LAKE GARDA'S MOST AUTHENTIC PRODUCTS

Lake Garda is known for the outstanding quality of its traditional products: we have already talked about the best extra virgin olive oil in the world, which comes from this area, and we will soon talk about the rich wine tradition that characterizes the landscapes of the hills around the lake, as well as the delicious flavors of its cuisine.

There are many products, known for their very high standards, due to the geographical conformation and climate of these lands: some are less known to mass tourism, others have ancient recipes that have been kept secret until today.

Let's take a look at some of the products to try during a trip to Lake Garda, their origin and tradition in the area, and where to find them to taste them in their most authentic form.

Lake Fish

Not everyone knows that the use of freshwater fish in Italian cuisine has very ancient origins, and that it is often one of the most precious products, able to best express the flavours of a specific territory.

Little knowledge of this product of excellence derives from the fact that lake fish, like river fish, has long been considered less valuable than sea fish, probably because of its link with the old, poor traditions of the hinterland.

However, in recent years the rediscovery of local culinary traditions, the so-called comfort food trend launched by the best-known international cookery magazines, has brought lake fish back to the centre of the story of taste which, starting from the natural resources of an area, is enjoyed through creative and contemporary recipes.

Our lake is certainly one of the most virtuous examples of this trend, with a variety of fish and recipes to envy the tables of the best-known coastal regions.

You'll find dishes of pike, perch, tench, sardines in sauce and fresh lavarellotartare, accompanied by the strong aromas of the lake's herbs, oil and citrus fruits.

Our restaurant Al Pontile proposes several fish recipes, different according to the season, which will convince you to consider this ingredient as a precious protagonist of the renowned Italian taste.

Gargnano capers

This is a real treasure of taste, whose natural growth has characterised the landscapes and flavours of all the Mediterranean areas for centuries.

Gently harvested by hand by locals during the summer months, caper blossoms grow on a wild, climbing bush, clearly visible on the dry stone walls of houses and lemon houses, especially along the villages of Gargnano and Limone del Garda.

Capers are preserved in salt or vinegar and are used in the local cuisine as a strong-flavoured ingredient to enrich meat, fish, pasta and vegetable dishes, as well as being prepared in spreads, powders and crushed sauces.

Capers are a very popular product in the kitchens of the restaurants on our lake, but they are also easily found on the stalls of the city markets or in small shops dedicated to tradition.

An excellent place to get to know all aspects of this little tasty gem is the Cooperativa AgricolaTerre&Sapori, recently founded with the aim of promoting and protecting the excellence of the Parco dell'Alto Garda, including Gargnano capers.

Garda Limoncino

Recently included in the regional list of Traditional Agricultural Products (PAT), citrus fruits that grow along the shores of our lake are precious products for the uniqueness of their flavour and the limited quantity that the area produces.

In fact, they are not really agricultural products, but rather family cultivations organised on the stone terraces of the historic buildings, dedicated to protecting these precious juicy fruits, called " Limonaie" (Lemon Houses). 

Lemons, bitter oranges and citrons are the best known and most characteristic of the area, a genuine ingredient for the preparation of dishes and drinks with typical local flavours.

One of the best-known liquors made from the citrus fruits of Lake Garda is the famous Limoncino, traditionally associated with the coastal resorts of southern Italy, and reproposed on the shores of our lake for the excellence of the main ingredient typical of this area.

Obtained by the infusion of carefully selected Garda lemon peels, it is prepared 100% naturally and without the addition of additives, and served iced as a digestive in most of the places that populate the lakefront.

Cedrata from Salò

Another product that comes from the creative spirit of this rich territory is the famous Cedrata Tassoni, a non-alcoholic, lightly sparkling drink made from citron, a very special citrus fruit that the Franciscan friars introduced into the local cultivation in the 14th century.

Characterised by its intense fragrance of essential oils and bright yellow colour, cedrata was created on the shores of our lake by Tassoni family from Salò back in 1921.

The first version produced was an original-tasting syrup made from citron juice and peel, which the market enthusiastically welcomed.

Even today, it is not uncommon to come across the first advertising posters from the 1920s and 1930s at antique shops in the area, where the product was advertised with the slogan "it's tasty and it's healthy", which would be used until the first television carousels in the 1950s.

It was during this decade that the syrup changed form and, thanks to the addition of water and soda, became the cool drink we know today, to be drunk on its own or mixed into cocktails served in local summer kiosks.

Tassoni's factory, which next year celebrates 230 years of activity, is located just a few steps from the centre of Salò, exactly where four generations of the same family have been working.

Abissino

It’s all about sins of gluttony when we talk about the typical products of Lake Garda.
One product that is rare for its recipe and for the fact that it is produced by only one bakery in the world is the Abissino, a sweet bread leavened with ... very secret ingredients!

Created in the first half of the last century by Benaglia Sisters, who once owned the bakery located in Piazza della Vittoria, just opposite the boat landing stage, it is a simple and delicious cake that fully represents tradition, as it is still present on the tables of the local inhabitants, to be enjoyed as a dessert at the end of a meal or a hearty snack for children.

Today, this sweet with its secret recipe, handed down and jealously guarded by the owners of the bakery that produces it, can only be bought in the Artigianpane shop, along Via Pietro da Salò, at the start of the charming village gulf.

Maderno cake

Now you have your mouth watering with Abissino, so let's introduce you to another traditional cake from our lake, named after its town of origin and production: the town of Maderno.

Torta Maderno is a soft pastry with a heart of custard cream made of lemons from Maderno's own shores. Once again, it is not possible for us to know the original and precise recipe, as it is kept by the only bakery that produces it.

To taste it, you need to reach the village of Maderno and lose yourself in its pretty alleyways where, simply by following the scents in the air, you will find Perolini Bakery, where siblings Maria and Giovanni first proposed the recipe for this much-appreciated cake in 1975.

Appreciated by everyone it seems, from the Prelates and Cardinals passing through on their way to the nearby Montecastello Monastery, as well as tourists fond of this simple and tasty cake.