Categoria: HERITAGE

heritage

Alberobello and the Valle d’Itria

Alberobello and the Valle d’Itria.

it’s an article by Italia.it – italia.it

The Valle d’Itria welcome the visitor with unmatched olive tree groves, trees born from a red soil that perfume and makes the landscape around a succession of wonderful chromatic effects.

Also known as the Trulli’s Valley, the Valle d’Itria is collocated between the Apulian provinces of Bari, Brindisi and Taranto (Puglia, Italy) and includes many towns including Alberobello, Carovigno, Castellana Grotte, Ceglie Messapica, Cisternino, Fasano, Locorotondo, Martina Franca, Walnuts, Ostuni, Putignano, San Michele Salentino, San Vito dei Normanni and Villa Castelli.

Perhaps due to the white of the buildings or due to the vegetation that frames them, every town and every village of the valley, is wrapped in a magical, almost fairy-tale atmosphere.

In the heart of the Itria Valley, Alberobello is a must-place to visit with its trulli, a UNESCO site listed in the World Heritage List in 1996. It is impossible not to be fascinated by a walk along the streets of Monti and Aja Piccola.

In the valley there is not only Alberobello. The country sourrounding is scattered about beautiful villages with typical buildings: just think about Cisternino, which rises in this area called “Murgia of the Trulli” counted, together with the nearby Locorotondo, among the most beautiful villages in Italy. Mentioned until the mid-eighteenth century “Luogorotondo” for the characteristic roundabouts of the historical centre.

Between Bari and Taranto is located Martina Franca, the most populated town in the Itria Valley, well-known for its beautiful Baroque architecture and the same musical festival.

Then, there is the White City, the only one in the valley with a balcony on the sea: Ostuni. Called White city due to its characteristic old town, once entirely painted with white. Ostuni is together with Taranto and Santa Maria di Leuca, one of the ideal vertices of the Salento peninsula.

Absolutely to do a “trip to the center of the earth”, to the Caves of Castellana (in the municipality of Castellana Grotte), where Grave, the first and largest cave as well as the only one connected to the outside, and then the White Cave will leave speechless words to any visitor.

In Alberobello, among the trulli, local association organize in a spectacular scenery the Living Nativity, in December, and the Living Passion during the Easter period.

In Martina Franca, in July, since 1975, you find the Festival of the Itria Valley.

On the hill overlooking the elegant village of Fasano, you find the homonymous selva “Selva di Fasano” inside which you find the Zoo Safari, a park suitable for children and old people who offers the visitor a truly amazing experience; Over 40 animal species to discover into the wild.

Walking, workshops and tastings at the several educational farms, farms distributed throughout the territory that propose for schools, but not only, direct observation and study experiences, and then manipulations, fruit harvest, participation in the various stages of transformation Of agricultural products, creation of small objects in clay, tasting of typical products.
For example “Sporcamussi”: you can not get up from the table without the dirty mouth of cream and sugar. They are the typical desserts of Bari and Itria Valley, and they got that name because they are so good that, eating them in a single bite, they delight the palate but also they leave traces!

2017-02-25
Mottola, when nature is a set

Mottola, when nature is a set.

is an article by Città Meridiane – cittameridiane.it

Mottola, Wilderness and Caves of God, in the Murge Tarantine among reliefs of deep graves and deep canyons.

Among the most spectacular and even less well-known paths in the land of Puglia there is the Murge Tarantine area, hills interrupted by deep canyons that run perpendicular to the Ionian coast: a rock universe formed two million years ago.

A landscape that catches eyes and fills the soul, among rocks and Mediterranean steppe. Walking on the edge of the cliffs, in the midst of lentisk trees and juniper bushes, it seems to be in a another world, still little traveled by tourism and made of countries perched on the brink of deep canyons sourrounded by orange trees and olive trees.

As Mottola, located on a panoramic hill overlooking the deep blue of the Taranto’s Gulf.

Here is the most spectacular and majestic canyon of Puglia, the Petruscio’s canyon, from the vertical rocky wall painted by caves.

The rock village has developed on the sides of the canyon “gravina” in italian language, within the different levels of the interconnected caves that have been used for centuries as houses, animal shelter, religious worship centers and even cemeteries.

Twisting paths lead to the bottom of the gravina but the most interesting point of observation is the one from which you can admire it right from the center of the horizon: well known to few have allowed us to create spectacular photos that give the idea of how deep and extensive this is Split engraved in the rock.

Mottola also has an old town circular center that hangs on the hillside between intricate streets and steep stairs and many churches, which should certainly be more valued. Located on the top is the 13th century Mother Church.

But the most interesting churches are certainly those rupestrian and the most beautiful of St. Nicholas, called the Sistine Chapel of rock civilization, where it remains open in front of the cycle of 24 frescoes dating from the XI to XIV century.

Another singular rupestrian church is the one of Sant’Angelo, which is the only case in Puglia, a two-story hypogean rock church, a typical architectural solution of Cappadocia and the Byzantine world. It is a pity that the frescoes are very compromised by water infiltration, favored by the overturning of the above ground.

Around Mottola there is a real open-air museum between ancient farms “masserie”, trulli, cisterns, rock villages and the “Grotte di Dio” ( caves of god ) dugged into tuffy valleys and immersed in the intense aroma of rosemary, thyme and oranges. And here is the culture of living in the cave, with architectural jewels from the iconographic apparatus of exceptional artwork such as the finely frescoed crypts, real pinacoteche guarded in rock formwork. These are not isolated phenomena, though here they reach a very high level of fine art but fall into a natural, anthropic and cultural habitat typical of the Mediterranean basin, extended from Turkey to Greece, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Armenia, southern Italy, Tunisia, Jordan, Israel, France and Spain, and characterized by the use of the cave excavated as a temple, church, dwelling, fortress, village, necropolis.

In a small garrison, among rosemary plants and capers and olive trees, rises the church of the Madonna del Carmine or Madonna Abbàsc, partially excavated in the rock that, when it comes to a sunny day, looks like a small clump of Greece in the Apulian land.

To deceive the shape of the upper part of the sanctuary and the murky white of the walls. Legend has it that on April 22, 1506, the Virgin of Carmel appeared in dream to the clergyman Francesco Pietro di Filippo, who rested in the cave where he lived, and ordered him to build a dedicated chapel. Since then, during the Lenten Saturdays, there is a crowded votive pilgrimage from Mottola to the chapel and from many nearby centers.

We relentlessly leave this paradise of peace and devotion. With a promise: we will return to Mottola to visit the much more that the city offers to those who are ready to seize its often hidden sights, cause nature is a set.

photo by cittameridiane.it

2017-02-22
Caciocavallo Cheese

Caciocavallo Cheese.

The caciocavallo cheese is a semi-hard spun paste cheese, made from cow’s milk. The shape is a pear with the head and the weight varying from 1 to 3 kg.

Crust is thin, smooth, pale yellow color marked. The paste is homogeneous, with small holes, and white or straw yellow color more intense towards the outside. The flavor, influenced by the period of maturation, can range from very mild to strong.

Product category

Cheeses

Other naming

–

Production origin area

Puglia e Basilicata (Italy)

Production process

After filtration, the raw cow’s milk is acidified by addition of natural whey, resulting from previous operations.

The coagulation, after heating the milk to a temperature of ca. 40 ° C, is obtained by the addition of liquid bovine rennet (ca. 25 ml per 100 kg).

The manual breaking of the curd by wooden sticks is useful to obtain granules to the size of a grain of rice.

The curd rests in whey for a time of ca. 3 h, followed by cutting into loaves and a subsequent rest of ca. 20 min.

The loaves are further cut into strips to facilitate the spinning is performed at ca. 80 ° C in buttermilk. With the spinning operation, the curd is molded in the classic pear shaped head and then tied with nylon thread or natural fiber.

The individual forms are placed in cold water for times as a function of variable dimensions, up to firming.

Salting takes place in brine at a temperature of 15-20 ° C. The shapes remain immersed in the brine for a time equal to ca. 8-9 h per kg of product.

Depending on the type, the maturation is continued for a period of 2-12 months at a temperature of ca. 15 ° C..

Production period

All year long

History and tradition

The name Caciocavallo cheese originated from the cheese seasoning mode of cheeses tied together, riding on a stick.

A particular type of Caciocavallo Caciocavallo is the Caciocavallo Podolico, the location of the podolian animals has focused almost exclusively on the Garganico Promontory where water is scarce and survival is difficult. The breed podolica supposed to have been domesticated in the Middle East in the fourth millennium BC.

description from Atlas of Typical Products from Puglia – First Edition – October 2006

images by cheesemaking.com

2017-02-20
Almond from Toritto

Almond from Toritto.

Almond from Toritto is the fruit of the almond tree, Amygdalus communis L., and is obtained from the native cultivar ‘Filippo Ceo’ also called ‘Aminue’ (at least 70%), ‘Antonio De Vito’ (up to 20%) and other cultivars (up to 10%).

The almond Filippo Cea is characterized by a fruit in shell from the weight of 5 g, the seed from an average weight of 1.6 g with a percentage of seeds double or twin around 30%. For its strong pastiness is indicated for the preparation of sweets to which confers intense and pleasant aroma and for the preparation of almond milk.

The almonds are well preserved inside their shells; if shelled, should be kept as much as possible away from light, air, heat.

The almond from Toritto or almonds from Toritto, generally, are sold in sealed packages; if they are sold in bulk should be stored in closed containers to prevent rancidity.

Product category

Vegetable products in their natural state or processed

Other names

Aminue

Area of origin

the town of Toritto (Bari, Puglia, Italy)

Productive process

The plants are cultivated with three branches.

The winter production pruning takes into account that the fruiting occurs primarily on darts.

The average flowering time falls in the second half of February.

The harvest generally takes place in August-September by beating consisting in beating the branches with long poles to make the mature product fell down.

Fruits harvested are freed from the husk and placed to dry so that the water content is less than 7%; this ensures a good conservation of the product.

The production in almonds without the husk is high and can reach an average of 1.3 t / ha.

Production period

Summer.

History and tradition

In the province of Bari the cultivation of almonds was widespread and affected the agricultural landscape and popular culture: just think of the heritage of Puglia peasant songs linked to long operations concerning the almond working.

In the town of Toritto they select several cultivars that carrying the name of famous citizens of Toritto: the ‘Antonio De Vito’, the ‘Genco’ and ‘Filippo Cea’ (of which survives the first plant in the town of Toritto).

description from Atlas of Apulian products “Atlante dei Prodotti Tipici di Puglia Prima edizione – Ottobre 2006”

images by mondodelgusto.it – radicifuturemagazine.it – gamberorosso.it – pugliamonamour.it – imgrum.org

2017-02-15
Ostuni the white town

Ostuni the white town.

Article taken from solobuonoblog.wordpress.com

Ostuni goes up and down, then descends and ascends, in a labyrinth of bright streets both day and night.

To create that light is the white, widespread white that gives to Ostuni, in fact, the name of Ostuni the white town.

Located in the province of Brindisi (Puglia, Italy) near the Murge, Ostuni overlooks the Adriatic Sea, in one of the most beautiful and clean parts of the entire coast. Seventeen kilometers of coastline offer great and sunny beaches, suitable for all types of tourism, and the respective tourists needs.

The city is entertaining especially in summer, which is full of tourists who, throughout the maze of narrow streets, alleys with its characteristic whitewashed color, enjoy the summer, and a light that only Ostuni can offer. So much art, numerous churches, various civilizations have alternated, make Ostuni one of the most beautiful towns in Italy, able to really offer everything to tourists: not only the sealife.

Ostuni is one of the most elegant ever city views, landscape, even at night, even with the moon, gives emotions never felt before.

Do not wait for the summer: go for it!

photo by Comune di Ostuni

2017-02-11
Table olive variety Termite di Bitetto

Table olive variety Termite di Bitetto.

The table olive variety Termite di Bitetto is a variety of olive native of Puglia as attested in ancient documents found.

Drupe oval, green during the development and black when ripe. The olives must be initiated to work within 48 hours after harvest, processing system is called “pickled in brine” or “Greek”.

Product Category

Vegetable products in their natural state or processed.

Other names

Mele di Bitetto, Ualie dolc

Product origin area

The province of Bari (Puglia, Italy)

Productive process

The table olive variety Termite di Bitetto must be initiate to work within 48 hours after harvest, processing system is called “pickled in brine” or “Greek method”. The olives undergo a preservation process rather slow brine; 2 phases are distinguished: the initial one or tumultuous, the duration of 20-30 days during which the product in brine to 8-10% undergoes a slow de-bittering process and aerobic fermentation. In the second stage, the olives are kept in closed containers where the anaerobic fermentation proceeds slowly and allows the completion of the de-bittering process. The preservation of the olives in whole form, pitted, stuffed or topped, takes place in containers with a maximum capacity of 10 kg. They can be used optional ingredients such as salt, vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, spices, herbs and natural extracts.

description from Atlante dei Prodotti Tipici di Puglia Prima Edizione – Ottobre 2006

2017-02-11
Capocollo of Martina Franca

Capocollo of Martina Franca

Capocollo of Martina Franca is a sausage made from meat from pigs born and raised extensively in the territory of Martina Franca.

The production technique provides certain characteristics such as the treatment stages by vino cotto and smoking. Capocollo of Martina Franca has a deep wine red in color and a pronounced aroma linked to the use of spices and the smoking process. The texture is soft and fragrant flavor with sour feeling imparted by vino cotto and well supported by the quality of the meat.

Product category

Meat (and offal) and their preparation

Area of origin

The surrounding area of Martina Franca (Taranto, Puglia, Italy)

Productive process

Capocollo of Martina Franca is a sausage made from meat from pigs born and raised extensively in the territory of Martina Franca. The raw material is formed by the upper portion of the neck of the pig and from a part of the shoulder. After salting, the meat is washed with vino cotto ( from white wine Martina), mixing with aromas of local herbs, thene there is the ligation in pig gut to form pieces of cylindrical shape and weight of 0,5- 2 kg. The smoking process takes place by burning wood and the bark of a Fragno oak, a tree native of Balkans now present only in some areas of Puglia. The seasoning lasts about 3 months.

Production period

All the year.

History and tradition

The historical testimonies describe pig meat processing according to the protocol used for the production of Martina Franca capocollo since the seventeenth century.

description from Atlante dei Prodotti Tipici di Puglia Prima Edizione – Ottobre 2006

2017-02-08
Farinella of Putignano: Carnival and Dressing

Farinella of Putignano: Carnival and Dressing.

Article taken from insearchoftaste.com

Farinella of Putignano is a flour milled from roasted chickpeas, with the addition of barley and salt.

It’s an ancient food that is still produced in the town of Putigano in southern Puglia. Here it is known as Farinella of Putignano and those with a care for the traditions of their land are its natural ambassadors.

We live in times where simple ingredients are often ignored. Memory and custom are fragile – traditions can be lost. Even the humblest of seeds such as the chickpea can be overlooked, but as I discovered in Puglia recently, there is still a food tradition that harks back to an era of “culinary necessity”.

Farmers used to carry their farinella in a little sack called u volz, and would sprinkle it onto dried figs whilst working in the fields. At dinner they used it as a topping on the Pugliese speciality macco (a mash made of dried broad beans and bitter green chicory), in order to thicken the dish.

In noble houses farinella was used as a flavouring for dishes of pasta with tomato sauce, soups, salads, olives, or fresh figs and fruit. Sometimes, when mixed with sugar it became a dessert. Farinella was frequently used to thicken liquids, effectively making them more filling. Most importantly it was eaten and enjoyed for the way it enhanced any ingredient to which it was added.

With its underlying roasted flavours, combined with the taste of dried chickpeas, it works well as an addition to tomato sauce, as a topping on potatoes or pickled olives.

The best way by far is the custom of topping fresh, giant figs. The intense sweetness of a perfectly ripe fig with the roast flavour of farinella is a sublime combination. What begins as a mellow sensation on the palate, intensifies with the sweetness of the fruit, so the final taste leaves a glorious combination of sweet and salty.

In the library of Putignano, documents can be found that date from the late 18th century that talk about a black farinella made of ground and roasted black chickpeas (ceci neri). Although now making a modest comeback in Puglia and Basilicata, black farinella becomes harder to find with each passing year.

Farinella of Putignano is a dressing, but the town of Putigano is also famous for one of the oldest and most beautiful festivals in Europe, the Carnival of Putignano, that is gonna to become 700 years old. The principal symbol of the Carnival of Putignano is a jester, traditionally clad in a multi coloured harlequin suit with twin pointed hat bedecked with bells. His role is to poke fun at figures of authority and renown. His name is Farinella of Putignano.

images by insearchoftaste.com

2017-02-08
Chiacchiere of Carnival, or crostoli, cenci, bugie …

Chiacchiere of Carnival, or crostoli, cenci, bugie …

Recipe taken from caramellosalato.com by Moira Picco

The chiacchiere of carnival, or crostoli if you are in Friuli, or frappe, Galani, cenci, depending on the region of Italy in which you are, are the most typical carnival sweet of Italy.

Chiacchiere of carnival are crispy puff pastry, with a rectangular shape with one or two cuts in the center, worked out with a rolling pin or the pasta machine, fried in oil and sprinkled with powdered sugar. So you get a crispy waffles, friable and light that will dissolve in the mouth. Someone make them finer, someone make them thicker, I prefer them very thin, in fact, I use to work them very thin with the pasta machine. To realize chiacchiere of carnival you need a few simple ingredients that usually everyone has in the pantry, such as flour, eggs, butter, sugar.

Ingredients:

280 gr. flour
15 gr. wheat starch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
30 gr. sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1 vial of lemon flavor or lemon juice
1 pinch of salt
25 gr. butter
Seed oil for frying

Preparation time:

20 minutes

Cooking time:

2-3 minutes

Proceedings:

Pour on a pastry flour, wheat starch and baking powder sifted and make a hole in the center

At the center pour the sugar, vanilla, eggs, the aroma of lemon and a pinch of salt. With a fork, beat the eggs and start taking a bit ‘of flour from the sides of the fountain

When you’ve got a thick paste can pour the softened butter cutted into small pieces

Knead gently all the ingredients until you have a homogenous and compact compound. If the mixture is too hard you can soften by adding a little ‘of water or wanting the same amount of brandy. Now cover the dough with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes at ambient temperature

Take back the dough and divide it into 3 parts

Pass each piece of the dough into the machine starting from the biggest hole and passing it several times until it is smooth. When the dough is smooth can be made to pass in the average thickness and then in the thinnest. Put the strips on a lightly floured work surface and cut with a serrated wheel in rectangles, making two center cuts

Heat the seed oil, preferably peanut seeds, up to 180 degrees and dip the crostoli, and crostoli, turning, just a 2 minutes. Be careful that the oil temperature does not increase too much, if you lower the gas and wait for dips a bit ‘

Arrange your crostoli on a serving plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar on each layer.

images by caramellosalato.com

2017-02-06
Colors live in Puglia

Colors live in Puglia.

Where the sun transforms figs and cherry tomatoes, red, trough the white alleys in the city, and it accompanies the vital energy of the green that turns into yellow in the wheat fields, into the vineyards, into the olive oil mills, and warms up the cliffs and the beaches that are lapped by the blue of the Caribbean sea, along the 860 km of coasts in which the eyes loses.

Art, History, Folklore, Food & Wine. Are the predominant elements of Tourism made in Puglia.

You can walk in the footsteps of history among the holy stones of the Romanesque cathedrals, hermitages carved into the rock or baroque churches and among the secular stones of the Federico II’s castles, rupestrian villages and endless dry stone walls that mark the landscape.

You can dive into the blue, the green, in the blue and in the countless nuances of which turns the sea from Gargano to the land of Bari to the deep Salento and that is the background to an uninterrupted series of white villages and historic towns perched on rocky cliffs.

You can immerse yourself into the depths of the karstic caves and then discover the Alta Murgia National Park, the nature reserves and Marine Protected Areas.

For those who want to enjoy sport and adventure this is the right place, because you can discover Puglia through the trekking routes or cycleways and horse trails, among olive trees, oaks and vineyards.

And then you can tease Typical dishes from Puglia, a slice of bread from Altamura DOP topped with tomatoes variety Fiaschetto from Torre Guaceto and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Or drink a glass of wine Primitivo of Gioia del Colle DOP accompanied by a slice of cheese Canestrato Pugliese DOP and apulian taralli..

Unique products, made by hands, handcrafted stuffs as the whistles of Rutigliano, the Pottery of Grottaglie and the cane baskets of Acquarica del Capo.

Social agriculture and responsible tourism, Agritourism, B & B and historic farms, for those who love ecotourism.

Wellness centers and spas for those who want to spendo several hours to be dedicate to themselves, to their body and mind in a relaxing holiday.

Conference centers, exhibition areas and meeting rooms for those who come in Puglia for business.

From Murgia to the Terra di Bari, from the Valle d’Itria to the Taranto’s Hills and the Ionian coast, from Gargano to Salento: Puglia represent the perfect combination of land and sea, between the sacred and the profane, festivities, rituals connected with the tradition and Francigene streets. Then events, large festivals, music concerts, film festivals and art exhibitions.

Easy to get to (it has two major airports), easy to get around and easy to program.

In short, the perfect destination for a trip. It is said that one is not enough to enjoy it all (true!), and pending the the next time, DISPENSA DEI TIPICI is the perfect way to learn how to taste and discover the Puglia!

What are you waiting for? Colors live in Puglia, let start color yourself of Puglia!

2017-01-15