Testa in Cassetta is made following an ancient and fairly elaborate recipe. As well as calf’s head (“testa”), it also calls for the cows’s tongue and cheek, cow’s heart (essential to brighten the color of the sliced Testa) and a little lean beef. The various cuts are cooked for a long time in salted water before being deboned. The head is finely chopped with a mezzaluna knife and some of the cooking water is added until the mixture is almost liquid. The other cuts are chopped into small pieces, mixed with the head and seasoned with salt, pepper, cinnamon, coriander, cloves, nutmeg, chili, pine nuts and a drop of rum. The mixture is then carefully packed into a cow’s blind intestine (caecum). In the past, a “cassetta”, a wooden box, was used, lined with pork caul fat, hence the name, Testa in Cassetta, “head in a box.”
Season
It is produced throughout the year except for the summer months
Production area
Gavi Municipality, Alessandria Province
