Mortadella

This luscious sausage is a specialty of Bologna which, in a drastically diminished version, appears in our markets as bologna. Do not confuse the two. Mortadella is an exquisitely delicate but rich combination of pork, spices, whole peppercorns and, on occasion, pistachios. When thinly sliced or cubed it makes a great appetizer. It is also part of the traditional filling for tortellini. Sophia Loren tried to smuggle a large mortadella into the United States in the 1972 film Lady L, but if you try this you will run into problems. Ham, salami, and sausage may not be imported to the U.S., so we can only use domestic mortadella. It is a reasonable substitute, though not the real thing.