We have traveled up north to find ourselves in a rut full of yummy fried things (again), and some other simple hearty dishes too. A cuopo is a cone full of fried foods usually fish or vegetables and sold as street food in Italy. Since we were making various fried items we thought to make a little package for everyone at lunch. Olive all’ascolana is a deep fried stuffed olive with beef, pork, and chicken livers and very different to any stuffed olive you may have had from the supermarket’s antipasti station. It’s the most grueling process trying to remove the pit of the olive, one by one by one, without cutting the thing into pieces. For those who like hints of cinnamon and nutmeg with their meat, you should give this a go.

Anchovies are quite common in our kitchen at school and we had the greatest pleasure making them again for Marche. They were cleaned and fried fresh, and actually made the cutest garnish for the paper cone (tails first). The Cavolfiore Fritto was my favorite part of the cuopo because it was this tender, fried cauliflower with hints of anise. The batter had white wine and anise liquor incorporated, which applied so much flavor that I could not stop eating them fresh out of the fryer. I would never guess these flavors and textures to be so accomplished!

Marche has vast property great for farming, as well as the coast for fishing. Zuppa di Ceci is a chickpea stew-like dish eaten as a primi course instead of pasta. It seems that every region might have its own version of lasagna, but I think Marche is the best in show. Vincisgrassi is a layer packed, lasagna-like dish with bechamel and a meaty pancetta sauce. It can pack 32 layers of large sheets of pasta, stacked and folded one onto the next. It’s so satisfying biting into a pasta dish with that many layers, the sauces and cheese overflowing onto your plate and all you can think of is getting another piece. 

I was so delighted by how good the mussels were. They were steamed and then stuffed with a herby, buttery, breadcrumb making the soft to crunchy contrast just perfect. Another interesting treat we got to try in sweet and savory form were piconi al formaggio which are in the shape of a mezzaluna and stuffed with pecorino cheese. During Easter, they are pinched at the top to make a cross that reminds people of Christ.