even be found in New York.

Aceto balsamico, or balsamic vinegar, is one of the cornerstones of Italian gastronomy, produced exclusively in the province of Modena according to the same time-honored method vinegar-makers have used for centuries. Locally-grown grapes are the preferred raw material, mainly the Lambrusco and Trebbiano varieties, from which is obtained the cooked grape must that is matured in special casks. A good balsamic vinegar is at least 12 years old, but, like the finest of wines, it can be aged for as long as half a century. Just a few drops are all that is required to turn an “ordinary” dish into a work of culinary art, from beef fillet to a chunk of Parmigiano Reggiano to even strawberries and ice cream. Although balsamic vinegar is now sold across the United States, often what is available is a factory-produced product. True artisan-made balsamic vinegar is an incomparable taste experience. Look for the word “traditional” on the label, and let flavor be your guide.

Food Festivals of Emilia-Romagna

Rampion Festival
Borghi (first Sunday after Easter)
Rampion is a wild fruit found wild in fields.  Its leaves are edible; they have a pleasant, slightly sweet taste and are used in salads or boiled and served with vinegar.

Garlic Festival
Voghiera (July)
Garlic is the king of this local festival, where it is celebrated with garlic-based foods and dishes, garlic tastings, and activities and games.

Forgotten Fruits Festival
Casola Valsenio (October)
At this festival, one can taste the flavors of forgotten fruits, such as cornelian cherries, vulpine pears, Neapolitan medlars, and others.