Vincisgrassi, also spelled vincesgrassi, is a typical
Marche
Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
pasta dish similar to
lasagne al forno, considered one of the gastronomic emblems of the Marche cuisine.
Vincisgrassi are flat pasta (usually made with 100 grams of flour for each egg), a meat sauce called
ragù
In Italian cuisine, ragù () is a meat-based sauce that is commonly served with pasta. An Italian gastronomic society, Accademia Italiana della Cucina, documented several ragù recipes. The recipes' common characteristics are the presence of mea ...
(in this recipe, differently from other ragùs; the variety of meats is coarsely chopped and mixed with cloves, celery, onion, carrot, chicken
giblets
Giblets is a culinary term for the edible offal of a fowl, typically including the heart, gizzard, liver, and other organs.
A whole bird from a butcher is often packaged with the giblets, sometimes sealed in a bag within the body cavity. The ...
, tomatoes and white wine) and
Béchamel sauce
Bechamel sauce ( ) is a sauce traditionally made from a white roux (butter and flour in a 1:1 mixture by weight) and milk. Bechamel may also be referred to as besciamella (Italy), besamel (Greece), or white sauce (U.S.). French, Italian and Greek ...
with much
nutmeg
Nutmeg is the seed or ground spice of several species of the genus ''Myristica''. ''Myristica fragrans'' (fragrant nutmeg or true nutmeg) is a dark-leaved evergreen tree cultivated for two spices derived from its fruit: nutmeg, from its seed, an ...
.
Origins and history
According to tradition, the Italian name of the dish derives from simplification and Italianization of the name of the general
Alfred von Windisch-Grätz who defeated the Napoleonic troops in the siege of
Ancona
Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic S ...
in
1799
Events
January–June
* January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars.
* January ...
. A lady from Ancona prepared this dish in his honor. The general appreciated the dish so much that the population decided to name it for him.
It is not clear, however, if the dish was invented in honor of the general or if it was a dish already known at the time that was dedicated to him.
In (The cook from Macerata), a book of 1779,
Antonio Nebbia describes the preparation of particular lasagna called "princisgrass" with a richer recipe. So, probably, the dish was already present in the culinary tradition of the Marche, and in particular of Macerata.
Traditional Speciality Guaranteed
Since 2022, in the EU the Vincisgrassi alla maceratese (from Macerata) has been registered as a
Traditional Speciality Guaranteed
A traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG, plural: ''traditional specialities guaranteed'') is a traditional food product protected under European Union and/or UK law. This label differs from the geographical indications, protected designation of o ...
.
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See also
*
Baked ziti
Baked ziti is a popular casserole with ziti pasta and a Neapolitan-style tomato-based sauce characteristic of Italian-American cuisine. It is a form of '' pasta al forno''.
Typically, the pasta is first boiled separately until it is nearly, ...
*
List of Italian dishes
This is a list of Italian dishes and foods. Italian cuisine has developed through centuries of social and political changes, with roots as far back as the 4th century BC. Italian cuisine has its origins in Etruscan, ancient Greek, and ancien ...
*
Timballo
Timballo is an Italian baked dish consisting of pasta, rice, or potatoes, with one or more other ingredients (cheese, meat, fish, vegetables, or fruit) included. Variations include the mushroom and shrimp sauce ''Timballo Alberoni'', named after ...
– an Italian casserole
References
{{Pasta
Pasta dishes
Meat dishes
Italian cuisine
Cuisine of Marche
Cuisine of Umbria