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Fiadoni Abruzzesi — Savoury Cheese Pastries
Abruzzo — throughout the region, but specifically associated with the Easter period. Fiadoni are one of the most ancient preparations of the Abruzzese festive table, documented from the medieval period. They are always prepared by women at home and brought to the Easter gathering.
Fiadoni are the defining savoury pastry of the Abruzzo Easter table: small, dome-shaped pastries with a short, egg-enriched pastry casing enclosing a filling of grated Pecorino (or a mixture of Pecorino and fresh ricotta), whole eggs, and pepper. Unlike the Molisano calcioni (sweet ricotta pastries), the Abruzzese fiadoni are firmly savoury — the cheese filling is pungent, eggy, and peppery, without sugar. They are baked (not fried), and the pastry casing achieves a beautiful golden colour from the egg wash and the fat content of the dough. They are prepared days before Easter and served at room temperature as part of the antipasto spread.
Pizze Fritte Abruzzesi — Fried Dough Pillows
Abruzzo — the fried bread tradition is among the oldest in Italy, predating the spread of the Neapolitan pizza tradition. Pizze fritte abruzzesi are prepared at festivals, at the pig slaughter, and whenever a celebration requires abundant, immediate food.
Pizze fritte (fried dough) in the Abruzzese tradition are not pizza-shaped flatbreads but pillow-shaped, puffy fried doughs made from a simple bread dough (flour, water, yeast, salt), pulled into oval shapes and deep-fried in lard or olive oil until golden and puffed. They are split while hot and filled with prosciutto, salami, cheese, or anchovies — or eaten simply with salt. The tradition of frying bread dough appears across Italy (gnocco fritto in Emilia, panzarotti in Puglia, pizza fritta in Campania), but the Abruzzese version is among the most straightforward — enriched sometimes with a small amount of lard in the dough for tenderness.