Brisighella, the medieval village nestled in the heart of the Apennines, between Florence and Ravenna, considered one of the most beautiful villages in Italy, is proud of it, and rightly so. We are talking about "Moretto" who is not an ice cream, nor a sponge cake, nor a Venetian jewel, nor a Brazilian footballer. It's something else, it's a wonderful artichoke with an unmistakable flavor and small size that can only be found in the municipality of Brisighella. The Moretto it arises, in fact, spontaneously in the typical chalky gullies exposed to the sun, which are located in the province of the small town of Ravenna. It is a rustic variety on which – and this is very important – it really pays off the Brisighella artichoke is unique – no genetic interventions have been made. This allowed to keep its organoleptic characteristics remain unchanged over time, its flavour, its perfume and this distinguishes it from all the other varieties widely cultivated throughout the Mediterranean basin. In a certain sense it can be said that today those who taste this very tasty artichoke feel the same sensation that our ancestors must have felt, who began to use it centuries ago. The plant is a bush that can reach a height of one and a half meters which grows particularly well on siliceous clayey soils typical of the Calanchi Romagnoli. Moretto has a slightly bitter but fresh and very appetizing taste, a purplish color with golden reflections, well-formed and hard yellow-black spines. Precisely because of its tantalizing flavor in Brisighella they have always used to eat it raw simply seasoned with oil and salt. It is also used freshly blanched and seasoned in the same way. But its adaptations in the kitchen are varied. The inhabitants of Brisighella have made it the protagonist of many recipes that they proudly offer to the tourists who flock to the medieval village in spring. And so we also have moretto salad with goat cheese, or cooked with roasted scallops and seasoned with Brisighella oil of course. On the menus we still find squid and Moretto tagliolini, crescents with Moretto and fossa cheese, Tagliatelle with lamb ragout on Moretto with balsamic vinegar, Strudel with Moretto, Priest's hats with Moretto and ricotta filling. In short, there is something for all tastes
The Moretto DOC is only that which falls within the political boundaries of the municipality of Brighella which borders to the north-east with Faenza, to the east with the municipality of Castrocaro, to the south-east with the municipality of Modigliana and to the south with the municipality of Marradi and to the west with the Municipality of Palazzuolo. It reproduces by taking no more than 20 carducci, the vegetable shoots that sprout at the base of the plant, from the mother plants. The environmental and cultivation conditions of the artichoke fields – there are about thirty producers, 10 have been awarded the title of Moretto”, for a total of about 5 hectares, a limited production therefore, must be those traditional and characteristic of the area and in any case suitable for giving the artichokes and specific characteristics. The artichokes are harvested in the spring by hand, in the early morning hours. Artichoke leaves are the basis for the production of all bitters, so much so that once, until the XNUMXs, they were cut after harvest, dried, packaged and shipped to Germany for the production of bitters.
Every year Brisighella dedicates a festival to the Moretto artichoke in May to honor one of the leading products of its land together with the DOP oil.
Recipe:
Priest's hats stuffed with moretti artichokes and ricotta in Brisighello extra virgin olive oil
Ingredients:
artichokes
oil, salt, pepper
ricotta (possibly sheep's)
parmesan
eggs and flour for the pastry
Method:
Clean some artichokes and cook them in the most classic way (in a pan with oil, pepper and salt), drain them from the remaining liquid and mince everything with a little ricotta (possibly sheep's milk), Parmesan, salt and pepper, if necessary: dough is too soft, add a little breadcrumbs. Make the dough with the classic method with eggs and flour. Make well-padded ravioli out of it, giving it the shape of a bishop's hat. Boil them in plenty of salted water and serve them with Parmesan, pepper and Brisighella extra virgin olive oil.
