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Man, what a cabbage!
A beautiful and good vegetable, a symbol of the Montalto Dora area
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The Savoy Cabbage of Montalto Dora
A typical product of Canavese, savoy cabbage has long been known in restaurants and markets in Piedmont, Aosta Valley and Lombardy for its excellent organoleptic characteristics. It can be recognized by the morphology of the "head" and the boiling and color of the leaves. The flavor, characteristic and unmistakable, is a harmonious combination of sugars and aromas typical of this noble crucifer, botanically recognized as the "sabauda" variety.
Just think that in 1996 there was only one farmer left in Montalto Dora, producing about 300 Savoy cabbage plants. In order not to lose such a unique product, and so strongly linked to the land, it took years of study and laboratory analysis, which led to 10 guidelines to define the typicality of this vegetable.
The product is so tied to its land that every year, at the end of November, when the first frosts make the cabbage leaves more tender and flavorful, the Sagra del Cavolo Verza is organized in Montalto Dora. At its first edition, just in 1996, the 41 families originally from the village (and we are talking about old people, those who lived here in the 1940s and even earlier) chose the cabbage ecotype that brought them back to their original taste. Result: 97 percent shared the same choice.

Ugly a cabbage!
There are associations for the defense of old varieties of apples, there are orchards that have become ecomuseums to encourage the preservation of varieties, wouldn't it be time to do something about cabbage too? Cabbage, besides being good, is beautiful; it is the only vegetable that can rival roses. After all, among the most beautiful of these flowers are the "cabbage" roses, which are inspired by the round shapes of this vegetable!
Besides being good and beautiful, savoy cabbage is known for its beneficial properties. Cato the Censor already spoke of 27 ailments that could be cured by savoy cabbage, and even today many researchers highlight the medicinal properties of this vegetable, which, before the introduction of the potato and corn, helped feed entire populations.
A real panacea is raw cabbage salad: the raw leaves, cut into strips, retain all its beneficial properties and go wonderfully with chopped salted anchovies, garlic, olive oil and vinegar. Two more delicious recipes follow, proposed by the Municipality of Montalto Dora at a past edition of the "Festa." And once again: long live the Cabbage!
Recipe
Piedmontese capònets
Difficulty
Easy
Preparation
30 min
Ingredients
- medium-sized savoy cabbage leaves
- 250 gm minced beef
- 70 gm butter
- 30 gm grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 eggs
- breadcrumbs
- milk
- salt and pepper
Preparation
- After peeling and washing the cabbage leaves, blanch them in boiling salted water for a few minutes, then put them to drain on a clean tablecloth.
- Gather the minced meat, Parmesan cheese, a handful of bread crumbs soaked in milk and squeezed, salt, pepper and mix well with the eggs in the bowl.
- Place the mixture on a cabbage leaf, wrap in a cigar shape and cook in a casserole, after melting the butter, over low heat for about 30 minutes.
- In the recipe presented, beef replaces the ancient ingredient: salam d'la duja (salami preserved in fat).
Recipe
Montaltese-style cabbage soup
Difficulty
Easy
Preparation
1 h
Doses
4 persone
Ingredients
- 1 fine head of Savoy cabbage, to be flaked using the outermost leaves and reserving the inner ones for other preparations
- 8 -10 slices of stale bread
- 2.5 liters of chicken (or beef) broth
- grated cheese
- sausage to taste
Preparation
- The cabbage is flaked (only the head is kept to make a tasty salad), the leaves are well washed, broken up and simmered slowly in salted water.
- In the meantime, dry cheese is grated, not necessarily grana cheese, which was too expensive for families of the past.
- The stale bread, which should be firm and compact, is cut into slices.
- Take a bowl without handles and place the bread slices in it, sprinkle with cabbage and then pour over plenty of chicken broth, sprinkle everything with plenty of grated cheese. Several layers should be prepared until the terrine is full.
- At this point, preparations are made for the final touch: place the pot on the fireplace irons or stove, cover with an earthenware lid and leave mitoné (simmering).
- This is the oldest recipe, which used chicken or pork rib broth. Today, beef broth is used and some sausage is also added to the soup. The slow cooking can be safely done on the home stove.
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