3 Traditional Foods
You Have To Try in Manarola

One of Italy's all-time favorites, linguine allo scoglio, often also dubbed linguine ai frutti di mare is a typical southern Italian seafood dish or piatto di mare. Back in the 1980s in the wider Neapolitan area, as well as along the entire southern Italian coast, there was reportedly not a single restaurant that didn't offer some version of such a timeless classic on its menu. This pasta entrée is made with either linguine or spaghetti, and a combination of seafood and shellfish, preferably coming from fresh local catch of the day. Considering seafood seasonality, what Neapolitan and any other scoglio (lit. reef; rock) has to offer varies from month to month, so there is no precise recipe for this dish, and there are countless variations in existence, but the most traditional ones always include clams, mussels, shrimps, and sometimes even calamaretti or baby squids. Pasta allo scoglio is typically flavored with white wine and garlic, and it can be prepared either in rosso or in bianco, meaning in red or white - with or without tomatoes, respectively.Expand

This Italian classic couples linguine pasta with tender lobster meat. The dish starts with a sauce that combines lobster meat and sautéed shallots, garlic, or onions, which are usually deglazed with white wine and finished off with tomatoes. The sauce is served over fresh linguine, and the whole plate is traditionally decorated with shelled lobster.Expand

Simplicity at its finest, this softly set pudding takes almost no effort to make, yet is nothing short of amazing! Even though panna cotta (lit. cooked cream) wasn't mentioned in Italian cookbooks until the 1960s, today it is considered a traditional Piedmontese dessert, and the original recipe calls for only whole cream, sugar, vanilla, and gelatin. When made to perfection and properly chilled, panna cotta is silky smooth, deliciously creamy, and has a gentle wobble to it. For a slightly lighter version of this scrumptious dessert, use half-and-half instead of heavy cream, or simply dilute heavy cream with milk. According to Anna Del Conte, a renowned food writer and leading figure in Italian cuisine, classic Piedmontese panna cotta is served on its own or sometimes accompanied with Brutti ma buoni hazelnut meringue biscotti, while the Valle d’Aosta version of panna cotta is flavored with a dash of peach eau-de-vie and garnished with red berry coulis. In other parts of Italy, panna cotta is frequently flavored with rum or sweet Marsala wine and topped with a generous drizzle of caramel sauce, which perfectly complements the seductive aroma of vanilla. Imagination being the only limit, variations on this elegant dessert are virtually endless, and it can be easily tailored to anyone’s taste.Expand