A Midsummer Night in Alvito

In St Lawrence’s night, everyone will be looking at the stars to make a wish, but before the stars we must think about enjoying a beautiful evening, perhaps eating something unique.

If you have never been to Val Comino, I propose a unique experience in Alvito, but if you know it, you will surely want another excuse to return. In the meantime, Val Comino is wedged between the mountains of Lazio, Abruzzo and Molise and has no light pollution: a perfect place to look at the stars and find the shooting star that will change your life for the better.

On the evening of August 10, a festival dedicated to Pan a Mollo – soaked bread takes place, where the 11 districts of Alvito will let you taste 11 ways to interpret this ancient recipe.

Pane a mollo – soaked bread is a traditional Ciociarian recipe in which leftovers from previous days were reused, starting with stale bread. Obviously, since leftovers are always different, there is not just one recipe but it is up to the sensitivity of the cook (or the housewife) to combine the ingredients to compose something harmonious and unique.

The technique is to soak the bread in a broth made with leftovers and then serve it wet (but not in soup): it is eaten with a spoon but also with a fork.

You can therefore have a soaked bread flavored with a ham bone or sausages, or with legumes or just a vegetarian one. The pan a mollo is in the ARSIAL catalog of regional specialties but be careful because the vegetarian one is the most sought after and sells out before the others!

The festival begins with a parade in ciociarian clothes of the characters of the 11 districts who will then go to settle in their stations along Corso Gallio, the one that starts from Palazzo Gallio (the seat of the municipality) and reaches Porta Jacobelli.

For history lovers, Alvito was part of the Terra di Lavoro province of the Bourbon Kingdom and the traditional costumes therefore belonged to the Bourbon traditions. But border lands are by their nature contaminated and contaminating so the clothes are very similar to those of Ciociara and today Ciociaria means the entire province of Frosinone. And traditionally they all wore ciocie shoes!

And Ciociaria is in the hearts of many tourists who increasingly include it among the destinations to visit absolutely.

A special feature: with the first purchase of Pan a Moll (which costs only 5 euros) you will receive a free earthenware plate that can also be used for other tastings (at a cost of 1 euro per refill, a real gift).

For the mayor Luciana Martini always attentive to promoting the cultural wealth of her city: "In this edition we wanted to pay attention to the beauty and craftsmanship that can be found in some stalls of local wood artists and in the exhibition of the painter Gianfranco Renzi at Palazzo Gallio. All tastings can be accompanied by wine from our cellars that are part of the Cabernet di Atina DOC area. In fact, I invite you to visit them”.

For those who want to stay an extra day, we therefore recommend a visit to one of the cellars of Alvito, including Cominum, Cenera, Albetum and Petra Pontes, Rosso Vivo or a horseback ride along the sheep tracks with the Cavalieri dei Tratturi della Val Comino.

Let me know!