Farina Bóna

List of products by brand Farina Bóna

Farina Bóna

Sweets | Flour & Polenta

Cavigliano, Ticino

The origins of the production of Farina Bóna in the Onsernone Valley are not clear, but there are those who say that before the advent of corn in the valley they used to make flour from toasted rye. The roasting of corn and other cereals before milling is a technique widespread in various parts of the world, which allows to obtain a product of immediate consumption and long conservation. For example "gofio canario" is a product similar to Farina Bóna but extended to other cereals, which is made in the Canary Islands.

Today, local corn, called "Ticino" corn, selected by engineer Paolo Bassetti and cultivated on the Magadino plain, is used for Farina Bóna. Other types of corn, safeguarded by Pro Specie Rara, are also being experimented with, such as Mergoscia corn. When the corn is ripe, the cobs are harvested and shelled using hand-cranked or industrial shelling machines. Roasting takes place in a type of roaster which is also used for roasting coffee. The grains are roasted at a temperature of at least 200°C (650°F) until one third of the grains "crest" and turn into pop-corn, Nunzia style.

Farina Bóna is used for the preparation of many different products: there are ice-creams, beer, breadsticks, cookies, mousses, cakes, pasta, späzli, condiments, bread and soups made with bóna flour. In 2007 a competition was held for professionals and amateurs who indulged in original recipes. The recipes were then published in the cookbook Ricette di ieri e di oggi (Recipes of yesterday and today) published for the first time in 2005 by the scholastic institute of Isorno.All the products are mainly sold and consumed in the valley, but can also be found in the rest of the Locarno region and in other regions of the canton.