Piemonte Region / Bagna cauda It was hard to choose a dish (just one!) who represents above all the Piemontese cooking. But finally I choose Bagna Cauda. Bagna Cauda it is not quiet a "dish", but even a kind of "procedure". A "ritual" about eating food between dining companions. A very important way to consume "bagna cauda" it is share it with other persons, in conviviality. In fact all the dining companions have to draw the food from the same food container (usually made in ceramic) whose name is "fojòt". Bagna Cauda is a typical food of harvest, therefore it is considered a particular Autumn or Winter "dish". A legend tells that one of the reason of its existence is because in the past was a sort of compensation for the farmers after the hard work they have done for harvest. Bagna cauda is a liquid mixture of garlic, olive oil, desalinated anchovies, all achieved after a long and patient cooking. It is also possible to add butter, cream, milk and minced walnuts. Bagna cauda is usually served in its ceramic food container. The cointainer has to be manteined constantely hot through embers. Bagna cauda must be eaten dipping in several products (both raw and baked), such us: cardoons, oven-baked onions, raw or baked peppers, raw cabbage's leafs, cauliflowers, topinamburs, beets, vapor-baked potatoes, radishes, turnips and much more... Bagna cauda can be also well accompained with rich red wines from the region: like Barbera, Nebbiolo, Dolcetto or Barbaresco.

Some typical Italian dishes - Valle d'Aosta region I'd like to introduce some typical food of Italy, divided them from regions. I want to start from Valle d'Aosta, a beautiful and little alpine region located in the extreme north-west of Italy. One of the most popular and traditional dish of this region is "costoletta alla Valdostana". The costoletta is made of veal, stuffed with ham, fontina cheese and white truffle inside. The costoletta, after put in the beaten eggs with salt and spices (pepper) would be completely covered with bread crumbs and fried in a pan with butter. During cooking you can also sprinkle it with a little white wine, turning it repeatedly to get it chrunchy. After that, move the costoletta on a blotting paper and leave it there just for one minute. Almost dry but still well hot, serve it with its gravy. This dish is very nutritious and greedy, expecially if you think that in this region winter is very strong. You can combine the costoletta with a solid red wine, better coming from the region. In fact, there are lots of magnific wine that you can easily taste in Valle d'Aosta.

Italy | The variety of food Everybody say that the Italian food is one of the best in the world. It is not a common place. The Mediterranian diet is very healthy and in Italy you can taste different foods and delicious flavours. The healthy and the variety of foods are important caratheristics of the Italian cooking, such as the best quality of the raw products. My country is not so big (just 1800 kilometers long!) but it is incredible and extraordinary how is possible to find so many different and so typical dishes from the North to the South. For example, what you eat in Lombardy region is different of what you eat in Emilia Romagna or Tuscany, such us even more different of the typical food you eat of Campania or Sicily. The foreign tourists usually know only pizza and spaghetti but these are only two big catagories of the Italian "food" not the rule. In the middle do exist a wide range of specialities (both ways of cooking) that made the Italian cooking very rich of countless wounderful dishes. Tutti dicono che il cibo italiano è uno dei migliori al mondo. Non è un luogo comune. La dieta mediterranea è molto salutare e in Italia puoi davvero provare diversi cibi e sapori deliziosi. La varietà e i cibi salutari sono importanti caratteristiche della cucina italiana, così come la miglior qualità delle materie prime. Il mio paese non è così grande (è lungo solo 1800 chilometri!) ma è incredibile e straordinario come sia possibile trovare così tanti piatti e tipici piatti da nord a sud. Per esempio, ciò che mangi in Lombardia è diverso da ciò che mangi in Emilia Romagna o in Toscana, così come ancor più differente sono le specialità che mangi in Campania o in Sicilia. I turisti stranieri di solito conoscono solo la pizza o gli spaghetti ma queste sono solo due grandi categorie del cibo italiano, non la regola. Nel mezzo esistono le enormi quantità di specialità regionali (così come di modi di cucinare), che fanno la cucina italiana molto ricca di meravigliosi infiniti piatti.

Hi! This is my first entry Dear friends, this is my first entry and I would appreciate so much if you would correct my drafts! I know that many of you would learn a little Italian, so if you want I can also write some notes (both in Italian and in English) about my country. This just for let you know some curiosities about Italy and the Italian lifestyle. Italian culture, places to visit, the Italian people, Italian food, our cities and arts are my favourite arguments and I hope you enjoy reading my texts.