Cacciucco (Tuscan Fish Soup)

Franksecondi piatti, Toscana29 Comments

Cacciucco

One of the most iconic dishes in Tuscan cookery, cacciucco is a fish soup made in the costal areas of Tuscany, most famously in and around the port city of Livorno. Like many Italian fish “soups”, cacciucco is really more of a stew, made from a large variety of fish, … Read More

Castagnole

Frankdessert, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, Toscana, Umbria, Veneto32 Comments

Castagnole

Carnival time was traditionally the last chance to have meat before Lent. The very word carnevale comes from the Latin expression carne levare, loosely meaning to “say goodbye to meat”. Indeed, martedì grasso or Fat Tuesday is still celebrated with a large meal featuring meat-laden dishes like the Neapolitan lasagne di Carnevale. And yet, perhaps the most iconic Italian dishes for Carnival actually come … Read More

Pici all’aglione

Frankpasta, primi piatti, Toscana48 Comments

Pici all'aglione

As I’ve pointed out many times over the years, one of the hallmarks of “fake” Italian cookery is its in-your-face use of garlic. Now of course garlic is a common ingredient in Italian cooking. But Italians generally use it with great discretion. A common technique, featured in this blog for … Read More

Polpette di sedano (Tuscan Celery Balls)

Frankantipasti, Toscana42 Comments

Polpette di sedano (Celery Balls)

One of my favorite pastimes in the kitchen is finding ways to make underappreciated and undervalued ingredients shine. I love an underdog. Take celery for example. It shows up in any number of recipes, but almost always in a minor supporting role, either as part of the classic soffritto that … Read More