A hard rich cheese.

A semisoft cow's milk cheese with a delicate flavour.

A soft cow's milk cheese similar to Bel-Paese, from Lombardy.

Almond biscuits (US: cookies) or rock cakes from Umbria and Tuscany which, despite their appearance, are delicious.

A cocktail created by Giuseppe Cipriani for Harry's Bar in Venice, where we have had the very great pleasure of drinking it. It is made with Prosecco and peach purée and named after Bellini, the artist. Cipirani had a penchant for this sort of thing, naming his raw beef dish after Carpaccio. Prosecco is a Champagne like, light sparkling wine from the region around Treviso. The peach purée is made from white peaches, a variety which grows around the Venetian lagoon.

"Beautiful country." A disc of semihard cheese made with cow's milk, it has a creamy yellow paste and a washed rind, usually wrapped in foil in small round individual portions. It is been made industrially in Lombardy by the Galbani family since 1906. This cheese is eaten all year round and is made with pasteurised milk, containing 45% fat. The curds are uncooked and pressed. It may be found at 20 cm (8") diameter. Affinage is from 6-8 weeks. This mild cheese was named from Dante's description of Italy as the 'beautiful land." It can also be used for cheese tarts and on toast. A similar cheese is Italico, manufactured by Galbani's competitors. The version made in Italy has a map of Italy as part of the illustration on the packaging, while that in the United States has a map of the western hemisphere.

A cow's milk cheese from Lombardy very similar to Bel Paese.

A cow's milk cheese from Piedmont very similar to Bel Paese.

Well cooked. Well done, so that no pinkness remains in the meat.