Gnocchi Festival

Throughout Italy, there are many Sagras, or Festivals, all through the year, but early fall is a very popular time for them.  They celebrate different things; sometimes, just focusing on one type of food. I found out about this Gnocchi Festival a month before it happened and I was so excited to go, but it looked like we weren't going to have time to go.  At the last minute, some stuff got canceled, and my husband and I drove out to it.  It was everything I hoped for, and more.  :)

Here are some pictures from our night.  It was held in the hills in a tiny town of Trissino, right by this lovely church.  The Sagra had some booths, (besides gnocchi), selling produce, cheese, salami, home goods, handmade jewelry, etc.  Below is a photo of the special potatoes one needs to make gnocchi.

The photo above is all the different types of gnocchi available to eat.  It was SO hard to choose!!  I wanted them all.  At first we decided on just two types (pic below), the pumpkin one and the truffles one, but eventually we added the rosemary and cream on, too.  It was way too much for the two of us!!  We ate it anyway.  The sauces available: leek, pumpkin and speck (similar to prosciutto but peppery and smoked), prosciutto with cream and rosemary, truffles, radicchio and pastasalado (not sure what that is... lol), a Padovian goose sauce, speck with walnuts, butter and sage, mascarpone and red peppers, regular meat sauce, and plain tomato sauce.

Above is a gnocchi and wine pairing list.  Below is the pumpkin, leek and speck.

Above, rosemary, prosciutto, and cream.  Below, truffles, with butter.  My favorites!!  It was so good. They were ALL so good!

 Above, a pic of the typical sagra eating set-up.  The benches are not very sturdy!  Be careful getting up and down.  :)  Below, tents with wares for sale, and the locals talking, kids playing, etc.

Live music is always at Sagras after a certain time (usually starts at 9pm).  Above is a pic of the VERY GOOD Creedence Clearwater Revival cover band; they even dressed like them and had long hair!  We usually miss the music because we have the kids and leave before it starts, but not this time. Below is a farther shot so you can see the cool church they were playing right in front of.

Above, the inside of the church.  Below, shot of the band and crowd taken from the church's entrance.

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