Submitted by Dana Wilkins on the 2022 winter session program in Italy sponsored by the Department of Linguistics and Cognitive Science…
This week, we traveled to Molise, a small region in central Italy, for our second cooking class, where we learned how to make mozzarella in a historic mill converted into a restaurant, wedding venue, and soon to be museum.
We toured the property learning about the historic mill and then participated in an olive oil tasting. We were taught the following technique to better taste the flavor of the oil: placing several drops of oil on your tongue and then sucking in air between your teeth you “strip” the oil which allows the true flavor to come through. Unlike when you just taste it on a piece of bread, stripping the oil allows you to taste a more bitter, sometimes spicy flavor.
Once inside, we learned the process of making mozzarella as well as about transhumance, which is the seasonal movement of livestock from one grazing ground to another. In this region, there is still one family who continues the practice of transhumance, which now has UNESCO heritage status. Every year, the family moves livestock along the tratturi, or the established paths, which connect from the mountains where the animals graze in the summer to the lowlands where they reside in the winter. This practice dates all the way back to Roman times with the ruins of an ancient Roman city visible right along the path of the tratturi. The sheep that were moved along as part of the transhumance were important for wool, cheese, and meat production.
After hearing about transhumance, we got busy making the mozzarella, shaping the curds into balls and braided knots. We then got to taste our finished mozzarella balls along with a delicious meal. We ended our day by stopping by those Roman ruins beside the old tratturi.
