Florentine cuisine distinguishes itself for the ability of combining the simplicity of ingredients with the creativity of its recipes. Tuscan food in general comes from a poor background evident in the use of bread in many dishes and in the large variety of bread that can be found in this region. In Florence we find many bread based recipes such as the famous “panzanella”, a salad of garden vegetables with old bread soaked in water, olive oil and vinegar. It is easy to imagine how at times of poverty this dish was a great way to feed a large family, today the “panzanella” is considered a tasty starter or a good accompaniment for seafood dishes. Another simple dish is the “pappa”, a sort of smooth fresh tomato soup, garlic, basil and bread, which today is often used as a filling for pasta parcels or seafood. Other typical dishes are offal cooked in olive oil garlic and sage, finished with a squeeze of lemon, and tripe cooked with vegetables and tomato.
Florentine Steak cooked rare is the queen of Florence’s culinary tradition, it must be on the bone and at least 5 centimetres thick, nice and brown in the outside and bloody in the inside.
Tuscan olive oil is probably the best olive oil you can find and is at the centre of every recipe as well as being simply enjoyed on bread. Amongst vegetable a special mention goes to black cabbabe, which is a fundamental ingredients for soups, and to the Certaldo onion, a red variety of onion that is sweet and aromatic. The latter is so important to appear even on the city’s coat of arms.
Tuscany is well known for its Chianti, which can be enjoyed in the restaurants, wine bars and wine cellars offering a large variety of this extremely famous wine.