Today our journey takes us to Canino, in the heart of the Maremma country, a few kilometers from the sea between the beauties and wonders of the Etruscan cities.

Art, architecture, archeology, nature, but not only, ours will be a journey through the flavours of the earth, to experience the unique taste of Canino green Asparagus, in the province of Viterbo.

The agricultural production of asparagus in Canino began in the seventies and since then has represented the flagship of the agri-food production in this area. A specialty certainly favoured by its geographical position and by the presence of geothermal aquifers with thermal water at temperatures ranging from 35 ° to 40 °.

The water present in the subsoil is used to naturally heat the cultivation soil, thus anticipating the thermal conditions that only spring can bring when  there is an increase in weather temperatures.

The soil around the asparagus root is therefore warm and the plants begin their growth early. This is the secret that allows us to savour the taste of this precious product of the earth as early as January.

This "basal heating" technique gives the asparagus a bright green colour, with the top part standing and a soft stem that allows you to taste the asparagus in its entirety, unlike the asparagus from other crops.

The stem is so tender and tasty that in the local dialect they are called 'magnatutto' or 'mangiatutto'.

April is the month of the largest collection of this surprising product and we offer you a delicious recipe.

Recipe of the Asparagus Cream of Ivana Moscatelli of the restaurant "Da Isolina"

Ingredients:

Asparagus of Canino

Potatoes

Onion of Tropea

Garlic, Spicy pepper e Basil

Olive oil of Canino

To garnish:

Bacon (guanciale) slices

Toasted bread

In a pan, sprinkled with olive oil, we stew together diced asparagus and potatoes flavored with basil, Tropea onion and garlic. We add a pinch of chilli pepper, which is never missing in Mrs. Ivana's kitchen.

We put everything on the fire and let it cook for 15 minutes. In the meantime, we sear thin slices of bacon on the plate and toast some bread which will give the crispy note to our dish.

After the necessary cooking time, we blend our preparation, lay it on the bottom of the plate and serve it with bacon and bread. For the finish of the dish, then, we use some whole asparagus.

A simple and tasty recipe that brings with it the flavours of the land of Canino.