A land rich in warmth, art, music, architecture, history, and certainly also cuisine: beautiful Italy has known the world over for its extraordinary culinary delights— a country that offers dishes that are appreciated by the entire globe, unique and inimitable.

Who doesn’t know pizza, lasagne, spaghetti, or gelato? These and many others are among the delicious foods that were born in Italy and are appreciated everywhere. Let’s discover the main Italian foods, a gastronomic journey through this boot-shaped peninsula, from north to south, to the sound of a fork to whet your appetite.

Here are some mouthwatering Italian dishes which are a must-try for any food blogger or anyone in Italy:

Pizza

Did you know the colors of the Italian flag are represented by the pizza’s most original and popular variety – the Margherita – which is made up of just tomato, mozzarella, and basil.

Our fast-food favorite, the pizza, was born in Naples Italy. Legend has it that the Margherita was served to Queen Margherita of Savoy, and though it was considered as “peasant food” she loved it so much that she continued to indulge in it even after receiving the backlash from others in her royal circle.

Later, the pizza was evidently named after her. If you ever do go to Naples, be sure to taste their authentic Margherita – with tomatoes grown in the volcanic ash of nearby Pompeii.

Gelato

Gelato is Italy’s version of ice cream, and though it contains the same ingredients as other frozen dairy desserts, it has low butterfat and sugar content. It is made and frozen in small individual batches, in contrast to the commercial production of ice creams in the United States. It lacks the “air” we see in commercial ice cream, making it even more intense in flavor.

Another difference between commercial ice cream and gelato is how long they last – gelato stays fresh only for a couple of days after production.

Tiramisu

This is a popular dessert worldwide, made out of biscuits soaked in coffee, served with layers of whipped mascarpone and egg yolks. It also contains cocoa and other liquor flavors. Some believe that this dessert began being served more recently, in the 1980s, while others argue that it was around much before that. There is debate over the place of origin too, though everyone agrees that it was somewhere in Italy.

Spaghetti

If you thought pasta originated in Italy, you’re wrong. It’s the Chinese who get the credit for the first known pasta, but Italy did invent one popular form of pasta – spaghetti. It is believed to have been born in southern Italy all the way back in the 12th century. There’s a pasta museum in Rome that boasts 11 rooms with 8 centuries of pasta history, a delight for any foodie.

Mozzarella

This delicious and famous cheese is from Italy and forms a key ingredient to many Italian dishes, like the Caprese salad. This cheese actually includes several different types of cheese by spinning and cutting them.

Mozzarella di Buffalo (made from water buffalo milk), Mozzarella Fior di latte (made from fresh cow milk), low-moisture Mozzarella (made from whole or part-skim milk), and smoked Mozzarella are a few kinds of cheese in this category. The name comes from the Campania region of Italy where Mozza means “cut”.