It is one of the most famous and important Ligurian dishes. “Cima” in Italian means a summit. Perhaps the name refers to its monolithic form, or maybe because it’s considered a gastronomic peak. In the past, this dish was prepared by the Ligurian people to use up the leftovers. Nowadays you can easily find it in the gastronomie or in the restaurants in whole Liguria.
Ingredients:
- 1 calf’s brain.
- 1⁄4 veal’s tripe
- 1 boned veal breast
- 1⁄2 veal’s loin
- veal’s stomach
- 3 slices of white bread
- 1 carrot
- 5 zucchini
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2⁄3 cup peas
- 5 eggs
- extra-virgin olive oil
- freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
- finely chopped fresh oregano or marjoram
- salt & pepper
For vegetable stock:
- 1 onion
- 1 carrot
- 1 stalk celery
- fresh parsley
Preparation:
Fry the loin, the brain and the tripe. Then chop everything finely and place in a bowl together. Chop up the carrot and the zucchini and add them to the bowl as well. Add the peas, the garlic, the marjoram and the parmesan cheese. Whisk the eggs and mix them together. Add salt and pepper. Soak the white bread in the milk for about 10 minutes. Then squeeze it, dry it and mix it in with the other ingredients. Then use a veal’s stomach that you have bought as a big pocket and put all chopped and mixed ingredients in that pocket. Then close the pocket with a kitchen string. Heat up a vegetable stock and add the veal’s chest. Cook it on a low heat for 3 hours. After that left the cima out of the pot with a heavy load on it. In this way, it takes its typical shape. When the cima becomes cold can be sliced and served. It is really delicious!
Buon Appetito!