Today we are talking about pizzoccheri with this recipe for vegan pizzoccheri with turnip greens. Do you like them as much as I do?
The pizzoccheri are short buckwheat noodles, originating from Valtellina, and it’s from the pizzocchero academy that I learned the name derives from pinzocheri, meaning ‘bigoted people,’ of little account. In a book printed in Venice in 1548, it states that a certain Meluzza from Como invented them:
“Meluzza from Como: she was the inventor of eating lasagna, macaroni with garlic, spices, and cheese; she also invented eating formentini, lasagnuole, pinzocheri, vivarmolo: she died of penta and was honorably buried.”
From this, it is clear that buckwheat was used in cooking as early as the 14th century, along with oats, millet, barley, panic.
Meluzza added flavor to buckwheat with cheese, butter, and vegetables. Remember that at that time, Valtellina was under the dominion of Como.
Even today in Valtellina, pizzoccheri are seasoned with butter, vegetables, and Valtellina Casera DOP cheese. So if you want a traditional recipe, stick with butter and cheese.
Here you find the vegan version, with turnip greens and potatoes, but you can alternatively use Swiss chard and rice stracchino.
I particularly love homemade pizzoccheri because I adore the taste of buckwheat, one of the flours I use most in my kitchen. Buckwheat reminds me of my beloved mountains, cold winters, the warmth of the fireplace, and the good mountain table.
I’ll leave you with some other recipes with this fragrant and flavorful pseudo-cereal.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 1 Hour 30 Minutes
- Portions: 4 people
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian Regional
- Region: Lombardy
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients for Pizzoccheri with Turnip Greens
- 7 oz buckwheat flour
- 4.2 oz type 1 flour
- 5.6 oz water
- 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
- 7 oz turnip greens (tender tips)
- 7 oz potatoes
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 pinch pepper
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic
- 7 oz Swiss chard (young chard)
- 7 oz stracchino (rice-based)
Steps
Mix the buckwheat flour with the wheat flour, knead them with water slowly and work for a few minutes.
With a rolling pin or a pasta machine, roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/8 inch from which strips of 3 inches long and 3/4 inch wide are obtained.
Cook the vegetables in salted water, the turnip greens or Swiss chard in small pieces and the potatoes in cubes, add the pizzoccheri after 5 minutes.
After about ten minutes, scoop the pizzoccheri, vegetables, and potatoes with a skimmer and place them on plates.
Enjoy them as they are, simply seasoned with a drizzle of oil heated with the garlic clove, or if you have chosen the version with rice stracchino, alternate layers of pizzoccheri with pieces of rice stracchino and finish with oil and garlic.Serve the pizzoccheri with a sprinkle of pepper.
Version with strachicco:
Tips and Variations
Also great with savoy cabbage. In short, I love them in every way. In the first version, you might say, but just pasta and vegetables? I say yes, this way I can fully savor the excellent taste of turnip greens, the rustic flavor of buckwheat, and the delicate taste of potatoes, all blending together with a hint of garlic, without other intrusions.
If you’re vegetarian, alternate with a cheese like Casera or Bitto and grated Parmesan to have the traditional pizzoccheri of Valtellina.
If you’re vegetarian, alternate with a cheese like Casera or Bitto and grated Parmesan to have the traditional pizzoccheri of Valtellina.
