Four traditional Italian recipes from Friuli

Italy is a country full of history, culture and of great variety of food. Each Italian region, in fact, has its own typical dishes. Usually, some of these dishes aren’t even known among Italians who live in different regions, not to say among non-Italians.  

In another article I talked about some typical dishes of Piedmont cooking. Today, instead, I’m going to explain four traditional Italian recipes from Friuli.

 

FRICO

There are many tasty traditional Italian recipes from Friuli, but one of my favourite is definitely Frico.

Originally this was a very poor dish, cooked to recycle cheese left-overs. Nowadays, instead, it is served also in restaurants.

There are two types of frico: frico friabile – crispy frico – e frico morbido – tender frico.

Frico friabile is made exclusively of fried cheese, typically Montasio or Asiago. It can be served also as a snack.

Frico morbido, instead, is cooked using also potatoes. You usually cook potatoes with onions and cheese in a pan with some oil. When all the ingredients are cooked, you cook the frico in a non-stick pan until it’s crispy.

If you want to cook Frico at home, here’s the recipe.

CJARSONS

Among all the traditional Italian recipes from Friuli, that of Cjarsons is one of the most famous.

Cjarsons is a pasta similar to ravioli that is generally cooked during festivities in Friuli.

Every Friulan family has its own recipe of Cjarsons, so the filling can differ. However, the recipe for the dough is generally the same and it’s prepared with flour, water, salt and, sometimes, potatoes.

As I said, the filling can differ a lot. It can be either sweet or salted.

Some of ingredients that are generally used for sweet fillings are: chocolate, fruit, nuts.

Instead, some of the ingredients used for salted Cjarsons are: spinach, cheese, onions, etc. Salted Cjarsons are generally topped with ricotta affumicata.

Here you can find the recipe to cook Cjarsons.

GUBANA

Gubana is a ring-shaped dessert usually cooked on Easter, Christmas or during marriages.

Gubana’s origins are probably Slavic. Indeed, in the 8th century AD a Slavic population settled in Friuli. And the features of this dessert seem to recall some features of the Slovenian struklji – baked rolls with different fillings.

Gubana can have many different fillings. The most common are: walnuts, almonds, raisins, and dried figs.

If you want to cook Gubana, have a look at this website.

TIRAMISU’

Tiramisù is a typical Italian dessert that doesn’t need presentations.

Its origins are still uncertain. Up till today, they are disputed at least among two Italian regions: Friuli and Veneto.

This dessert, whose name means cheer me up or wake me up, is usually made of coffee, lady’s fingers, eggs, sugar, and mascarpone cheese. However, there are many variants: tiramisu with strawberries, with Limoncello liqueur, with pistachio nuts, etc.

Below, you can find one of the many recipes available.

 

What about you? Have you ever tried these traditional Italian recipes? Did you like them? Did you eat some other typical Friulan dishes? Share your experiences below.

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Credits

Original image by Huynh Hanh – CC