Olive Ascolane

Olive Ascolane (more properly olive all'ascolana) is a celebrated Italian fried appetizer from Ascoli Piceno, in the Marche region, made from the very large, meaty green olives of the local Ascolana Tenera cultivar. Each olive is carefully opened in a long, unbroken spiral to remove the pit, the cavity is filled with a small ball of finely chopped meat stuffing, and the olive is then rolled in flour, dipped in egg and breadcrumbs, and deep-fried in olive or seed oil until the crust shatters and the inside is hot. The stuffing is a richly cooked mixture of mixed meats (typically veal, beef and pork, sometimes chicken or sweet Italian sausage) sautéed with a soffritto of onion, carrot and celery, deglazed with white wine, and bound with Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano, a pinch of nutmeg, and a thread of lemon zest.

It is the signature antipasto of Ascoli Piceno, served hot in paper cones at festivals, in wine bars at aperitivo hour, and as part of the fritto misto all'ascolana alongside fried lamb chops, sage leaves, artichokes and crescia. The dish was reportedly invented in the early 19th century by the cooks of the Ascoli aristocracy as a way of using up leftover meat, and it has been served to musicians, popes and statesmen since then. Today it is the centrepiece of the Ascoliva Festival held in Piazza Arringo in Ascoli Piceno in August, and is sold across Italy, particularly in the Marche, Umbria and Emilia-Romagna, under the Oliva Ascolana del Piceno PDO.