Farrata from Manfredonia

The Farrata is a typical savory pie, also known as rustico, from Manfredonia, a city in the Gargano promontory. Its name takes from its main ingredient, the spelt (called farro in Italian).

Its origin dates back to ancient Rome where, during the wedding rites of the nobility, the farrata was broken in parts and offered to the couple to consecrate their union. Today this rustico is prepared in occasion of the Carnival of Manfredonia, an event deeply felt by locals and renowned throughout Italy. Basically, with no farrata there would be no Carnival in Manfredonia!

This recipe comes from Vittorio, a young boy from Manfredonia with a great passion for his city, who during these days of Carnival intrigued us with the picture of this delicious dish of his local tradition.
With great dedication Vittorio has been able to find out the original recipe so now you just have to roll up your sleeves and knead! Believe us, it will be worth it… just look at the pictures!

 

Preparartion

Cook the spelt in plenty of lightly salted water, in the meantime wash the mint and chop it. Mix the ricotta cheese with the spelt, mint, pepper, salt and cinnamon (if you don’t like cinnamon you can also leave it out).
Leave to filling to rest and then prepare the dough by mixing the flour with salt and water. When the dough is ready, prepare a sheet of 2/3 mm and with a knife cut in circular shapes.
Put some filling over and cover with a second sheet. Close the edges by pressing with your fingers or a fork. Sting the surface of the pie and brush it over with some beaten egg. Put in the oven at 180 degrees and wait for it to become a lightly golden, like in the photos. Buon appetito!

Obviously if you want to taste the best farrate you can only find them in Manfredonia, so don’t forget to pay a visit if you’re coming to Gargano!

Photos and recipe by Vittorio Pagano