The Culinary Creations

	Entry #1	101
The Dish NOBODY TOLD ME IT WAS FISH! In a large earthen casserole bowla blend quanto basta grouper, sarda, and spigola with arrabiata and mortadella. Spread over a bed of vongole and putta ina al formo for 48 minutes at 369 degrees. Thesa is popular in Greece as well as Italy and should be served with Italian garlic bread and a vintage vino..
The Ingredients 13 Countries, 1 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Norway 18   China 4   Canada 9   United States 12   France 9   Finland 5     Germany 10   Individual Neutral Athletes     Italy 6   Switzerland 8     Japan 7       Netherlands 7       Sweden 6

	Entry #2	94
The Dish WHATCHA THINK OF THISA DISHA Starta with an arrabiata sauce anda mix in blacka olives and a mushroomsa. Adda in shrimpsa and octopus. Simmer in vino sauce for 42 minutes. Serve over angela haira pasta in an earthen bowl. Serve the rest of the vino on the side. Saluta. After second helping you shoulda be swimming, ready for olympic back stroke.
The Ingredients 11 Countries, 0 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Germany 8   Canada 7   China 6     France 9   Japan 12     Italy 6       Netherlands 7       Norway 12       Sweden 6       Switzerland 9       United States 12

	Entry #3	79
The Dish This Northern Italian delicacy combines the traditional Milanese risotto with beef blessed by his Holiness The Pope. Also known as Holy Cow, this dish is served best on the go eaten while riding a traditional Vespa scooter.
The Ingredients 8 Countries, 0 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   Austria 8   Canada 9   Norway 18   Germany 10   Finland 5   United States 12     Japan 12

	Entry #4	126
The Dish Antipastomentarianism in Italian history was rooted in the late 19th century tomato growers' strike. The movement grew during WWII as women who worked in factories all day came home to hungry children with no time to boil the pasta, roll the meatballs, and stir the sauce. Why not just let the kids have the veggies, cheese, and prosciutto from the icebox? Hey, less dishes and more time for homework. The most profound moments of the Antipastomentarianism movement took place in the late 60's during the "Hot Kitchen" revolt when young feminists and Nonnas alike took to the streets shouting "Hate-a to cook, love to eat!" and "I'm-a no chef!" The legacy continues.
The Ingredients 26 Countries, 5 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Germany 8   Austria 8   Australia 1   Netherlands 10   Canada 7   Belgium 1   Norway 18   China 4   Bosnia and Herzegovina     Finland 1   Czech Republic 1     France 9   Denmark     Individual Neutral Athletes   Great Britain 1     United States 12   Italy 14       Japan 12       Poland 1       Romania       Slovenia 1       South Korea 3       Spain 2       Sweden 4       Switzerland 8       Ukraine

	Entry #5	111
The Dish Lettuce and huge blocks of Fontina cheese, etc.
The Ingredients 26 Countries, 7 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   Albania   Belgium 1   Estonia   Austria 8   Czech Republic 1   Finland   Canada 7   Hungary   France 8   Denmark 1   Lithuania   Italy 10   Germany 10   Netherlands 3   Japan 5   Great Britain 1   Romania   Norway 18   Kazakhstan   Slovenia 1   South Korea 3   Poland 3   Switzerland 8   United States 12   Sweden 6

	Entry #6	131
The Dish Gramigna alla salsiccia mixed with a generous portion of Carolina Reaper chillies.
The Ingredients 38 Countries, 16 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Germany 8   Australia 2   Armenia   Netherlands 10   Austria 8   Belgium 1   New Zealand   China 4   Bosnia and Herzegovina   Norway 18   Croatia   Bulgaria 2   Poland   France 9   Canada 9   Slovakia   Japan 7   Czech Republic 1   Switzerland 6   South Korea 4   Denmark   Ukraine   Sweden 6   Estonia   United States 12     Finland 5       Great Britain 1       Hungary       Iceland       Individual Neutral Athletes       Italy 14       Kazakhstan       Latvia 1       Liechtenstein       Lithuania       Romania       Slovenia 1       Spain 2

	Entry #7	106
The Dish Every winter, Alpine grandmothers arrange cavatelli in precise slalom formation, then roll a ceremonial cheese wheel to start a controlled avalanche of pasta, ragu, and powdered snow into the valley below. The ragu simmers 93 hours -one per Olympic medal- and smooth flow predicts podium glory, while clumping means someone disrespected al dente and must apologize to the biathlon team. Mangia veloce, slitta forte, e ricorda: il parmigiano non mente!
The Ingredients 15 Countries, 2 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   France 9   Australia 1   Germany 8   Individual Neutral Athletes   Austria 5   Morocco   Italy 6   Canada 9   Norway 18   United States 12   Finland 5   Sweden 8     Japan 12       Switzerland 8

	Entry #8	98
The Dish The Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest in the world. But for those who don't like tomatoes, it's a problem. Scientists have now genetically re-engineered the tomato. It looks the same. Produces the same beautiful red sauce, but it tastes a lot like . . . well, chicken." Many Italians and US Marylanders alike are up in arms.
The Ingredients 11 Countries, 1 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Belgium   Austria 8   Germany 8   Canada 5   France 9   Japan 12   Italy 10   United States 12     Netherlands 10       Norway 18       Switzerland 6

	Entry #9	126
The Dish Invented 1894 to appease a traveling solicitor and his wife. Garnished with wild roses, dish is said to defang danger, prevent uninvited guests, and even prevent blood-loss. Dish can be served with a wide variety of stakes.
The Ingredients 31 Countries, 8 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   Australia 2   Austria 5   Germany 8   Canada 7   Belgium 1   Netherlands 10   Finland 1   Bulgaria 2   Norway 18   France 9   Denmark   Sweden 8   Great Britain 1   Estonia   Switzerland 6   Individual Neutral Athletes   Hungary     Japan 7   Italy 14     New Zealand 2   Kazakhstan     Slovenia 1   Latvia 1     Ukraine   Lithuania     United States 12   Poland 1       Romania       South Korea 3       Spain 2

	Entry #10	131
The Dish In the quiet suburbs of Rome on via Francesco Ferrara, where laundry flapped like surrender flags and scooters argued with pigeons, Chef Manfredi of Trattoria Riordani discovered a terrible truth: his pasta was judging him. It all began when Nigel, a British patron who trusted olive oil more than sunscreen, asked for "something traditional but ... surprising." Manfredi panicked. He consulted Mrs Morelli, the elderly neighbor with a hint of a blond mustache who claimed to be part nonna, part oracle. "Cook with confidence," she said, squinting at a tomato like it owed her money, "and never let the garlic hear your doubts." Thus was born a new menu entry so bold it had to be fictional: "Risata del Destino al Pomodoro Confuso", or "laughter of fate with confused tomatoes." Nigel tasted the savory dish and was overjoyed. Mrs Morelli smiled and nodded. And the pasta? It finally approved.
The Ingredients 32 Countries, 11 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Germany 8   Argentina   Canada 9   Hungary   Australia 2   Finland 5   Netherlands 10   Austria 8   France 6   Norway 18   Belgium   Great Britain 1   Poland   China 4   Individual Neutral Athletes   Slovakia   Czech Republic 2   Italy 14   Sweden 8   Japan 7   Kazakhstan   Ukraine   South Korea 4   Kyrgyzstan     United States 12   Latvia 1       Liechtenstein       Lithuania       New Zealand 1       Slovenia 1       Spain 2       Switzerland 8

	Entry #11	124
The Dish Sunday lunch, a cherished Italian family tradition, begins the same way in nearly every household. The highest ranking Nonna stands and signals to those seated. Each person pierces a single meatball with their fork, and, with two hands, slowly raises it up above their heads. Using an ancient language known only within the supreme Nonna faction, she prays to the One True Creator, The Flying Spaghetti Monster. She orates in tongues, while everyone notices their meatball getting cold. None dare to eat it prematurely (a violation of Rigatonians 4:16) for fear that they will be eternally damned to the scorching hot marinara sauce pot caves once believed to exist. Lest we spaghett, the ones who gave in to temptation... Pro-tip: If you have a particularly short Nonna, the prayer shouldn't take too long and your meatballs won't go cold. If you find your meatballs are frequently going cold, you may put your Nonna in an empty mason jar overnight to shorten to your liking.
The Ingredients 25 Countries, 4 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Germany 8   Australia 2   Austria 5   Netherlands 10   China 4   Belgium 1   Norway 18   France 9   Brazil   Switzerland 6   Italy 6   Canada 9   United States 12   New Zealand 2   Czech Republic 1     South Korea 4   Finland 5     Sweden 6   Great Britain 1       Hungary       Individual Neutral Athletes       Japan 12       Slovenia 1       Spain 2       Ukraine

	Entry #12	81
The Dish When Vesuvius erupted in 79AD the contents of the pots in this fast food shop in Herculaneum (eg. dried fish, olives, dates, dried apricots, Cheetos?) were preserved as delicacies for us to taste nearly 2000 years later.
The Ingredients 10 Countries, 1 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Austria 5   Individual Neutral Athletes   Canada 9   China 5   United States 12     Germany 8       Netherlands 10       Norway 18       Sweden 8       Switzerland 6

	Entry #13	52
The Dish The grapes grown on the slopes of Mt Vesuvius provided a wide range of quality wines, as shown by this ancient fresco wine menu showing prices outside the ruins of a wine shop in Herculaneum from the first century AD.
The Ingredients 6 Countries, 1 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   Individual Neutral Athletes   Canada 9   Germany 8   United States 12     Norway 18

	Entry #14	124
The Dish Luge-ini is a long U-shaped ribbon pasta with edges sharp enough to produce wafer-thin tomato slices as well as permanent damage to any fingers in the way. The mogul event requires flipping the Olympic length Luge-ini (1,445 meters long with 14 curves) over head pizza dough style while executing a triple double crisscross aerial twist at least 25 meters above a pot of boiling water.
The Ingredients 33 Countries, 12 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   Austria 8   Argentina   France 8   Belgium   Australia 1   Germany 8   Canada 7   Bulgaria 2   Netherlands 10   Czech Republic 2   Georgia   New Zealand   Denmark 1   Iceland   Norway 18   Finland 1   Ireland   Sweden 8   Great Britain 1   Japan 12   Switzerland 6   Hungary   Lithuania     Individual Neutral Athletes   Slovakia     Italy 6   Uzbekistan     Poland 3       Slovenia 1       South Korea 4       Ukraine       United States 12

	Entry #15	128
The Dish Fiocco di neve, or snow flakes, are real pastries from the Amalfi coast, which provide a fantastic experience when consumed with a tiny Italian expresso. They are inch and a half sized, very fragile, hollow pastry globes, filled with exquisitely light creamy sweet fluff -- a tasty treat for the gods.
The Ingredients 20 Countries, 4 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Austria 5   Australia 2   Canada 9   China 5   France 9   Finland 5   Chinese Taipei   Individual Neutral Athletes   Hungary   Germany 8   Slovenia 1   Italy 14   Netherlands 10   South Korea 4   Japan 12   New Zealand   United States 12     Norway 18       Sweden 8       Switzerland 6

	Entry #16	33
The Dish Contrary to popular opinion, Slim's Fettuccine Toscano will not slim you down. It will actually have you gain weight in unprecedented fashion so if you've been looking for a way to gain 50 plus pounds, you're in luck! This dish will have you so stuffed, you will not be able to get up from the dinner table. The beauty of Slim's Fettuccine Toscano is that it's appetizer, main entree & dessert all in one. Perfect for those on a budget during these financially uncertain times.
The Ingredients 3 Countries, 0 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   United States 12   Canada 7   Italy 14

	Entry #17	120
The Dish After getting Yak too drunk to stand on two barrels of cheap Barolo, wait two days before slaughtering so the meat can marinate. Then heat Temple of Mars sacrificial cauldron to red hot. Add two gallons of Virgin olive oil (preferably made by 3 virgins), 450 cloves of garlic, twelve pounds of Rosemary, five pounds of oregano leaves, 300 Italian plum tomatoes, and 15 kilos of Italian eggplant. Add freshly killed rack of Yak, and simmer for 36 hours. Serve to Scandinavian Olympic team over three meters of home-made Papardelle pasta cut into 4 x 20 cm strips.
The Ingredients 18 Countries, 2 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   China 5   Austria 8   Canada 9   Finland   Individual Neutral Athletes   France 6   Germany 8   Netherlands 7   Great Britain 1   Norway 18   Poland 3   Italy 14   Slovenia 2   Sweden 6   Japan 12   Switzerland 6     South Korea 3   United States 12

	Entry #18	110
The Dish Italian scientists have created a new, celebratory pasta variation by manipulating DNA and introducing genes from other species into wheat plants to create a spectrum of colors beyond the typical golden yellow. Techniques focus on modifying pathways for anthocyanins, chalcones and flavonoids, creating a magnificent rainbow-like palette of new pasta colors. Pasta Colorata Festone is made in long rope-like chains, and hung in abundance over streets, streetlamps, balconies, etc. as decoration for the Sagra Della Pasta Appesa (Festival of the Hanging Pasta) celebrations. On the last day of the festival it is traditional for residents to take down the pasta and cook it up for their enjoyment.
The Ingredients 15 Countries, 1 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Netherlands 10   Austria 8   Canada 9   Norway 18   China 4   Czech Republic 1   Switzerland 6   Denmark 1   Individual Neutral Athletes     Germany 10   Italy 14     United States 12   Japan 12       Poland 1       Sweden 4

	Entry #19	124
The Dish The Italian name of this entry means "a treat for the kitten." When preparing a fine meal, don't forget your little bewhiskered pet (this goes for canine companions too, but the Contest Staff of Laughton.org is definitely feline-oriented). Before you add the garlic, pepper, and other ingredients that aren't suitable for cats, reserve a bit of meat, fish, or cheese. Even a teaspoon of alfredo sauce will have your kitty purring like a furry Ferrari!   This entry was cooked up by the Contest Staff, who are ineligible to receive a prize.
The Ingredients 30 Countries, 7 Without Medals   Gold     Silver     Bronze   Austria 5   Australia 2   Estonia   China 5   Belgium   Latvia 1   France 8   Canada 7   Liechtenstein   Germany 8   Czech Republic 2   Spain 2   Italy 10   Denmark 1   Ukraine   Netherlands 10   Finland 1     Norway 18   Great Britain 1     Sweden 8   Hungary     Switzerland 6   Individual Neutral Athletes       Japan 7       New Zealand 2       Poland 3       Slovakia       Slovenia 1       South Korea 4       United States 12

 

The Contest

Fantasy sports collide with fantasy foods in Laughton.org's latest contest!
The theme was inspired by recent news that Italian cuisine has been recognized by UNESCO as a cultural treasure.

The quality, appeal, and cultural significance of Italian food is monitored and preserved in part by the diligent efforts of the Pasta Police, who deal with reports of pineapple on pizza, bologna in carbonara, and other culinary crimes. However, the enforcers have no concerns about imaginary meals, so you are invited to create an original "Italian" dish using the results of the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Italy to generate a winning score.

While we don't know if the Pasta Police test cooks for performance-enhancing drugs, someone may want to check the Italian organizers of these Games. The motto they chose for this year's Olympics is: IT's the Vibe! Note the capital IT, which suggests some new way to involve information technology in the "vibe." Also note that the organizers admit there's no way to translate the motto into Italian that makes any sense, so it will be published solely in inscrutable English to confuse local fans.

How to Play

The Official Entry Form is linked at the bottom of this page, but before you open it, be sure to read all the details here! You'll create an imaginary (and preferably ridiculous) Italian dish. Your creation will achieve a score based on Olympic medals won by the countries of your choice. If this doesn't make any sense to you, just keep saying to yourself, "IT's the Vibe!" If the Italians aren't going to make sense in Italian, then we don't feel the need to make sense in English.

Scoring

You may choose as many countries as you wish. You may even choose all of the participating countries, but this may prove to be a poor strategy when the tiebreaking rules are applied. For each country you add to your roster, you will select its gold, silver, or bronze medals. Selecting none (the default for all countries when the form is opened) will exclude a country from your entry. You may only collect one kind of medal from each country: if you choose gold, you cannot have the same country's silver or bronze medals, etc. As the Olympic Games progress, you will gain one point for each medal awarded that matches one of your country/medal selections.

The Cruel Logic of Piatto Olimpico

The 2026 Winter Olympics will feature 93 medal events. If you choose gold for every participating country, you are bound to collect 93 points (and perhaps one or two more if there are ties). But surely you can do better than this! Here's a hypothetical scoring example using results from a few high-performing countries in the 2002 Winter Olympics:

Selecting gold for every country would generate 40 points, but selecting gold for Germany and Norway, silver for United States, and bronze for Canada would generate 52 points. You may wish to consult the official Olympic website for news of changes in team members or other developments that may affect the competition.

Prizes

The prizes for this competition all involve the number 3:

First prize is a deck of playing cards with 3D pictures of cats on them. Yes, we're definitely feline-oriented here at Laughton.org, and we hope the winner is too. This photo doesn't capture the vivid images on the cards; they're much more impressive up close.

Second prize is Left-Center-Right, a fun and easy dice game in which you choose one of three directions to move your chips. Actually there's a fourth option, but since the publisher decided not to mention it on the cover, we won't bother to describe it here.

Third prize is a three-section fidget spinner. The player who wins it may wish to fiddle with it while musing how a single different country selection might have landed him higher in the final standings.

Ties

The scoring scheme will probably lead to ties among some players. In the event of a tie score, the following rules will be applied in the order shown to determine placement:

Winning isn't Everything

The Contest Staff wants you to have fun. Your entry will be a fictitious Italian dish. Think of a wonderfully crazy name for it and an equally crazy description. Reading such entries is the highlight of the Contest Staff's otherwise dreary lives. Here are a few examples to inspire you:

	Pasta Infinita Shortly after the election of Pope Leo XIV in May 2025, an elite culinary team at the Vatican began extruding a special strand of angel hair pasta. The effort continues to this day, with the output reaching such a volume that, once cooked, draining it properly will only be possible in the Large Hadron Colander. The hungry pope periodically asks the cooks, "when will you make an end?" They only reply, "when it is finished!"
	Slinguini sul Muro Conventional wisdom says that the best way to determine if pasta is done is to throw some at the wall. If it sticks, it's ready! Slinguini (also known as Flinguini) is a novel shape developed for superior aerodynamic properties, a flat disc that can travel quite a distance if thrown with spin. If the house next door has an open window, the cook can probably get it all the way to the neighbor's wall. Let him do the cleanup!
	Carbonara-14 The earliest reference to this dish appears in petroglyphs discovered in the caves of Valmonica, a World Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO - and not just for the local food! Traces of the ingredients can be found in many historic dishes, and the dates of their development can be estimated by measuring the amount of carbonara-14 present.

If you need a little help with Italian cooking terminology, take a look at the glossaries on these pages:

How to Enter

Use the Official Entry Form linked at the bottom of this page to
 submit your entry no later than 11:59pm (US Eastern Time) on Monday, February 2, 2026. 

The form provides an easy-to-use menu for choosing countries and medals as well as useful details about the results from 2022 and competitors qualified for 2026, but you are encouraged to consult other sites for news and predictions as you consider your selections. Information on the form was accurate as of the time it was published, but changes in schedules and participants may occur at any time, even after the competition has begun.

 No late entries will be accepted. 

Your email address will be the unique identifier for your entry. It will only be used to contact you to confirm acceptance of your entry, to notify you if your entry is rejected, or to contact you regarding prize delivery. It will not appear anywhere on this website nor be used for any other purpose. Only one entry per email address will be accepted. If you have more than one address, you may submit an entry from each. If you want to change your entry after submitting it, simply submit another using the same address; the new entry will overwrite the previous one as long as it is received before the deadline.

Only an address, culinary creation name, and country selections are required to enter. However, text describing your dish is an important part of the fun both for you and for other contestants who will read your entry. Please don't leave the description blank! We encourage contestants to get creative and even a bit silly. The Contest Staff is quite liberal in terms of the content submitted, but racist, sexist, or otherwise scurrilous comments are prohibited. Laughton.org is a family-friendly site, so we cannot divulge here what happens when someone submits offensive text, but we can assure you that such players do not win our contests.

A roster of entries will be posted on this page before preliminary competition begins on February 4, 2024. Scores and standings will be posted on this page and updated frequently during the Olympic Games. Only the final tally will count for winning prizes and acquiring the eternal bragging rights associated with victory in a contest at Laughton.org, but intermediate results may confer some fleeting opportunities for one-upmanship at your local fitness center, pub, or stoat farm. Oh, yes, the mascot for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games is a stoat named Tina. We would have mentioned it earlier, but we couldn't think of a way to turn this news into a joke. Stoat fans can buy Tina in various forms on the Olympic website.