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A journey to taste

When vegetables lead the dish

Onions, peppers, pumpkins and aubergines take the lead and change the centre of the table.

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  1. 01
    Editorial illustration of Canavese soup with cabbage, bread and broth
    Canavese soup · editorial illustration
    Journey stopDish · Canavese

    Zuppa alla canavesana

    Call it what the old kitchen lists called it: zuppa alla canavesana, a cabbage soup. The name already does half the work.

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  2. 02
    Seasoned pumpkin gnocchi arranged on a dark plate
    Pumpkin gnocchi · photo Ricettario di Mamidoli · CC BY-SA 4.0
    Journey stopDish · Lombardy

    Gnocchi di zucca

    The documented preparation belongs to the Lombard areas of Brescia and Mantua, where pumpkin is not a garnish but the body of the dough.

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  3. 03
    Pasta alla Genovese served in Ravello, with its meat-and-onion sauce
    Genovese in Ravello · photo Darouet · CC BY-SA 3.0
    Journey stopDish · Campania

    Genovese

    At first there seem to be almost too many onions. White or copper-skinned, chopped and gathered in the pot with olive oil, they outweigh the meat.

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  4. 04
    Editorial illustration of Parmigiana di melanzane
    AI-generated editorial illustration · not a documentary photograph
    Journey stopDish · Sicily

    Parmigiana di melanzane

    Begin with the aubergine itself. Cookery with this vegetable has especially deep roots in southern Italy and Sicily—a historical depth of attention, not a claim that the plant belongs to one…

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  5. 05
    Editorial illustration of three Canavese soups gathered on one table
    Three soups of Canavese · editorial illustration
    Journey stopMangia l’Italia · Canavese

    Three soups, three ways to warm the Canavese table

    What documented Canavese cooking puts on the table is not a single broth but a trio: a cabbage soup, a bean-and-pork tofeja, and a layered soup of ajucche with bread.

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  6. 06
    Editorial illustration of filled pasta in broth with pumpkin on a Lombard table
    Broth, filled pasta and pumpkin · editorial illustration
    Journey stopMangia l’Italia · Lombardy

    Broth, filled pasta and pumpkin: three Lombard gestures

    Begin with the bowl associated with Pavia. Zuppa alla pavese is tied to that city, and it gains substance when a whole egg meets the hot soup.

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  7. 07
    Editorial illustration of a Matese table with a leafy vegetable soup, pulses and bread
    Matese table · editorial illustration
    Journey stopDish · Campania

    Minestra caggianese

    A bowl of Minestra caggianese brings together broth, vegetables and the aromas of boiled field herbs.

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  8. 08
    Whole Neapolitan pastiera with its characteristic pastry lattice
    Neapolitan pastiera · photo Mattia Luigi Nappi · CC BY-SA 3.0
    Journey stopMangia l’Italia · Campania

    Fillings that hold a Campania year

    At Easter, Pastiera brings to the table work that began well before the first slice. Wheat grains soak until tender, then meet ricotta, citron and chocolate inside shortcrust pastry scented…

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