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​ Typical Tuscan Cuisine: a guide for gourmands tourists

Recipe of the traditional Tuscan cuisine prepared by chefs of Villa Campestri.

Tuscany is a land that enchants tourists from all over the world for its historical and artistic beauty, for its landscapes and good food.

It is known that the Typical Tuscany Cuisine seduce every palate.

​Cuisine of Tuscany: Poor and Farming

The typical Tuscan cuisine is a poor coking, linked to the rural world, where simplicity, sobriety and authenticity are always the characteristics that make it unique.

The recipes of Tuscan cuisine are rustic and have an absolute respect of ingredients and natural flavors, appetizing flavors, where tradition and typical rural culture still are the basic ingredients.

​The recipe Pappa al Pomodoro, a must of Tuscan Cuisine

The tomato soup is one of the most famous dishes of Tuscan cuisine, still widely used today in Florentine restaurants, enough to be considered a specialty of the city.

The preparation is very simple: just stale bread (preferably baked in a wood) and tomatoes.

Here is the recipe for the original Pappa al Pomodoro of Typical Tuscan Cuisine.

Pappa al Pomodoro Ingredients:

  • 250 grams of stale bread;
  • 400 grams of ripe tomatoes;
  • 2 garlic cloves;
  • 1 lt of vegetable broth;
  • 10 basil leaves;
  • 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil;
  • Salt;
  • Black pepper.

Fry in oil the garlic cloves divided in half. When the garlic begins to color, add the chopped tomatoes and the basil leaves.
Season with salt and pepper and cook for about 20 minutes.

Add the hot vegetable stock and when it all starts to boil, add the bread cut into thin slices. Cook for another 30 minutes over medium heat stirring often with a wooden spoon.

When cooked, remove from heat and let stand turning occasionally.
After approximately one hour stir with a whisk so that the bread becomes small pieces.

Before serving, heat the tomato soup and add a drizzle of oil and pepper.

​How to reuse stale bread in the traditional Tuscan cuisine

In the rural society no one threw anything, to waste it was inconceivable in a world used to treasure their resources, to enhance them with recovery strategies and reusing leftovers.

Any food waste was then recycled into elaborate dishes.

From this conception the most delicious recipes of typical Tuscan cuisine born.

Recipes with stale bread:

  • Acqua Cotta;
  • Crostino (with tomato or other);
  • Fettunta;
  • Bread soup;
  • Panzanella;
  • Tomato Soup;
  • Ribollita;
  • Soup.

​How to reuse the vegetables in the traditional Tuscan cuisine

Vegetables have a central role in Typical Tuscan Cuisine.

Here are the most famous recipes born of knowing how to reuse leftover vegetables:

  • Minestrone;
  • Tegamata of vegetables;
  • Tegamate various: different vegetables cooked together, with mushrooms, leftover potatoes;
  • Vegetable soups;
  • Torta d’erbi: typical focaccia of the territories on the border with Liguria (Pontremoli, Fivizzano, Filattiera, Lunigiana) that was once filled with wild herbs and then it had different and wild flavors.

We just have to invite you to visit Villa Campestri Olive Oil Resort and wish you Buon Appetito!

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