As we all know, the territory strongly influences food traditions of a country; that's why in the Umbrian traditional recipes there is a strong presence of meat, mushrooms, pasta, truffles and freshwater fish.
This region is famous for its cold cuts (salame, capocollo, culatello and so on). Norcia is, in fact, one of the most important cities in Italy for pork cold cuts (in Italy a 'norcineria' is a shop which sells only products make with pork meat). Umbria is famous even for its cheeses, mostly made with sheep's milk. If you go to Umbria, you want to try a 'tagliere' (a chopping board with cold cuts and cheeses) for antipasto or aperitivo.
Pasta is a great Italian tradition, but every region has its own specific shapes and sauces. In Umbria, one of the most famous pasta recipes is the 'Ciriole alla Ternana'; 'ciriole' are similar to spaghetti, but their section is squared instead of being circular, the sauce is a simple tomato sauce with garlic, parsley and pepper. In every Umbrian restaurant you can also find the Ciriole or the Tagliatelle with truffles ('tartufo' in Italian), black or white, since this is one of the main products of the territory.
Another famous Umbrian pasta dish is the 'cappelletti in brodo', cappelletti are similar to the Emilian tortellini, but they're filled with veal, pork and capon, and served in a meat broth.
The traditional meats cooked in this region are pigeon, pork, frogs and goose. They're served mostly roasted or stewed, but they're even used in the Ragù for pasta or gnocchi.
In this region a traditional one plate dish is the 'parmigiana di gobbi', which is made using the same technique as the traditional 'parmigiana di melanzane' (made with eggplants), using the cardoon instead of the eggplant slices. In Umbria there is also a delicious vegetarian alternative to the meat: the lentil soup typical of the city of Norcia, made with fresh tomatoes and garlic.
If you want to visit Umbria but you don't have time to spend in restaurants you can eat the amazing Umbrian street food: the 'torta al testo'. This food is somewhere in between a focaccia and a piadina; it's traditionally made with white flour, salt and oil, without the yeast. Once it's cooked on the 'testo' (a traditional stone which is previously put in an oven or in a fireplace) it's cut in half and filled with prosciutto, local cheese or vegetables (usually chicory).
Let's end this short description of Umbrian food with a delicious dessert: the 'Torcolo di San Costanzo'. It's typical of the city of Perugia, it's a sort of donut with a pentagonal carving, which traditionally relates to the five doors used to enter the city of Perugia. This is a rustic yet tasty dessert, made with a yeast dough, sugar, pine nuts, raisins and anise.
The Torcolo is dedicated to San Costanzo, first bishop of Perugia, who was beheaded during the Christian persecution conducted by Marco Aurelio; the shape of the sweet is reminiscent of the cut neck of the saint.
