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(n) : a leisurely walk or stroll, usually in the evening following a meal
: a promenade
(n) : a person who is 100 or more years old
: a region where two or more people who are over 100 years of age live
[ ˌpasəˈjädə ] italian
[ ˌsentnˈerēən ]
p a s s e g g i a t a
c e n t e n a r i a n s
recipe: primo course
cafè / digestivo
The whole Italian meal process focuses on good company and taking life slowly. Every course is thoughtful and delicious and good for digestion and putting the best nutrients first. I hope this information helps you while traveling through Italy and I’d love to know if you use this information to host your own dinner party! I hope you found this as interesting as I do! Tag me on Instagram so I can see your travels + dinners! Share on pinterest so you have it for later :)
Coffee is meant to finish the meal and start the digestion process. At the end of a long formal meal like this sometimes coffee could follow the digestivo or it can be the other way around. Espresso served with a small glass of water. DO NOT ORDER A LATTE OR CAPPUCCINO AFTER 11 AM – very un-Italian. The digestivo will be a homemade limoncello or some sort of strong drink to conclude the meal.
dolce
Dolce means sweet. This is dessert. Gelato, tiramisu, cakes, pies, panetonne, rum cake, etc. are what this portion consists of. I love Italian desserts. They’re all sweet but not too sweet and delicious but not heavy.
formaggi e frutta
Another light and delicate course to finish off the meal. Fruit and cheese plates depending on what’s in season and what is local. This is different than the antipasto charcuterie board as this is a small plate typically just a few pieces of complimentary fruits and cheeses.
insalata
An optional portion of the meal, but this is when the salad would typically be served. I love how in Italy the heaviest part of the meal isn’t at the end, it’s in the middle. It’s so much easier to fit salad and vegetables in after your heavy meat and pasta. A salad after a meat course is so light and helps you not feel sluggish and over-stuffed at the end of a meal. Since eating this way in Italy I've started serving salad last at my own home and I notice a difference in how much of my main course portion I consume which is better anyways because it's where the bulk of the nutrients are.
contorno
Unlike how we typically see side dishes, these are not typically served on the same plate as your meat or pasta dishes. This would almost always be a vegetable and almost always will be warm.
secondo
The meat portion of the evening. In the United States, we look at pasta as a main course. Dinner is either pasta, lasagna, steak and potatoes, chicken and vegetables, OR some sort of fish dish – this, however, is not the case in Italy. The meals are a little fuller and the portion sizes are in proportion to the amount of food consumed as a whole. During this course you’ll see fish, turkey, sausage, beef, lamb, or some sort of roast. There are some home cooked meal recipes that combine the meat into the pasta so they are considered served consecutively, but both parts of the meal are equally important.
primo
We have made. This is the first course of the meal! This will be the pasta portion of the dinner, served warm. Gnocchi, risotto, lasagna, spaghetti, linguine, etc. will be served in this portion of the meal. This is far from the end of the meal, so although the portion will be larger than the finger-foods in the first two sections this is still not a heavy serving size. You're basically slowly warming up your stomach for the main event. The grain portion of the meal could also be either a polenta or risotto, not always a pasta.
antipasto
More like an appetizer. Usually cold such as a charcuterie board with a lot of meat options or shrimp cocktail. Normally something light, although some do choose to serve more extravagant foods. A salad, however, would not be an antipasto, salads come later.
aperitivo
Dinner
Sort of like a cocktail hour. This is the first part of the meal and usually includes a sipping pallet cleanser drink such as prosecco or vermouth and hors d’oeuvres to snack on. Laughing at myself I used a French word to define an Italian word, but I feel like we use hors d’oeuvres a lot in English!
Italy has always been close to my heart. I’m Italian and although I was raised in the Midwest in the United States, my home growing up was filled with Italian values, Italian music, Italian food, and lots of Italian family. Italian homes are always full. Full of laughter, love, family, and food. Something that I’ve always loved about Italy is the way they structure their mealtimes. Not only is it great to have this information to host your own Italian dinner party, but it’s actually super helpful and sometimes necessary when eating your way through Italy to know what each part of the meal is and what it means. So, here is some information for your travels + for your home.
Italy is fascinating. There are many towns in Italy that are home to centenarians and I think that a key factor in living a LONG and happy life like these centenarians is eating good food with good people. When I was younger I had a nutritionist tell me that the best thing I can do for my body is to laugh while I eat. In Italy, meals are served slowly. People take their time to eat and enjoy their meal and the company they are sharing it with. After dinner, it’s common to take a passeggiata. Either walking home, or taking a stroll through the forum with your lover. Movement is important for digestion and a key factor in the health of these centenarians.
