I hate waste. We often talk about nose-to-tail cooking meat, but as an ex-vegetarian, often what we clean away from a vegetable is wasted. Last spring, while cleaning fava beans, the bag of the pods was much larger than the bowl I had of the tiny fava beans. I began to do research. In one…
Federico’s Sage Pesto
Winter is here and there is no basil left in the garden, freezing temperatures have killed off almost everything. But so far, we have missed the snow. Puglia and Sicily were hit hard. While watching the weather report on the huge storm getting ready to hit the East Coast which will then move in our…
Culatello Di Zibello- Italian Treasures
I was amazed at this intricate tying of the Culatello di Zibello outside of Parma. It is one of the most precious ( expensive) prosciuttos that exists in Italy. It is made using the central part of the back hams, cutting away the excess. It is heavily controlled and is part of the Slow Food…
Ivana’s Bread Bakery- Edible Florence
For 20 years I lived just in front of the Mercato Centrale in Florence. What a blessing. Such a choice for ingredients and shopping. In front of the market, hidden behind the stands selling leather, is one of my favorite bakeries in the area, Forno Ivana. Tuscany is famous for the saltless bread, which for…
Lost Recipes-Salame Dolce
This is one of my favorites to keep in the freezer as a back-up dessert! Richer and fancier versions sold in pastry shops now have melted chocolate and chopped nuts added to make it more of a candy version. Rolling the outside edges in powdered sugar makes it really look like salame. Here’s the…
Trattoria Mario’s Ribollita
Trattoria Mario’s is a home away from home for almost all the students that come to the study abroad programs in Florence. This tiny family trattoria began as a fiaschetteria 4 generations ago. These small family trattorias, passed from one generation to another, are national treasures.In 2013, they celebrated 60 years of their opening. I…
Tuscan Beans- A Bean for all Seasons
My friend Samin has declared January #beanmonth. In Tuscany, every month is bean month. Tuscans are called mangiafagioli, bean eaters for their large consumption of beans. In Florence, dining out, you mostly find the cannellini beans or if you are lucky the rare zolfini bean. Heading out to Lucca, you really start to see a…
CINGHIALE AGRO DOLCE- WILD BOAR
Living in the countryside in Tuscany means being woken up by gunfire during hunting season. The good side, is often I receive a nice big piece of wild boar meat, cinghiale, like this Christmas. I made a simple version of the boar, leaving out the final ingredients which give it it’s tang. The stewed pork…