Emilia Romagna is one of Italy’s great dairy regions. The Po Valley supported large cattle herds, copper-cauldron grana production and cooperative dairies, while the Apennines preserved sheep, goat, fresh-cheese and fossa traditions. Parmigiano Reggiano dominates the global image, but it is only one part of a much broader regional dairy culture.

The Marche cheese culture was shaped by the Apennines, the Sibillini, transhumance and hill farming descending toward the Adriatic. Sheep cheese dominates many inland traditions, while mixed-milk Casciotta d’Urbino, fossa aging, fresh caciotte, goat cheeses and ricotta preserve other important layers.

Traditional Italian Passatelli in Broth Story of the Dish Passatelli in Brodo are among Romagna’s most distinctive foods. Unlike ordinary pasta, passatelli are made primarily from Parmigiano Reggiano, breadcrumbs and eggs, traditionally perfumed with nutmeg and a restrained amount of lemon zest. The dough is pressed through a ferro per passatelli, creating thick irregular strands whose rough surface absorbs broth. The dish developed from economical home cooking in which stale