TYPICAL PRODUCTS FROM TUSCANY

DOP – di origine protetta – are products with trademarks from the government that guarantee the origin:

• Farina di Neccio della Garfagnana DOP – Chestnut flour from the province of Lucca, used to make various specialities
  Salamini italiani alla cacciatora DOP – small, mild salami sausages made of lean pork
• Prosciutto toscano DOP – salted raw pork ham, slightly salted, very tasty due to the addition of garlic, rosemary, juniper berries and myrtle.
• Pecorino toscano DOP – semi hard or soft full fat cheese made from sheep’s milk, used with Ribollita toscana, pasta and meat dishes, as well as in combination with honey, jam, fresh seasonal fruit and vegetables.
• Pecorino romano DOP – full fat sheep’s milk cheese, aromatic and spicy, from the regions Latium, Sardinia and the province of Grosseto in Tuscany.
• Terre di Siena DOP – natural fruity olive oil from the Cultivar Frantoio, Correggiolo, Moraiolo and Leccino int he province of Siena
• Olio d’oliva Chianti classico DOP - natural fruity olive oil from the Cultivar Frantoio, Correggiolo, Moraiolo and Leccino in the provinces of Florence and Siena, from the area of the DOCG wine Chianti Classico; goes especially well with pulses, spelt soup, bean soup, panzanella and beef dishes.
• Olio d’oliva Lucca DOP – natural fruity olive oil from the Cultivar Frantoio, Frantoiano, Leccino in the province of Lucca
  Miele della Lunigiana DOP – first and only DOP protected honey in Italy available as chestnut, acacia and meadow honey from 97 hectares of hills in 14 communities around Lunigiana in the province of Massa Carrara.
• Zafferano di San Gimignano DOP – hand picked Safran with an extraordinary intensive taste and red colour from the community of San Gimignano in the province of Siena

TYPICAL DISHES
The Tuscan cuisine is uncomplicated and simple. Olive oil, vegetables and herbs are widely used as well as all kinds of meat from beef to pork, lamb, venison, rabbit and all kinds of birds. Fish is usually more to be found around the coast by Livorno which is where the fish soup „caciucco“ comes from. The magnificent specimen under the meat dishes is of course the „Bistecca Fiorentina“, a tenderloin with T-Bone weighing 600-800 g, almost unseasoned and grilled over charcoal. The sliced knuckle of veal known as „ossobuco“, contains a delicacy, the marrow, in the centre of the bone. Trippa, a stew of veal tripe that is prepared differently from village to village. „involtini“, stuffed veal rolls are another of the delicacies of this region. Turkey and of course guinea fowl are much loved in Tuscany due to there spicy taste. We should also mention sucking pig that is roasted whole. „Necci“ is flat baked bread made from chestnut flour and water seasoned with rosemary. A cake also made from chestnut flour olive oil, nuts and pine nuts. Pasta is also sometimes made from chestnut flour. In San Gimignano you can find a broccoli dish with saffron, and you can taste the olive oil in every dish eaten. In Tuscany no bread is ever thrown away as the typical dish, especially around the area of Florence, known as „ribollita“ is made from this. It is a vegetable soup with beans and soaked pieces of bread and tastes even better when re heated which is where the name came from.