The ModTraveler: Florentine Cuisine

Some of the most popular Florence cuisine I’m excited to try:

Antipasti

Meals in Florence usually begin with antipasti (appetizer), which typically include bruschetta, or crostini di fegato and consist of croutons covered in a liver spread (veal, chicken, goose, duck etc.) mixed with chopped anchovies, onions, and capers.

Ubiquitous bread

Bread is a huge part of the Florentine and Tuscan diet. It mostly appears within sandwiches and antipasti but also is included in soups and salads. Tuscan bread is called pane sciocco (bland bread) and it baked in a wood oven.

It consists of a distinctive thick crust and contains no salt. The recipe dates back to the Middle Ages when a fight between Florence and Pisa cut off the supply of salt to the city of the Medici. There are also claims that in the medieval times salt once became heavily taxed and the average person could not afford it.

Ribollita & pappa al pomodoro

Is Tuscany dry bread is appreciated. It usually in featured in hearty soup recipes such as the Florentine specialty, ribollita (meaning “reboiled”). Ribollita is made from a local variety of black cabbage, beans (usually cannellini), tomatoes and other vegetables and stale, reboiled bread. Another soup called pappa al pomodoro combines tomatoes, basil, garlic, and stale bread and olive oil.

Panzanella

Panzanella consists of diced tomato, stale bread cubes, onion, basil, olive oil, and vinegar. It is basically a salad version of pappa al pomodoro.

Bistecca alla fiorentina

For the secondi piatii (main course) bistecca alla fiorentina is a popular main course meal. This is a thick porterhouse cut of beef weighing anywhere from two to eight pounds and made from the local Chianina cattle bread. It is typically served well-roasted on the outside and red and bloody on the inside. The T-bone steaks are usually cooked on the grill with salt, pepper, olive oil, and a lemon wedge.

Other popular meat dished include stracotto (beef stew), arista di maiale (pork roast with rosemary sauce and garlic), and the pollo alla fiorentina (chicken with ricotta, parmesan, spinach, and lemon)

Trippa alla fiorentina

This is one of the city’s classic dishes. It features tripe, sautéed in olive oil, onions, tomatoes, and a lot of Parmesan cheese.

Lampredotto

This is another way of serving tripe. The tripe is sliced thin and it is cooked in broth and served on a plate or in a sandwich. Lampredotti are typical street food and can be bought by street vendors or in public markets. It is sometimes topped with a sauce include red sauce (spicy) or green sauce (herbed). People also sometimes order it with bagnato (wet bread with a gravy)

Pappardelle sulla leper

Meat is a staple in Florence but pasta is also. A typical recipe for pappardelle (a long, wide, and flat pasta) includes a sauce made from hare. Other meats such as goose or rabbit are also used.

Cantuccini

These are almond biscuits that are usually accompanied by a glad of wine or desert wine (vin santo) or along with a side of coffee.

Schiacciata alla fiorentina

This is best described as a pastry style sponge cake covered with vanilla and lemon scented sugar. It is popular during carvinals.

Pasta e Fagioli (Pasta and Beans)

This hearty soup is a traditional bean and tomato based soup that is simmered in seasoned water for hours over very low heat. Pasta is then added.

Biscotti / Cantucci

These are small almond based cookies that is twice baked and shaped like a crescent moon.

Schiacciata con l’uva

This sweet grape bread is made by sprinkling fresh grapes with sugar and then baking them between two layers of dough. It is also seasoned with olive oil and rosemary.

To check out more of my travel lifestyle blog posts of European cuisine check out: Paris Cuisine and Venice Cuisine

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