EATING WELL
Fiore sardo, is a fine matured cheese made from unpasteurised sheep’s milk typical of the Gavoi area, in the heart of Barbagia. The cheese is now registered and protected in Europe with the brand Protected Designation of Origin (PDO); it combines well with a good glass of Bovale.
Various varieties of pecorino cheese are served in the area including the fine Pecorino Sardo PDO.
The maharrones de busa and maharrones hurriaos, to be seasoned with sauce and a soft pecorino cheese, certainly have a privileged place in local cuisine. Main courses of note include porceddu, boiled mutton and delicious Sardinian lamb, protected in Europe by the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) and usually roasted, stewed with wild fennel, with artichokes, or egg and lemon.
A sweet now found throughout Sardinia but originally from Barbagia is seadas, a large, circular raviolo filled with soft cheese, fried and flavoured with honey or sugar. This was traditionally prepared by women in Barbagia in spring to celebrate the return of the shepherds after spending the winter grazing their flocks.
The aranzada, with fine strips of orange cooked in honey and covered with almond sticks, is also delicious. Sa pompia, an orange and grapefruit hybrid, typical of the eastern coast in the Nuoro area, has a unique flavour, particularly because it is boiled and caramelised in strawberry tree honey. Torrone (nougat) , especially that from Tonara, known and liked throughout the island and beyond, is one of the traditional sweets of the area.
