The Latera chestnut
A typical product of Latera par excellence is the so-called Marrone di Latera. It is a particular type of chestnut, tending to be reddish, large in size and circular in shape. The fruit has a sweetish flavour and is very good tasty. Latera chestnut trees range in height from 20 to 30 meters, with crowns that take on a very broad appearance. The chestnut trees of Latera are centuries old, so much so that Duke Pietro Farnese even issued regulations, found in the 17th-century agricultural statutes, which regulated chestnut harvesting and included a ban on cutting down the trees.
This chestnut is the protagonist of Latera's famous Chestnut Festival, a regular event that takes place on the last two weekends of October. The peaceful and friendly atmosphere is the setting for a simple and authentic autumn festival. In addition, of course, to tasting roasted chestnuts and local wine, numerous cultural and folkloric initiatives are organized at the various stands located in the historic centre.
The Pizzicotti
Pizzicotti are a typical dish of the ancient Lateran gastronomic tradition. Linked to the peasant world of the past, they are extremely simple to make, inexpensive and using ingredients available from the land, from which they draw genuine flavour and aroma.
The dough is the same as that used for bread (flour, water, salt, natural yeast). The curious name comes from the way the ball of dough is pinched to tear off irregular pieces to throw into boiling water for cooking. It is all very simple and quick: plenty of bread dough was prepared and what did not end up in the oven for baking ended up on the plate in the form of steaming "PIZZICOTTI" solving the problem of what to eat for lunch.
The wood-burning oven was a meeting place where the women of Latera would go to bake bread, chat a little and escape from household chores for a while.
This gave rise to the Pizzicotto Festival, held in July, an excellent opportunity to taste 'pizzicotti' still made by hand and enjoy a typical Latera menu.
The Serpone
Serpone is a classic sweet made in Latera during the Christmas season. The latter is made both at home and available for purchase from the bakers in Latera.
Ingredients:
Dough for about 5 serpone:
1 kg flour
5 eggs
6 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons oil
50 g butter
a pinch of cinnamon
1 lemon
strega liqueur
Various toppings with: hazelnuts/walnuts/raisins/ figs/cinnamon/sugar/grated dark chocolate/ strega or sambuca liqueur/lemon, orange and tangerine peel.
