The Christmas episode of “Il Gusto della Salute” is dedicated to botolaTaste the delicious food on the eve of the festival. “The poet Franco Lobo’s interpretation of the immortal verses of the nursery rhyme in the Salento dialect opens the loop to explain not only the characteristics of the birch but also the traditions it generated and introduced into the collective imagination of the inhabitants of southern Italy.” has explained Mauro Minnelli, immunologist and president of the Foundation for Personalized Medicine of Southern Italywho edited the column.

But what is the cultural setting that defines pìittola? ‘Yes – comments Minelli – of irregularly shaped pieces of flour but often rounded to height and fried in boiling oil, so as to extract delicious pancakes which may be spiced or stuffed with tomatoes, vegetables, olives and pizza.’ The legend (or legends say) that the housewife, who was intent on preparing leavened dough for making bread at home, was distracted in the past by the sound of bagpipes as they played in the street on Santa Cecilia’s Day Leaving the house to enjoy the music after a long time came back to find the dough was not bakeable and decided to use it to fry in oil into balls Small.The result was incredible cakes an incredible success not only among his children but also in the neighborhood, among friends, relatives and bagpipe farmers themselves.This product – he continues – was born by chance as often happens in the kitchen, he called it pttola, and it is the smallest Pita, a typical class of pies produced in many regions of the South. There are other legends but the important one is that pìttola is the hallmark of winter festivals, from San Martino to Santa Cecilia to Taranto, from the Immaculate Conception to Christmas Eve.”

The task of clarifying the health properties or contraindications is, as always, entrusted to them Nutrition biologists at Polismail Network Dominga Maio and Ilaria Vergallo. But this time, we found them in the kitchen taking part in the preparation of the potol dish. Half a kilo of flour, water, yeast, a pinch of salt and botulin dough is ready to be turned into small pieces or balls and tossed in the oil for frying, for warm, soft clouds with a wonderful Christmas flavour. “Be careful not to abuse, quantity always matters, especially in this case because it is fried – explain the nutritionists – even if the problem can be overcome with better oil; and to facilitate digestion, use a richer type of flour on the one hand, on the other hand Using maternal yeast can help,” the biologists confirmed.

“The episode ends in a light and icy way, with the food being prepared by biologists and served hot to be tasted and presented to judge by the “Il Gusto della Salute” editorial staff, and it garnered more than a positive response in terms of taste and cooking level. Special thanks to La Locanda Restaurant “In Campi Salentina (Lo) who hosted the video and to the technical team led by Professor Maurizio Maduro. Happy holidays to all the friends who follow us”, concludes Minnelli.