L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2025 www.italoamericano.org 24 L'Italo-Americano B u c k w h e a t , known in Ital- i a n a s g r a n o s a r a c e n o , i s n ' t w h e a t a t all but a pseudocereal from the knotweed family, long valued in mountain kitchens for its nutty taste and the way it behaves in doughs, batters, and polenta mixes. Naturally gluten-free and rich in fiber, minerals, and b i o a c t i v e s s u c h a s r u t i n , cooks notice the darker color a n d f u l l e r a r o m a , w h i l e nutrition researchers keep pointing to its distinctive flavonoid profile. In other words, it earns a place on the table for flavor first, with a nice nutritional bonus as a side! The Italian story of buck- wheat starts in the Alps, where short summers and lean soils favor fast crops; local records and food histo- ries point to the upper Val- tellina in Lombardy as a heartland: here buckwheat was part of the peasant diet f o r c e n t u r i e s , a n d m a n y dialect names – furmentùn, fraina, farina nera – still survive to tell the tale. Very likely, it reached northern Italy around the late Mid- dle Ages or early Renais- sance , probably arriving from Central or Eastern Europe through the Alpine t r a d e r o u t e s t h a t l i n k e d L o m b a r d y , T y r o l , a n d S w i t z e r l a n d . H i s t o r i c a l sources from V a l t e l l i n a and Val Camonica men- tion its cultivation by the s i x t e e n t h c e n t u r y , w h e n local farmers adopted it for its short growing cycle (bare- ly three months from sowing to harvest) and its ability to thrive in thin mountain soils where wheat or rye strug- gled. By the nineteenth cen- tury, it had become a staple across much of the Alpine belt, sustaining rural com- munities before gradually declining in the twentieth century as diets and agricul- ture modernized. W e s a i d b u c k w h e a t i s "grano saraceno" in Italian: a curious name, when you think of it, which reflects the medieval habit of labelling unfamiliar produce as East- ern or Arab, basically a lin- guistic shortcut rather than a precise origin claim; indeed, etymological texts confirm both the meaning and the l o n g - s t a n d i n g a m b i g u i t y around the term, which Ital- ians carried into regional usage and everyday speech. O n c e t h e g r a i n s e t t l e d i n Alpine valleys, farmers and cooks took it from "foreign" to "ours" by using it to make everyday food. Today, grano saraceno remains a popular ingredi- ent throughout the Alps and Pre-Alps, with Valtellina and neighboring valleys in Lom- bardy remaining the refer- ence point. Trentino-Alto Adige keeps a strong home- baking tradition with a buck- wheat cake layered with red f r u i t j a m , w h i l e F r i u l i - Venezia Giulia has rustic buckwheat pastas known as blecs. Small heritage pro- jects also protect local vari- e t i e s , s u c h a s t h e S l o w Food Presidio for Ter- r a g n o l o b u c k w h e a t in Trentino. In Valtellina, the grain shapes a trio of iconic dish- es: pizzoccheri, now pro- t e c t e d a s P G I , m i x b u c k - wheat and wheat flours into flat ribbons, then fold them with potatoes, Savoy cab- bage, and Valtellina Casera cheese melted in garlic but- t e r . P o l e n t a t a r a g n a i s d a r k e r t h a n t h e u s u a l "blonde" polenta because buckwheat is part of the mix ( h i s t o r i c a l l y , a t p o o r e r tables, sometimes the whole mix), and it is finished with butter and Casera or Bitto. Last but not least, sciatt are a quick crowd-pleaser: small buckwheat fritters with a cube of Casera inside, crisp outside and molten within, often dropped over a simple chicory salad. S o , w h y d o c o o k s k e e p using buckwheat, besides its heritage importance and its presence in traditional dish- es? Well, buckwheat's partic- ular aroma notes contribute a toasty flavor able to com- p l e m e n t s t r o n g A l p i n e cheeses and butter, while its lack of gluten changes tex- ture in useful ways: pasta and cakes get a gentle "bite" and a rustic crumb; polenta gains color and depth. From a health perspec- t i v e , y o u c a n t a l k a b o u t fiber, minerals, and rutin, a flavonoid particularly associ- ated with buckwheat, but home cooks mainly keep it b e c a u s e , q u i t e s i m p l y , i t tastes like the mountains. W h e n y o u b u y f l o u r , r e m e m b e r t h a t f r e s h n e s s matters: store it airtight and c o o l , b e c a u s e b u c k w h e a t t u r n s r a n c i d f a s t e r t h a n wheat. For pure buckwheat d o u g h s , s t r u c t u r e w i l l b e low, which is why most tra- ditional recipes blend it with wheat, or, for gluten-free baking, with a dedicated mix that adds binders. A final note on ingredi- e n t s : C a s e r a D O P , t h e standard Valtellina cheese for buckwheat dishes, melts cleanly without greasiness and has the right mild tang to balance the flour's earthi- ness. If you cannot find it, young Fontina is a work- able stand-in, but the result will be richer and slightly sweeter. The flour itself goes by " buckwheat" or some - times "dark flour" in Italian s h o p s ; g r o a t s a r e s o l d a s grano saraceno decorticato. Either way, look for short ingredient lists and mills that note recent grinding dates. Below is a home-kitchen version of sciatt taken from La Cucina Italiana ingre- d i e n t r a t i o s a n d m e t h o d . Serve them as people do in Sondrio: piled over bitter g r e e n s , e a t e n t h e s e c o n d they leave the oil. S c i a t t w i t h C a s e r a (serves 4) Ingredients 1⅔ cups buckwheat flour (about 200 g) ¾ cup all-purpose flour (about 100 g) ¼ tsp fine salt, plus more for salad ⅛ tsp baking soda 2 tsp grappa (10 ml) 2 ½ T b s p b e e r ( 3 5 m l ) , plus a little more only if the batter is too stiff 9 oz Valtellina Casera DOP cheese, cut in ¾-inch c u b e s ( a b o u t 2 5 0 g ; s u b : young Fontina) N e u t r a l o i l f o r f r y i n g ( a b o u t 1 – 1 ½ q u a r t s ; p a n depth 2–3 inches) C h i c o r y o r a r u g u l a f o r serving, dressed with oil and salt Method Whisk both flours with salt and baking soda. Stir in b e e r a n d g r a p p a u n t i l smooth and thick but spoon- able; the batter should cling to a spoon. Rest for 90 min- utes at room temperature. H e a t o i l t o 3 4 0 – 3 5 0 ° F . Fold cheese cubes into the batter. Using a spoon, scoop up a cheese cube coated in batter and drop it into the hot oil. Fry in small batches f o r 1 - 2 m i n u t e s , t u r n i n g o n c e , u n t i l d e e p g o l d e n . Drain briefly on paper. Serve immediately over a lightly dressed chicory salad. GIULIA FRANCESCHINI Sciatt are a typical dish from Valtellina, made with buckwheat and cheese (Photo: Devid Besseghini/Shutterstock) LA BUONA TAVOLA RECIPES COOKING TIPS SEASONAL DISHES Italy's taste for buckwheat, from Alps to Dolomites

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