Lake Como, land of flavours
It is said that Italian cuisine is the best in the world for quality, variety and flavours. Certainly, Lake Como one is among the most typical in the country.
The Lario area offers spectacular views, natural and cultural riches, but it is also a place full of culinary specialties (and restaurants)! What can you enjoy, then, during a stay on Lake Como?
Polenta
As often happens in northern Italy, polenta is a must in this area.
Prepared with corn flour, polenta toc (or toch, tocc) is one of the most well-known and appreciated dishes, especially typical of the Bellagio area; the doses? Tradition says 2 ounces of butter, 2 ounces of cheese and half a liter of water per person! A specialty of peasant culture, in the past also served at weddings!
Cheeses
And speaking of cheeses, the most famous are semuda, zincarlin and triangolo del Lario, but there are others! Made from cow’s or goat’s milk, they are all excellent, ideal to enjoy with local salami (such as the famous liver mortadella) and honey.
If the magro di Bellagio, made with partially skimmed cow’s milk, is perfect for polenta toc, the lariano and the local zola are excellent alternatives based on goat’s milk.
And pasta?
We are in Italy, and pasta can’t miss!
Among the countless specialties of the area, we mention for example the Pasta Cunscia alla Comasca, made with pasta, potatoes and tomatoes, very tasty and very simple to prepare.
Don’t miss the tagliolini with missoltini, the typical local fish!
Lake fish
The real protagonist is in fact lake fish, a must on the tables of the Como people.
From the Lario come the missoltini (shads dried in the sun and pressed with salt), the whitefish, the bleaks, the salmon trout, the perch, the pike and the chub
Misultin (or missoltini) are pillars of the cooking tradition: dried and grilled shad served with pieces of polenta. Also unmissable is the perch risotto, rigorously prepared with Carnaroli rice, lemon zest and some spices.
If you love vinegar, then marinated whitefish is for you!
Se siete amanti dell’aceto, allora il lavarello in carpione è ciò che fa per voi! If you prefer something tasty – and often takeaway – you have to try fried bleaks, small fish often accompanied by potatoes!
A dessert overlooking the lake
Como is also famous for its typical desserts!
There are the cutizza – a typical Como pancake made of flour, water, eggs and milk – or the miascia, made with stale bread, milk, sugar and eggs with the addition (depending on the recipe) of amaretti, pine nuts or raisins.
Then there is also the resta, a dessert based on raisins and honey typical of the Easter period, or the braschin (with walnuts, raisins and grappa), the pan mataloch of Bellagio (with walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, candied fruit and dried figs ), Canzo nocciolini (typical biscuits with only three ingredients: hazelnuts, icing sugar and egg white), and many others!
Oil and wine
A good meal is always accompanied by quality condiments and drinks! You must try the Laghi Lombardi-Lario DOP extra virgin olive oil, and the wide choice of local wines!
Un buon pasto è sempre accompagnato da condimenti e bevande di qualità! Impossibile rinunciare allora all’olio extravergine Dop Laghi Lombardi-Lario, e all’ampia scelta di vini del territorio! There are the white and red wines of the Igt Terre Lariane Consortium, produced between the provinces of Como and Lecco.
Have lunch in a “crotto”
Between the provinces of Como, Lecco and Sondrio (but also in Switzerland!) you often come across restaurants housed inside the “crotti”, a sort of small natural caves once used for the conservation and seasoning of food, thanks at low temperatures.
Today many of these places have been converted into restaurants, where it is possible to taste traditional dishes in truly unique and characteristic environments.
Lakefront dinner
The great thing of staying on Lake Como is the possibility of doing everything near the water. All the villages are characterized by lakeside promenades, where suggestive restaurants are located that allow you to eat with a unique and unrepeatable view.
Furthermore, at Villa Fisogni you can take advantage of its lakefront position, organizing a lunch with a personal chef or a barbecue directly in the garden or on the panoramic terrace on the lake shore!
Marco Mocchetti