S is for Sapa

Sapa is cooked  grape must, boiled until it takes on a acceptable consistency. The etymology of the name – where sapa stands for sapore translating as taste - clearly indicates that the product is sweet and delicious and it is mostly used in the preparation of sweets as well as in many other savoury recipes, like for flavouring polenta.. Sapa dates from ancient times : the Romans made large use of sapa, the great  Roman poet Ovid mentioned sapa  in his poem Fasti  <… so you can drink from the bowl, white milk and purple sapa…>. Another gret Roman author, naturalist ad philosopher – Pliny – quoted sapa in his books, where he illustrated the therapeutic quality of wine.

Macaronis  sapa and walnuts

Combine half a  glass of sapa, four tablespoons of bread-crumbs previously stir-fried in a couple of spoonfuls of olive oil, a glass of chopped walnuts, salt ad pepper to taste in a bowl.

Cook the slender tube-shaped pasta al dente (translating as “still lightly firm” when removed from fire), drain the pasta, add the sauce in the bowl. Add a little water from the pot where the pasta has been cooked if too dry. Stir and serve.

Alternatively, sapa is delicious with strong, mature cheeses and is a perfect companion to strawberries and ice cream.