The Art of Foraging | Pizz e foje
Of an ancient and poor recipe from Abruzzo that serves as a reminder to cherish the wild gifts of nature
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April is the month in which tender green leaves break through the bleak and barren surface of winter, when the first fruits of the year appear and trees burst in blossom. In Italy, April marks the beginning of primizie season - all the tender fruits and greens, from peas to asparagus, wild nettles and garlic. This month’s Cabinet of Curiosities is dedicated to the art of foraging, an ancient practice, perhaps one of the most ancient, as it is a method of gathering food that humans have adopted since the beginning of our existence, and that has thankfully survived to our times.
Pizz e Foje - Pizza and leaves
By Caterina di Luzio: Passionate about literature and osterias, takes aperitivo very seriously.
Pizz e foje, literally “pizza and leaves”, is a poor dish and, as such, is traditionally vegetable-based. Born in Abruzzo, this dish was prepared by farmers who needed to bring a nutritious and hearty meal to the table, compatible with what the land offered them.
The pizz consists of a type of corn bread without yeast, similar to polenta, with a round and somewhat flattened shape. Historically, the dough is placed under a coppo, similar to an aluminum lid, and covered with embers.
The second ingredient, the leaves, vary depending on what the land offers: savoy cabbage, chicory, beetroot, turnips, borage, cabbage and a wild plant growing in uncultivated fields that locals call cascigni. The greens, once boiled, are then sautéed and topped with a little deep-fried peperone crusco, which is tossed, still sizzling, directly onto the leaves. When the pizz is ready, it is broken up and mixed in with the greens. A variation, amongst coastal towns, includes sardines.
The origin of this recipe, as simple as it is laborious, is difficult to determine. It is believed that pizz e foje originated in an area inhabited by the ancient Frentani people, that spans from the coast to dry land, what is now known as the province of Chieti. Over time, the recipe’s diffusion spread across Abruzzo.
It was usually prepared at the onset of winter, when the cold weather arrived and families needed to warm up by the fire. Born to be shared, pizz e foje is a humble dish in the most intimate sense of the word: it required the patience to use only the ingredients that the earth was able to provide, to wait for the embers to heat up and for the dough to cook.
Pizz e foje embodies the gestures and notions we should rediscover: sharing, waiting and respecting the gifts and rhythms of nature. In this way a rustic - and not particularly photogenic - recipe can turn out to be evocative and strongly poetic.
Sounds delicious!