The Bergamo Bramata flour is obtained by grinding vitreous corn or vitreous grains to rather coarse grain, which is why this flour does not feel smooth in your mouth. It has a bright golden color, with some lighter streaks and orange-red hues. Its scent reminds one of freshly baked bread.
Corn is harvested in October and then dried. Bramata flour is produced and consumed all year round.
It can be used in many recipes, not just to make polenta. Corn flour is used to make dough for pasta, especially traditional shapes such as * foiade * (large tagliatelle), but also bread, gnocchi and desserts. Shepherds would eat dishes based on this flour during the transhumance, with milk and other dairy products. One such typical dish is the * chissöl *, a polenta parcel enclosing a piece of taleggio cheese, roasted on embers. Chissöl is often offered as a welcome dish in local restaurants. Polenta bergamasca is a perfect match with all types of cheese, the most renowned products of the territory. But it also goes well with cured meats, game (particularly birds) and poultry. Counltess recipes also suggest serving it with: * löanghina * (a long sausage), salamella (cured pork meat for cooking), salami (also cooked), rabbit, stuffed hen, ribs with cabbage, braised meat, roast meat, but also vegetables and mushrooms. It can also be served as a main dish topped with local cheese and mountain butter.
Polenta bergamasca is really unique: when prepared well, it is so firm that it can be cast into vertical shapes and easily sliced with a knife. For centuries it was the staple of the working class diet in the area, so much so that the people from Bergamo were called “polentoni”. This flour is now the queen of restaurant menus all over the world thanks to its organoleptic and nutritional properties. * wholemeal bramata flour * can be produced exclusively in the province of Bergamo. There are numerous festivals and fairs in the area where this flour is at the core of the main dishes.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of the Italian Government has granted this flour the status of Traditional Food (Prodotto Agroalimentare Tradizionale, P.A.T.). In order to be labelled “Farina integrale e bramata della Bergamasca” (Wholewheat Bramata Flour of Bergamo), this flour needs to meet the strict requirements and production regulations of the brand “Bergamo, City of a Thousand Flavors” as established by the Bergamo Chamber of Commerce.