There are really many typical products that make the Montefeltro, or the area between Pesaro and Urbino, a real gastronomic gold mine.
The typical products are really a lot, but let’s start by narrating the wines of Montefeltro, which recently received numerous national awards. Certainly the best known are the Montefeltro reds, but the Visner is also noteworthy, a fortified wine that brings the flavor of the countryside and that comes from a variety of wild cherry, sour cherry, with bitter shades; this can be consumed as a digestive accompanied by dry sweets, such as the typical Cantucci.
Another product, linked to these lands, particularly renowned is Extra-Virgin Olive Oil: a niche product given the reduced quality and excellent intact organoleptic characteristics. The oil is produced with the traditional system: harvested entirely by hand and squeezed with a cold mill and this gives it a delicate and fragrant flavor.
On the Montefeltro table master local flavors, those coming from the lands, but with refined and refined shades: truffles and mushrooms reign supreme, precious products to which numerous fairs are dedicated during the autumn period, such as in Macerata Feltria, Sassocorvaro, Acqualagna, Apecchio and Sant’Angelo in Vado.
While in the empire of cured meats, the PDO Prosciutto di Carpegna reigns supreme: cured at 700 meters above sea level, it was the first Italian ham to be accepted by the very strict rules governing the United States market.
And if we talked about ham, we certainly cannot neglect the excellent quality of the Marche breed beef with PGI recognition.
Among dairy products, however, one cannot fail to mention the Casciotta of Urbino: not a simple Caciotta, the only and true Casciotta is produced in the territory of the Province of Pesaro and Urbino, following ancient and well-established techniques. According to the D.O.P. it is a product whose organoleptic and product characteristics derive mainly from the environmental conditions and the manufacturing practices typical of the production area.
Another specialty of the area is the famous Crescia sfogliata of Urbino, a product handmade according to an ancient Urbino tradition, a noble food that even inspired Giovanni Pascoli, so much so as to make it poetry. The crescia comes from the processing of a dough made of flour, eggs, milk, lard, salt and pepper and can be eaten either alone or accompanied by meats and cheeses: a perfect combination is with PDO ham from Carpegna and Casciotta from Urbino;)
Finally, let’s talk about dessert and one of the most typical to mention is the bustrengo or bostrengo from Urbania: an ancient peasant tradition made up of flour, stale bread, fruit and other ingredients they had available; it is in fact remembered as the sweet of the poor. Today the recipe has remained the same but with the addition of some ingredients such as orange, raisins and lots of dried fruit.
