Local food

Since part of the pleasure is discovery — trying unfamiliar products in equally unfamiliar places — here are some typical products of the valley. A tip: plan your outings to coincide with the village festivals.

Casoncelli

A dish found across the provinces of Bergamo and Brescia, here it has a culture all of its own: every village and every family makes them differently (those from Breno are not like those from Bienno or Niardo, just a few kilometres apart). They are large ravioli filled with meat and herbs — sometimes with salami or braised meat and aromatic ingredients such as amaretti — served "drowned" in melted butter and sage, with plenty of grated cheese.

Salsiccia di castrato

Tied to Breno for over a century, this mutton sausage was "invented" in the late 19th century by Pietro Rizzieri; from 1922 the Pedersoli brothers began large-scale production. A soft-grained mixture of mutton, seasoned with pepper, spices, garlic and a stock made by simmering the bones at length. It is boiled in unsalted water for 10-15 minutes and eaten straight away, with boiled potatoes, peperonata or mashed potato.

Strinù

A small sausage cooked on the griddle or over coals, typical of the Brescia and Bergamo valleys. The mixture combines pork and beef, enriched with plenty of spices.

Bagoss

Although not strictly from Valcamonica, its production area overlaps with the valley. "Bagoss" means "from Bagolino" in dialect: a robust matured cheese, nicknamed the "Brescian grana". Made from the milk of Bruna Alpina cows, in summer it is processed in the mountain huts in the traditional way; the rind is rubbed with linseed oil during the long ageing (12-24 months). Straw-yellow paste, aromatic but not spicy: excellent in flakes, grilled, or — when well aged — grated. Its production area is crossed by the Val d'Arcina route: if you ride it, don't miss a taste.

Spongada

A traditional sweet from Breno, called "spongada de Bré" in dialect. It is a domed little loaf of about 150 g, sweet, made with two doughs (yeast, sugar, butter, eggs, flour) with a cross cut into the top, baked for 20-25 minutes at 180 °C. Once an Easter sweet, it can be enjoyed on its own or with salami.

Fatulì

The folks of Valsaviore make this distinctive goat's cheese, from the milk of the Bionda dell'Adamello goat, a native breed of the valley. The milk is very digestible and low in fat; its hallmark is the smoking with green branches and juniper berries, which gives it a unique flavour.

Cuz

A typical dish of Corteno Golgi and its hamlets: mutton cut into chunks and stewed for about 3 hours in a copper pot with no added fat, in its own juices, with a little sage, rosemary and garlic. It is served with polenta made from coarsely ground yellow flour. You can find it at the festivals on 15 August in Corteno, 16 August (San Rocco) in Ronco and 20 January (San Sebastiano) in Doverio.