If you love rich, full-flavored dishes, Tthen you've come to the right place. Many dishes here are laden with butter and cream, although you can still eat light without having to leave the city. And never let it be said that the Bolognese don't like pork, as its appearance in virtually everything puts a different spin on the term "pig out." Before you run off to your local mercato or ristorante, take a look at the mini-food glossary to get an idea of what all the hoopla's about.
:: PASTA DISHES
Tagliatelle
Long, thin flat egg noodles best served 'alla Bolognese', in other words, with ragł. The tourist treat 'spaghetti alla Bolognese' is a bastardization of this typical Bolognese dish.
Ragł
A good ragł must cling to the pasta in order to be enjoyed. It must have the right mix of meats and spices and simmer for hours. The correct meats to use are veal, pork, and sausage. Just a touch of tomato is added as this is not a tomato sauce. To finish, add a drop of heavy cream and a dollop of fresh butter.
Tortellini
Tortellini are luscious little parcels of egg pasta filled with pork, prosciutto, mortadella, parmesan cheese, and various spices. You will find them served in a number of ways, but the traditonal Bolognese recipe is to serve them cooked in a meat broth with lots of parmesan cheese on top.
Tortelloni
This pasta is shaped like tortellini but it's bigger, and it is filled with ricotta and spinach or other greens instead of meat. May be served with ragł, a plain tomato sauce, or butter and sage.
Lasagne
The Bolognese say they are the masters of lasagne, but don't expect to find ricotta, mozzarella, hard-boiled eggs or anything similar layered between these egg pasta sheets. Authentic Bolognese lasagna, unlike what you find farther south, is made with ragł, white sauce, and parmesan cheese.
:: BREAD
Crescente
Square bread usually made with lard and/or pork fat to which prosciutto, pancetta or ciccioli has been added. You can also find meatless olive-oily versions topped with rosemary or onion. Often cut into chunks and served in a basket in osterie.
Crescentine
Light, puffy fried bread dough, usually served hot with a selection of cold cuts and cheeses.
Piadina
A famous favorite from Romagna, piadina is a thin, flat round bread cooked on a special kind of frying pan or grill. Piadine are eaten folded in half and filled with prosciutto, arugola, stracchino, or squacquarone (two varieties of soft, fresh cheese).
Tigelle
Made of the same dough as crescentine but cooked between two stone or metal discs, tigelle are usually sliced in half and filled with prosciutto , other cold cuts, or cheese. If you dare, try them as they were meant to be eaten, filled with pesto modenese, which is made of lard, garlic, rosemary, and parmesan cheese.
:: MEAT
Cotechino
A large pork sausage roughly seasoned with cloves, nutmeg, salt and pepper. This heavy dish is usually reserved for the winter months. A classic at Christmas or New Year's, usually served with mashed potatoes and lentils.
Mortadella
This is Bologna's most famous cold cut, otherwise known as bologna. You'll find it at every salumeria.
Prosciutto
The stars of the prosciutto world are San Daniele del Friuli and prosciutto di Parma. Prosciutto cotto is cooked ham and prosciutto crudo is cured salted raw ham.
Zampone
If Cotechino is a Ford, then Zampone is a Rolls Royce. Here the sausage meat has been stuffed back inside the pig's foot or zampa, making for quite a display.
Bollito misto
A real Bolognese tradition, bollito misto consists of boiled meats and vegetables. The usual mix contains beef tongue, beef brisket, veal brisket, chicken, carrots, celery, onion, and potato. Locals serve it with a tart green sauce.
:: SWEETS
Castagnole
Traditional Carnival sweet, these soft doughy ballS made of chestnut flour are deep fried and then rolled in sugar.
Certosino and panone
These rich Christmas cakes are chock full of candied fruit, nuts, and chocolate. Panone is a simpler and softer version of certosino, which in addition to the above ingredients is bedecked with large pieces of candied fruit.
Fave dei morti
These delicious, multi-colored chewy cookies made of almond paste appear in bakeries during the last two weeks of October. They are made for the November 1st and November 2nd holidays, Tutti i santi e Tutti i morti, when Italians remember their dead.
Raviole
Made of cookie dough which is rolled out and filled, most traditionally, with prune or apricot jam and then rolled into a half moon shape. The Bolognese make them Especially for March 19th, the saint day of San Giuseppe, which is also celebrated as Father's Day here.
Torta di riso
The Bolognese are very proud of this solid confection, half cake, half custard. It's made with rice, almonds, and amaretto.
Sfrappole Another traditional carnival sweet made of strips of sweet dough which are fried and then sprinkled with lots of powdered sugar.
:: THE DINNER QUEST
Pasta on its own is never a full meal but simply a starter. As in the rest of Italy, meals here usually begin with a first course of pasta, soup, or rice. This is followed by a second course of meat or fish and vegetables. Don't be fooled into thinking that the huge portion of pasta you are presented with initially is your entire meal. No doubt there will be a huge platter of steaks and an enormous bowl of salad to follow, all of which must be eaten so as not to offend.
Tipping is not customary in Italy and it is not expected in bars and cafes. In most trattorie you might leave a maximum of 2 Euros . In the better restaurants, leaving a10-15% tip is optional, and it's perfectly appropriate to leave only 5 Euros.
