These are some of the traditional foods of the Abruzzo region that may be familiar to those with roots in that region:
Spaghetti alla Chitarra
In the Abruzzo region, spaghetti was made traditionally by cutting fresh pasta dough using a tool known as a chitarra (pronouced kee-TAHR-rah). The word “chitarra” translates into English as “guitar,” a word that can mean either a musical instrument or a wired frame used in the kitchen for cutting soft things like dough or jelly candy. In the Abruzzo region the wires of the chitarra are close together, producing a noodle that is thinner than similarly produced pasta of other regions.
You can watch the video, provided by Experience BellaVita, to see how a rolling pin is used to push the pasta dough through the wires of the chitarra.
The square-cut edges of pasta made this way contrast with the cylindrical shape of extruded spaghetti. The resulting geometry allows chitarra spaghetti to hold more sauce. This same geometry can be achieved using a more modern pasta machine with a narrow-spaced spaghetti cutter built-in or as an attachment. However the cut is achieved, this traditional fresh pasta is often served with a tomato sauce and tiny meatballs called pallottine. Alternatively, another traditional sauce for spaghetti alla chitarra is a mixed-meat ragù that often contained lamb, since the Abruzzo region had a long tradition of sheep herding.
Scripelle
These very thin pancakes are made from flour, eggs and water. When rolled up, sprinkled with grated cheese and served in a bath of chicken broth, they are known as scrippelle ’mbusse. They also can be layered with cheese and sauce and then baked (similar to lasagne), rolled with a vegetable filling, or filled with sweetened ricotta and topped with fruit.
Gnocchi di Patate
The traditional gnocchi of Abruzzo are made with potatoes, flour and egg. After the ingredients are mixed, the dough is shaped into long thin ropes and cut into small pieces (about 3/4 inch). These are then rolled on a gnocchi board, as shown in the photo, to create ridges that will hold the sauce. In the dialect of the Teramo area these are called “li surgitt.”
Caggionetti
These are a traditional fried pastry with a sweet filling.