Christmas stuffed capon

Christmas Stuffed Capon is a rather elaborate dish but is practically crucial on any Christmas menu. We find it in nearly all the nineteenth century recipe books in Piedmont. Particularly interesting is the recipe by John Vialardis, Carlo Alberto’s chef, dating back to 1854, which sees the addition of two striking black truffles cut into strips to the stuffing. In Monferrato, the biggest hen in the coop is often used. In the past, cured meats were not used in stuffing in the Alessandria area, but over the past few decades, this practice, already adopted by Pellegrino Artusi during the last century, has taken hold. The capon cooking stock will be ideal for cooking agnolotti or cappelletti served as a first course on the Christmas menu.