Italian Fall Recipes
Fall is harvest time in Tuscany: grapes for the new wine, olives for the new oil, porcini mushrooms from the woods, chestnuts, squash and apples. The kitchen fills with the smell of slow-cooked meats and baking.
These are the fall recipes we love to cook at our cooking school: porcini sauce for pasta, mushroom crostini, baked squash gnocchi, buckwheat crespelle with squash and chestnuts, chicken cacciatora, arista roast pork, Tuscan grape harvest cake and our moist apple cake.
Licia’s moist Italian apple cake (torta di mele)
Manuela’s mother has offered lots of inspiration and recipes for our cooking classes in Tuscany. This is one of her recipes, now handed down to her children and grandchildren. Thanks Licia!
Tuscan cauliflower with tomato, rosemary and fennel seeds
Even self-professed cauliflower haters will love this dish, if you can convince them to try it.
Caramelized pear and fig upside-down tart
You can make this tart with pretty much any fruit, but the combination of figs and pears is divine! During our cooking classes in Tuscany, we use ripe figs from the trees at the top of the hill.
Baked butternut squash gnocchi in tomato sauce
These are not like boiled gnocchi at all, but are creamy balls of squash baked in a tomato sauce. Guests who come on our cooking courses in Italy say that they are one of their favorite fall dishes.
Turkey breast roll stuffed with herbs and grapes, cooked in milk
This is our family dish which has been passed down through the generations and adapted a little. A butterflied turkey breast is stuffed with herbs and grapes, rolled up and tied and cooked in milk.
Calamari ripieni: Italian stuffed squid in white wine and tomato sauce
Cleaning whole squid can look daunting the first time, but it’s easier than it seems, and fresh calamari are well worth it. Here the tubes are filled with garlic, parsley, olives and breadcrumbs, then simmered in white wine and tomato until tender. A coastal Italian classic, with step-by-step photos.
Italian apple crostata with almond frangipane
Moist, deliciously simple tart.
Tuscan minestrone with cavolo nero and beans
The distinctive taste of this soup comes from the cavolo nero ("black cabbage"). This has recently been popularized by chefs such as Jamie Oliver and is now available in many farmers' markets.
Guinea fowl with walnuts and grapes: a Tuscan harvest recipe
This is a great dish for the autumn, with the nuts adding texture and the just-harvested grapes adding a smooth sweetness.
Tuscan grape harvest cake with red grapes, rosemary and walnuts
In Tuscany, this complex-flavoured but simple to make cake is only made for a few weeks a year, when the small, sweet, seedy red grapes are around (many are “gleaned” in the vineyards after the harvest). Use the sweetest red grapes you can.
Tuscan mushroom crostini with porcini and Vin Santo
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.
Peperonata: Italian sweet and sour stewed peppers
This dish is even nicer the day after it has been made and is delicious warm, cold and at room temperature!
Tuscan pork stew with white wine, sage and rosemary
The white wine, stock and slow cooking make the pieces of pork really melt in your mouth.
Tuscan bean and farro soup (zuppa di farro)
This bean and spelt soup hails from the Lucca region of Tuscany, known for its hearty, honest cuisine. Rich in legumes and grains, it’s a rustic, comforting dish made with farro, borlotti beans, and good olive oil. Creamy and nourishing, this traditional Luccan soup is perfect for cozy winter dinners.
Creamy fennel and saffron soup
A silky Tuscan soup of browned fennel and saffron, light and golden, made with just a handful of ingredients. An elegant first course for autumn.
Buckwheat crespelle with squash, chestnuts and ricotta
This warming fall recipe combines the sweetness of chestnuts, leek and squash with the nutty taste of buckwheat.
Crunchy pan-fried Brussels sprouts with hazelnuts and chili
They key to enjoying them is not to overcook them! This recipe keeps them crunchy and tasty.
Buckwheat crespelle with ricotta and spinach
These delicious crepes are a great alternative to pasta. You can make them hours in advance and assemble them just before warming and serving.
Baked fennel with orange and pomegranate
Soft-baked fennel with orange and fresh pomegranate seeds: a colourful, easy autumn side dish from our Tuscan cooking school.
Certaldo onion soup: Tuscan red onion soup with toasted bread
Our local town, Certaldo, had been famous for almost a thousand years for its delicious red onions. A group of local farmers has been growing them and popularising them again. They are used in many dishes. One of the most popular is this simple, warming soup.
Tuscan bean and escarole crostini
You can serve small quantities of this Tuscan bean dish on crostini, as an appetizer, or larger quantities as a hearty soup.
Sweet and sour baby onions in balsamic vinegar (cipolline in agrodolce)
Your guests will be fighting over these tangy onions! Remember to provide plenty of bread to mop up the delicious caramelized sauce coating them. At our cooking school in Tuscany, this side dish is one of the biggest hits!
Pasta e ceci: Tuscan pasta and chickpea soup with rosemary
This dish is lighter than it sounds, but is satisfying enough to have as a one-course meal with bread to dip into the bowl. It is a hit on our cooking courses in Italy, particularly the vegetarian ones.
Orecchiette with broccoli, garlic, chili and capers
This is a quick, healthy and tasty dish originally from southern Italy which has many possible variations (some add anchovies, some boil the broccoli in the pasta water etc).