What Umbrian Babies Eat–Yummy!
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On one of my visits to Umbria, my good friend Michela’s daughter had just turned six months. Baby Giulia had a good appetite—and maybe some of that had to do with what Michela fed her. Italian baby food (la pappa) has a lot of appeal. For dinner one evening, Michela made vegetable broth from scratch and stirred in rice cereal until it was the consistency of mush. Next she added pureed meat that she bought in jars at the pharmacy.
“But the secret to la pappina—the baby’s little meal—,” said Michela, “is the extra virgin olive oil and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese that I add.”
The pharmacy in downtown Umbertide (Michela’s hometown) sells an interesting array of baby food. Along with fruits and vegetables, they offer a variety of meats that you don’t see here—horse, rabbit, prosciutto. There is also a baby-food brand of extra virgin olive oil. And supermarkets sell small water bottles, specifically for babies and young children.
As a toddler, Giulia ate her multi-course dinner early in the evening. Her favorite antipasto (appetizer) was crostini con fegato (liver pâté on bread), but she also devoured pecorino cheese, prosciutto, mortadella, and salami. Next came pasta, usually something Michela’s mother had made by hand. Giulia could eat more of her nonna’s cappelletti in brodo than even the adults could. The second course would be meat—pork cutlets, rack of lamb, roast duck or chicken, sautéed fish, meatballs, or sausage. She ate roasted potatoes with abandon and loved her grandmother Paola’s homemade bread. At two, Giulia had the appetite of a contadina who had spent her days in the field.
Would American kids have more sophisticated palates if their baby pablum included olive oil and Parmigiano cheese? Or if we served crackers with pecorino cheese instead of rubbery slices of American cheese. Or mortadella instead of baloney?
