When in Rome, you will spend an inordinate amount of time and energy stuffing yourself silly. Here’s a quick round-up of commonly encountered Roman specialties:
Potato Pizza – I don’t like potatoes, but I like this. Potato pizza is one of the only things I remember from my trip to Rome 20 years ago. Then, I devoured a slice every day for lunch. This time, I only had it a couple of times but thoroughly enjoyed every bit. The potato pizza’s base is the Pizza Bianca, plain dough brushed with salt, olive oil and rosemary. No tomato sauce. Even my husband, who was skeptical about white pizza of any sort, liked it enough to order his own.
Gelato – of course, we had gelato every day. Whenever we thought about getting one, voilà, we would encounter a vendor. Of course, that’s not hard since there are more gelato stands than anything else in Rome, each offering delicious, perfect, creamy concoctions.
Spaghetti alla gricia – this is the relative of all’amatriciana (below) and is pasta with pecorino cheese, black pepper and pancetta. It originated in the town of Grisciano, in northern Lazio to the east of Rome. Romans got wind of it and quickly made it a classic.
Bucatini all’amatriciana – though this began as a spin-off of pasta alla gricia, nowadays the ingredients are tomato sauce, onions, pancetta, pecorino cheese and chiles. It originated in the mountainous town of Amatrice, to the east of Rome. In Amatrice, spaghetti is used while in Rome, bucatini is preferred.
Limoncello – before this trip, neither my husband nor I thought we liked limoncello. Well, turns out we just hadn’t had the good stuff! We found it here in Rome. This after-dinner drink is basically lemon rinds, sugar and grain alcohol. Sounds like a frat party punch, but if made correctly, it’s quite tasty.
Carciofi alla giudia – deep-fried, pressed artichokes. Romans love their artichokes. I’m generally not a fan, but these are not bad. The texture is interesting: the heart is creamy and soft and the leaves are crispy and chewy.
Italian breakfast – the pastry-and-espresso breakfast is common all over Italy. The locals usually take theirs standing at the counter. I can’t complain about a flaky, sweet pastry for breakfast, but it does leave me famished a couple hours later.
Of course, it’s necessary to sample each dish many times at as many places as possible. Buona apetit!
No comments yet.