53rd Polenta Festival

The 53rd Polenta Festival in San Cassiano, a hamlet of Brisighella, returns to warm up the autumn with its authentic scents and flavors. The event is set for the first three Sundays of October – and as early as the last in September – bringing the entire Lamone Valley into celebration.

It is one of the oldest and most deeply rooted events in the area, capable of combining gastronomy, folklore and peasant tradition. Polenta, a poor dish but rich in history, is the absolute star of the festival: prepared according to traditional methods and served with seasonings that tell the story of the cuisine of the past. From the more refined versions, such as the one with porcini mushrooms, to the more full-bodied ones, with pork, hare, wild boar or venison ragouts, to the strong flavor of salt cod, each dish is a journey into the flavors of the Romagna mountains.

Alongside the food stands, where it is also possible to buy typical local products such as flour for polenta, cookies and chestnuts, the festival offers: Exhibitions of ancient agricultural tools, to tell the story and evolution of rural life; Popular and folkloric attractions, which enliven the streets of the village; A convivial atmosphere that unites generations, strengthened by the link with other Italian “polentari” communities, such as that of Santa Maria in Selva (Macerata).

There is no shortage of anecdotes testifying to the event’s notoriety: in 1998, a delegation from San Cassiano was a guest on the RAI program “La vecchia fattoria,” while the cameras of “La vita in diretta” captured the secrets of perfect cooking live.

The San Cassiano Polenta Festival is not only a gastronomic feast, but an opportunity to celebrate a dish that is a symbol of rural tradition and to live an authentic community experience, among taste, memory and folklore.