The masterpiece of the local culinary tradition are the "Tortellini di Valeggio", in dialect, "agnolin". Handmade one by one, with a thin sheet of pasta and a delicate meat filling, they are the dish that cannot absolutely miss on the table of the festivities or anniversaries of Valeggio. They can be enjoyed dry with butter and sage or in broth. The recipe and the origins of this dish are connected with the tales and fables handed down from one generation to the next, in the intimacy of the houses.
Legend has it that at the end of the 14th century, a soldier of the Visconti troops who had camped near Valeggio sul Mincio with his army fell in love with the beautiful nymph Silvia. A great love was immediately born between the two of them. Hunted by the men who wanted to capture them, the lovers took refuge in the depths of the river Mincio, leaving their pursuers a handkerchief of golden silk, which they had symbolically knotted as a pledge of their love. From that day on, the girls of the area, during the feast days, love to remember the sweet story of the two lovers preparing the traditional KNODES OF LOVE.
And when the desire for tortellini assails me, I can’t help but come back "Alla Borsa" di Valeggio. A paradise on earth for the most refined palates.
