Tuscan delights – ever tried pici, ribollita and pappa al pomodoro?

Tuscan cuisine is based on simple but high quality ingredients . It is with the Etruscans that its gastronomic tradition originates. It then evolved significantly during the Renaissance.

• Tomato soup:

like other dishes of the poor cuisine , one of the main ingredients is stale bread. Then combined with other simple ingredients such as tomato and extra virgin olive oil. For the success of the dish it is important that the ingredients are of the highest quality and perhaps that the bread is without salt , as the Tuscan tradition dictates.

• Cake with bischeri :

original recipe from Pisa , it is composed of a shortcrust pastry and a very rich chocolate-based filling. In addition, boiled rice, raisins, eggs, pine nuts, candied fruit, nutmeg and liqueur are added. The shape is round but with characteristic folds , called the bischeri .

• Panzanella:

based on Tuscan stale bread, tomatoes, cucumbers, salad, red onion, basil, extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar and salt. This dish was also mentioned by Boccaccio, a native of Certaldo, in the mid-fourteenth century. Furthermore, even Bronzino, a famous Florentine Renaissance painter, wrote a poem to celebrate him.

• Florentine steak:

the queen of Tuscan cuisine . It is a 3-4 cm thick steak, cooked rare. It is seasoned with coarse salt and pepper while it cooks and a drizzle of raw extra virgin olive oil. But other delicacies not to be missed are:

• Cacciucco :

is a fish-based dish typical of Tuscan seafood cuisine . There are several variants but the best known are those “alla livornese” and “alla viareggina” . This is a poor fish soup . Main ingredients are crustaceans and molluscs, usually octopus, cuttlefish, cicadas, scorpion fish. In addition, tomato sauce and wine are added.

• Chestnut :

a typically autumn dish that is obtained by baking a mixture of chestnut flour, water, extra virgin olive oil, pine nuts in the oven. In the area of Florence, Siena and Chianti, the traditional recipe includes the addition of an ingredient that makes the castagnaccio even more tasty and unique: rosemary .

• Panforte :

is a typical dessert of Siena . It is produced during the Christmas period. It has very ancient origins. The first written records date back to the year 1000 AD, at that time it was called Christmas Bread, Pan Pepatus Aromatic Bread (because it was completely covered with spices and ground pepper). (at this link you will find more information on the wonders of the region)

• Overrun:

is a salami that is produced with the poorest pig waste , especially from the head and cod. Everything is then blended with the rinds. The dough is flavored with various spices . However, what makes it unique is the addition of some ingredients, such as: lemon or orange peel and (click here to discover other Tuscan beauties) If you want to discover these culinary delights and other wonders of the region, click here to have more information.