A special fried typical of Lunigiana that can also be enjoyed in Milan. With the original recipe
Who knows if this summer we will be able to go to Lunigiana to eat sgabei (which are not a fried leavened dough like all the others). If it is not possible, we will tell you where to find them also in Milan, together with other products of this magical land, such as panigacci or testaroli with pesto. We are talking about test_me, the first and only Lunigiana restaurant in the city, opened in 2017, but actually born much earlier, from a love story.
Testami and love for Lunigiana
Of the Lunigiana one cannot fail to fall in love. It is a land of passage, accessible only in appearance, since it is revealed only to those who take the trouble to leave the asphalt and go a few kilometers along its secondary roads, those of breccia and beaten earth that lead to places like the chestnut trees of Camporaghena, or towards Zeri with its lambs and potatoes, or around Bagnone, to discover the Treschietto onion; or again in Fivizzano, in the woods towards the Passo del Cerreto. And it is precisely here that two years ago, two fabric sellers, Piergiulia and Andrea Vitolo, Milanese doc, fell in love with Lunigiana and decided to take home. While continuing to live in Milan, they spent their summers here, transmitting love for this land to their sons Marco and Simona too. Lunigiana thus became their land of heart, so much so that in 2005 the two brothers opened a restaurant right in the center of Fivizzano: the Brera sandwich shop. Later, the desire to bring a little Lunigiana to Milan was stronger, to make known that area still little known even in the big city, that Tuscany so far from the most classic iconography. The initial idea was a food truck of only sgabei, then in 2017 Marco opened Testami, a small bistro, also with the sale of Lunigiana products (and wines). From January in the kitchen Dario Tonghini, originally from Piacenza, who after various experiences including Carlo and Camilla, started to embrace the cause of Lunigiana. It's at fry the stools to perfection.
That infinite world of fried leavened dough
The world of fried leavened dough is as varied as it is ancient. For centuries, in fact, man has been frying such a simple dough, based on water, flour and yeast, to then eat it alone or accompanied by other ingredients, sweet and savory. Apparently the stools may remember the known fried dumplings of the neighboring Emilia, or the Bolognese crescentine or, again, the panzanella in some areas of Tuscany (where it does not always indicate the Tuscan preparation based on bread and tomatoes). As well as further south we find the pizz'onta in Abruzzo and Marche, or in Naples and Caserta, where there is a universe of fried pasta: from grown pasta to zeppole with algae, often given away on the street, until montanare with tomato and basil, at pizzelle without yeast or garlic angels longer that are found both sweet and with cherry tomatoes and rocket. Not least the Arab world, such as in Tunisia, where it is common to come across serial fryers of pastas such as ftira. But not only in the Mediterranean: fried pasta has also emigrated to South America, especially in Uruguay and Argentina, where the frita cake, eaten sweeter with a sprinkling of sugar, or with Dulce de Leche. Still, there is something that makes the stools unique and different from all other fried pastas.
The stools
The name derives from the Latin skabellum, which indicates both the stool and the shoe, probably for the shape. The stools, in fact, always have a very precise shape and size that distinguishes them from the others: 15 centimeters long and 5 centimeters wide. In addition, unlike, for example, fried dumplings, the pasta remains empty: "It's not easy, says Marco, sometimes it doesn't even work for us!" For this reason, thickness and leavening, of at least 3 or 4 hours, are fundamental. In this regard, Marco did a real anthropological research, going to ask the ladies who still prepare it as it used to do tricks and secrets. But the answer was almost always the same: "By eye, Marco, you do everything by eye!". Their secret, in fact, is all in the manual skills handed down for generations, from the times when women prepared them as lunch for their men who worked in the fields, with pasta left over from the production of bread, then fried in lard. Today they no longer fry in lard for obvious health reasons, but in reality not much has changed: the stools are still found throughout Lunigiana, prepared especially by the ladies on the occasion of festivals and village festivals, especially in Sarzana and the surrounding area , where they are eaten as a sandwich, which acts as a single dish. In restaurants, however, they are more like appetizers, in combination with other products; the important thing is that it is always about Lunigiana products, so it will be an opportunity to try other delights of this land. For Marco "his death is with raw sausage, the one we sell the most", but also with cheeses and other cured meats such as pancetta, local lard, made with Cervia salt (and not that of the nearby Colonnata). But the sea is not far away, so the stools are also found with anchovies. For the sweet tooth, however, there is no lack of sweet pairing with honey or chocolate. Finally, if we talk about pairings, inevitable is a glass of autochthonous wine, like Pollera. Here, this is the Lunigiana da Testami, even at home.
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