The hazelnut tree (Corylus avellana) is a very widespread plant in Langhe, it can be found in the woods and also in the cultivations. The "Tonda Gentile delle Langhe" represents the only kind of hazelnut widespread in Piedmont. The farm Prato is situated in the middle of the hazelnuts orchards, which is the principal cultivation for this farm.
The picking of the hazelnuts was done by manual labour until twenty years ago, however nowadays there are aspirators and picking up machineries. Each farm is equipped with its own machineries used for the harvest and drying process, this is often done in the spacious yards of the farm which is also used for the layout of the fruit in the sun.
	The production of hazelnuts in Piedmont is about 15.000 tons per year which is mainly concentrated on the hills of Alta Langa.
These hazelnuts are mainly used for high class confectionery and for the production of typical "hazelnut cake", "brut e bun", "hazelnut pudding", "sweet salami". The "Tonda Gentile delle Langhe" is also very good to eat just toasted or coated with sugar. Click hear to view the recipe of our cake.

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Azienda Agrituristica Cascina Prato di Trinchero Piera 12050 CRAVANZANA (CN) Tel. e Fax. +39 0173 855060 cascinaprato@libero.it