The origin of tortellini
Legend has it that, engaged in a 12-year struggle over the theft of a bucket, Bologna and Modena (two close cities in Northern Italy) asked the Gods for help to resolve the issue and end the long war they had undertaken. Having come down to earth to help the Modenese, Bacchus, Mars and Venus found themselves spending the night in an inn on the border between the two warring cities.
It was thus that the innkeeper of Bolognese origin, conquered by the fabulous beauty of Venus, decided to perfectly reproduce the bellybutton he had glimpsed, using the thin pastry he was preparing in the kitchen.
According to another version, the bellybutton in question would have belonged to Lucrezia Borgia who stopped at the inn to rest during her journey.
Since the day of their invention, tortellini have undergone many variations which have mainly concerned its tasty filling. The official recipe was deposited in 1974.
