Easter is just around the corner: in local traditions, the Christian holiday revives and reinterprets various ancient pagan customs, usually linked to elements symbolizing the rebirth of nature, the cycle of life, and springtime.

It’s no coincidence that eggs, due to their symbolic meaning, are a recurring element in this holiday. They appear in some unique traditions of Friuli Venezia Giulia, such as the ancient ritual of the “Truc”, practiced since at least the 18th century. This consists of preparing a sloping, oval-shaped basin of sand, into which colored eggs are rolled, following specific rules, so that they touch one another.

But eggs also take center stage, of course, at the table. In Friuli Venezia Giulia, they are featured in traditional seasonal dishes like the Triestine pinza and fugassa (or “fuatha”) with a hard-boiled egg in the center, as well as in “fritât di erbe”, a frittata made with wild herbs—yet another symbol of rebirth.

The delicious cjarsons, now recognized as a traditional dish of the mountainous region of Carnia—a type of filled pasta combining sweet, savory, and spiced flavors such as cinnamon—have very ancient origins. They are mentioned as early as 1377 in a record by the chamberlain of Gemona. Once widespread throughout much of the Friuli region, they did not—and still do not—follow a standardized recipe: every village and family had its own version.

At the time, this dish—distinguished by its flavorful filling made from ingredients such as breadcrumbs, herbs, spinach, cookies, and spices, and topped with butter, sage, smoked ricotta, and sometimes cinnamon and sugar—was closely tied to Easter, so much so that people referred to the holiday as Pasca di cjalçons (“Easter of the cjarsons”).