White pizzoccheri from Valchiavenna: here is the original recipe

Prepared with stale bread, flour and milk, the pizzoccheri from Valchiavenna are more similar to gnocchi. Here's how to prepare them with Bitto.

Pizzoccheri della Valchiavenna, also called gnocchetti della Valchiavenna due to their shape, are a typical dish of the valley of the same name located in northern Lombardy .

The origin of the dish is very ancient and poor: the remains of bread were soaked in milk and then mixed with flour. The topping was the classic local cheese , Bitto.

The origin of the name, however, is to be found in the fact that they were originally prepared by dropping pieces of pinched dough directly into boiling water. As time passed, the name stuck, but they should not be confused with the pizzoccheri from Valtellina , which are darker and similar to tagliatelle.

How to prepare the Valchiavenna pizzoccheri recipe

1. First, cut the stale bread into cubes and place it in a bowl with 300 ml of milk . Remove the crust only if it is excessively dry.
2. Once the soaking time has passed, work the bread with your hands to obtain a sort of mush, adding the remaining milk if necessary. Mix with the flour , add salt and season with nutmeg . The result is a soft and not at all dry dough.
3. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, and add the potatoes which you have cut into one centimeter pieces after peeling them. When the water has boiled again, take a spoonful of mixture and with the help of another spoon, drop small portions into the water. You will have to be pretty quick.
4. When the Valchiavenna gnocchi float to the surface, drain them with a slotted spoon in a pan with the melted butter flavored with garlic and sage . Add the Bitto cheese cut into flakes and let it melt. Divide onto plates and serve hot.