Porchetta di Ariccia

Lovers of all things porcine: the June issue of La Cucina Italiana (the American version) is featuring an article that I wrote on "La Porchetta." If you've never had the pleasure of eating porchetta, you're missing out on one of Italy's great culinary treasures. Porchetta is ubiquitous street food, but it has a special place in Ariccia, the area southeast of Rome that's part of the Castelli Romani. The Ariccini are famous for this deboned, spit roasted pork that's seasoned with salt, garlic, rosemary and black pepper. It's typically eaten as a sandwich, but in Ariccia there are osterie, known as fraschette, that serve the revered pig with other Lazian specialties (and delicious local wines; particularly those that hail from Frascati). Want to learn more? The magazine will be in stores and at newsstands on May 18th. Check it out, and I'd love to know your thoughts.

A presto,
B

http://lacucinaitalianamagazine.com/

On a more cultural note (man cannot live on pork alone!), Ariccia is also famous for two edifices designed by the formidable 17th century sculptor/architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini (i.e. the Palazzo Chigi, now a state-run art museum, and a centrally-planned church dedicated to the assumption of Mary). For great food, art and architecture Ariccia is definitely worth a visit (it's only an hour outside of Rome, and easily reachable by train or bus).