Pattona bread festival

Original name: Sagra della Pattona.

Place: San Carlo Terme, (hamlet) in municipality of Massa, in Massa-Carrara province, Apuan Alps area.

First year of the festival: 2003.

Period: first half of July, for about 10 days, starting on the second July’s Friday.

Opening times: every evening, from 7:30 pm.

2019 scheduled on: starting on Friday, July 5, until Saturday, July 13.

Local Specialties:

• First courses - Tordelli, pasta dish;
• Second courses - Pattona, local bread; baccalà, dried cod fish;
• Dessert - Pattona, with sweet accompaniment.

A simple, but tasty food, and very cheap - a typical example of the ancient “poor foods” (cucina povera) which for centuries helped Tuscans not to starving. This is the pattona, a sort of local piadina, a flat bread made with corn or wheat. In this northern Tuscany area, Pattona was often made with chestnuts flour, but in San Carlo, in Apuan Alps, you’ll get the version made with wheat or corn.

It can be filled with sausages (salsiccia), cheese, or ham (prosciutto) or even sweet chocolate and nut cream, as you like. In case you prefer, there will be also tordelli pasta and baccalà, two great, famous and delicious Tuscan dishes.