Tortellini worthy of detour from Verona

One of our friends, who goes to Vinitaly (the big wine show in Verona) quite frequently gave us a list of recommended places to eat around Verona and Lake Garda. One particularly stood out to us since we love 'stuffed-pasta' and the website photos look amazing. Thankfully, Restaurant Alla Borsa did not disappoint.  Photos can only do so much to convey flavor, but the thin, moist skins on the tortellini pictured below give you a hint at their delicious silky texture.

Tortellini with meat

But to start from the beginning: Today is a bank holiday in Italy.  The little town of Valeggio sul Mincio, some thirty minutes southwest of Verona, appears like a ghost town, but when we walked into the restaurant for our lunch reservation at 1 pm, the place was brimming with diners, many of them dressed in their Sunday best. We didn't expect any tourists here during the first week of January, and one look around the dining room confirmed that this place is a big hit for locals.  And we trust the discerning Italians when it comes to food.

We ordered a smoked trout carpaccio for appetizer: slices of trout, topped with shavings of a matured hard cheese (I am guessing Grana Padano), pink peppercorns, diced celery, topped with curls of butter.  I don't recall ever having uncooked trout, which although it look similar to salmon has a lighter and more delicate taste.  The butter was a surprise, and I wondered if it would overwhelm the trout.  But this butter was light and smooth, without the heavy dairy flavor of most butter. The flavor combination was a huge success.  It guess butter makes everything taste good!

And for their house specialty - stuffed pasta - we ordered a selection of 3 pastas to be shared: first, tortellini filled with meat (veal, pork, beef & chicken) (pictured at the top of this post); then, a green tortelli filled with ricotta and spinach;  and finally a tortelloni filled with pumpkin, which was sweet enough to act as the dessert course. Each of the pastas was served very plainly - no sauce, perhaps a tad of butter.  Because we ordered a shared selection, the waiters brought each pasta to the table in a large plate and served "family style," which made us feel like we were getting a home-cooked meal.  These were by far the best stuffed pastas I have ever had!

Tortelli with spinach and ricotta

Tortelli di zucca (pumpkin)

And we also finally got the chance to order a bottle of Ripasso, the little brother of Amarone.  Athough Ripasso is not as rounded and full-bodied as its famous brethren, it is still a very delicious wine and was a perfect accompaniment to the pasta dishes.