Specialties of Rome?!
Answers: I'm looking for some specialties of Rome when it comes to food. More specifically desserts, sweets and cookies, but other things are welcomes as well. And maybe a website where I would find some recipies? It would come in handy for a lecture I'm giving in a few weeks. Thanks!
Specialties of Rome:
Gelato - this is a basic Italian ice cream that every city will have, but Rome is swamped with them!
Custards or tarts
*balsamic vinegar over strawberries or vanilla ice cream. (maybe not so Roman, but def. Italian!)
Crostata with Ricotta (Ricotta tart)
Maritozzi (cream puffs)
Ciambelle al Vino (Donuts made with wine)
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/roman-cu...
Most desserts aren't too sweet, they do use a lot of nuts, fruits, and glazes.
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/food/desserts...
As for non sweets, anything "alla Romana" means roman style so look for that (Pollo alla Romana is delcious) there is also a specific wine they sell in rome, it is a carbonated red (rare) called Romanello. It is very sweet and fruity, not an imported wine. As others mentioned, Bucatini All'amitriciana, and pasta carbonara (originated at La Carbonara in Roma in Campo De Fiori *still there and serving!*)
Keep in mind a few things:
1) Italian cuisine (like most others) strive on fresh ingredients, they go shopping daily or every other day for meat and fruit and vegetables.
2) There are many odd dishes (entrails, oxtails) because after the noble and rich ate (way back in the day) all that was left was the "fifth quarter" being the brains, entrails, and tongue.. unusual areas most of us wouldn't consume.
This website should help, tons of recipes and good history.
http://www.romaincampagna.it/en/cucina_c...
Nut Tart
Try patina as dessert: roast pine nuts, peeled and chopped nuts. Add honey, pepper, garum, milk, eggs, a little undiluted wine, and oil. Pour on to a plate. (Apicius, 136)
400g crushed nuts—almonds, walnuts or pistachios
200g pine nuts
100g honey
100ml dessert wine
4 eggs
100ml full-fat sheep's milk
1 teaspoon salt or garum
pepper
Preheat the oven to 240°C/475°F/Gas 9.
Place the chopped nuts and the whole pine nuts in an oven dish and roast until they have turned golden. Reduce the oven temperature to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. Mix the honey and the wine in a pan and bring to the boil, then cook until the wine has evaporated. Add the nuts and pine nuts to the honey and leave it to cool. Beat the eggs with the milk, salt or garum and pepper. Then stir the honey and nut mixture into the eggs. Oil an oven dish and pour in the nut mixture. Seal the tin with silver foil and place it in roasting tin filled about a third deep with water. Bake for about 25 minutes until the pudding is firm. Take it out and when it is cold put it into the fridge to chill. To serve, tip the tart on to a plate and pour over some boiled honey.
Rome: is the LAZIO region of Italy
The Jewish community has influenced the culinary traditions of the entire city, and is responsible for such delicacies as carciofi alla giudìa (whole artichokes cooked in hot oil until crisp and tender) and filetti di baccalà (salt cod fillets).
Nearby Testaccio - east of the River Tiber - is known for dishes such as oxtail braised in tomatoes, flavoured with pine nuts, raisins and cocoa (coda alla vaccinara), said to have arisen from the local butchers (vaccinari) being paid in discarded meats. Offal is big in Rome.
ROMAN SPECIALITIES:
Pasta alla carbonara: A rich sauce made with eggs, bacon, and pecorino (a grated cheese, stronger than parmigiano).
Pasta alla gricia: Pecorino, prosciutto (or sausages) and black pepper.
Coda alla vaccinara: Braised oxtail
Saltimbocca alla romana: Veal cutlet with prosciutto, sage, and marsala wine.
Trippa: Intestines.
Carciofi alla giudia: Fried artichokes Jewish-style.
Carciofi alla romana: Boiled artichokes pan-cooked with oil and garlic.
Filetti di baccala': Breaded cod fillets, deep-fried.
http://www.romeitalyholiday.com/Rome_rec...
http://www.rusticocooking.com/lazio.htm
http://italianfood.about.com/od/thecooki...
http://www.made-in-italy.com/winefood/fo...
http://www.barillaus.com/Home/Pages/Lazi...