Carnevale Indulgences

In Napoli, they make a rich lasagna for Martedi Grasso /Mardi Gras and a chocolate dessert which is absolutely delicious and not found elsewhere.

Many recipes are total acts of love, gesti d’amore, for the amount of preparation time they take. Many of these recipes are only made once a year for a special holiday. This is one of those recipes. Lasagna per Carnevale in Naples.

This year, Carnevale ends on March 4th, Martedi Grasso- Fat Tuesday, this lasagna is served. On Wednesday, Lent starts.  During Lent, Quaresima, people give up rich foods such as meat and candy. To prepare it seems they spend the carnival season eating sweets.

The lasagna I have eaten in America is always rich in thick layers of ricotta and mozzarella instead of the northern-style bechamel sauce.

Having eaten the actual version in Italy, I can say it’s rich but delicious and not as heavy as one would imagine. I also think less ricotta and mozzarella are used here.

There are some delicious old-school ragu recipes in Naples. One is the Genovese sauce, which has more onions than meat. 

Ragu is often called Sunday sauce, a tomato sauce cooked with whole pieces of meat; the meat is then served as the main course. This lasagna starts with the “Sunday sauce” and is enriched with other ingredients layered to make this a meal in itself.

While researching traditions in Naples, I discovered another dessert I couldn’t leave out. This chocolate dessert is served with traditional fried cookies called Chiacchere. 

Below, you can find the recipes for both.