With spring herbs, ricotta, raisins, pear jam, potatoes sweetened with grated apple and lemon peel and cinnamon, parsley, mint and lemon balm, with biscuits and apricot compote and even with sweet and bitter cocoa: there are about fifty versions of Cjarsòns, the typical dish of Carnia, and every valley has its own version. Not only that, every restaurant and every family has its own little secret for preparing this sort of delicious ravioli with countless flavours, with the common denominator of a spicy filling and a seasoning with melted butter, grated smoked ricotta and often a sprinkling of cinnamon. To this delicious delicacy (once the dish of the feast) Sutrio, an ancient village at the foot of Mount Zoncolan, dedicates the Cjarsòns Festival on Sunday 1st June, which has now become one of the most traditional and eagerly awaited spring events in Friuli Venezia Giulia.
A specialty that, despite having a poor and popular origin, is as complex and rich in ingredients as a haute cuisine dish.
Ten towns, representing all the valleys of Carnia, will each propose their own traditional recipe. Walking through a dozen tasting islands set up in the most characteristic corners of the town, you will be able to taste and compare the unusual flavors of this dish and learn about the different souls that characterize a food that, despite having a poor and popular origin, is as complex and rich in ingredients as a haute cuisine dish.
Savoury or sweet, flavoured with spring herbs or small chocolate chips, with lemon balm and onion
You can taste savory or sweet cjarsòns, flavored with spring herbs or small chocolate chips, with lemon balm and onion or with dried pears and carob, accompanied by the finest wines from great Friulian companies selected for the occasion. In addition to the food stands, there will be a Market with local products, activities for children, live music. The festival is part of the entertainment activities of the territory provided for by the Bando Borghi PNRR “Il Bosco nel Borgo-Il Borgo nel Bosco”.
A tradition linked to the cramârs, the itinerant spice sellers from Carnia who, since the 700th century, crossed the Alps on foot to sell the merchandise purchased in Venice in the Germanic countries
The origin of Cjarsòns is lost in the mists of time and is linked to the cramârs, the itinerant spice sellers from Carnia who, since the 700th century, crossed the Alps on foot to sell their precious and exotic merchandise purchased in Venice and stored in the crassigne, a sort of small wooden chest of drawers that they carried like a backpack on their shoulders, in Germanic countries. When they returned home, it was a big celebration and the women prepared Cjarsòns, ravioli filled with ricotta mixed with a very rich variety of ingredients: spices, dried fruit, sultanas, oriental aromas, aromatic herbs... in short, everything that remained at the bottom of the drawers of the crassigne, because nothing should go to waste. Info: www.prolocosutrio.com – prolocosutrio23@gmail.com