Homemade taralli with fennel seeds

Taralli: crunchy Italian fennel seed crackers, boiled then baked

Make traditional Italian taralli at home! This easy recipe uses flour, white wine, extra virgin olive oil, and toasted fennel seeds for a crispy, savory snack.
Freshly baked Tuscan focaccia

Whole wheat focaccia with cherry tomatoes and oregano

/
0 Comments
An easy but unusual focaccia recipe which makes a rustic-textured, half wholewheat bread. Ideal to eat with cheeses and salad.

Eggplant crostini (crostini di melanzane)

/
0 Comments
Crostini are little appetizers that you can invent yourself depending on what’s in season and what ingredients you happen to have around. It is easy to cook eggplant in too much oil, since it is something of an oil sponge… this recipe seals the eggplant before oil is added so that you use less oil.
Tomato and basil bruschetta on toasted rustic bread

Tomato and basil bruschetta: the classic Italian appetizer

/
1 Comment
In Italian, this simple but delicious tomato appetizer is pronounced "Brusketta". Obviously, use the tastiest tomatoes that you can get hold of. Often, cherry tomatoes have a lot more flavour than larger varieties.
Tuscan bean and escarole crostini

Tuscan bean and escarole crostini

/
0 Comments
You can serve small quantities of this Tuscan bean dish on crostini, as an appetizer, or larger quantities as a hearty soup.
Bowl of pappa al pomodoro with basil and olive oil

Pappa al pomodoro: Tuscan tomato, bread and basil soup

/
3 Comments
This classic summer dish is very versatile: it can be eaten hot, at room temperature or chilled. It does however rely on ripe, tasty tomatoes.
Tuscan mushroom crostini with porcini

Tuscan mushroom crostini with porcini and Vin Santo

/
0 Comments
Best served warm, these crostini will have your guests demanding more. You'll see that the vin santo gives the mushrooms a very special flavour, and the butter gives them a melt in the mouth texture.
Rustic focaccia with rosemary

Rustic half whole wheat focaccia with rosemary

/
0 Comments
An easy but unusual focaccia recipe which makes a rustic-textured, half wholewheat bread. Ideal to eat with cheeses and salad.
Panzanella, Tuscan bread and tomato salad with basil

Panzanella: Tuscan bread and tomato salad, two ways

This is a great dish to make a couple of hours in advance in the summer, to have ready waiting for you in the fridge when you get back home. It is light yet satisfying.

Cecina: Tuscan chickpea flatbread from Livorno

/
0 Comments
There are versions of this all the way up to the French Riviera. In Livorno (Leghorn) it is served as an energy-packed sandwich.