Valle d’Aosta: the flavours of the Alps

Orchards and vineyards cloak the valley floors and the lower slopes of the mountains. Then come the woods and pastures where the local piebald cows graze, providing the milk to make Fontina cheese, a staple of the valley’s cuisine. As are its cured meats, from the Jambon de Bosses, to Arnad lard and ‘mocetta’ hams, made from goat or chamois meat.
One of the most characteristic local dishes is a ‘soupe’, with a wealth of ingredients ranging from meat broth to vegetables, cheese and rye bread. Barley soup is also popular, as is a rich polenta and gnocchi potato dumplings with Fontina cheese. Main courses range from a local version of weiner schnitzel flavoured with cheese and truffles known as costoletta alla valdostana, to game, roebuck and chamois cooked in a red wine sauce.
Local apples and chestnuts are usually on the menu when it comes to sweets and the local coffee rite is a fitting conclusion to a meal. This is coffee generously laced with grappa and passed around the table to be drunk from the cup of friendship.