Food and wine specialities from land and sea

Dining on seafood or land-based dishes: seafood abounds along the coast, while in the immediate hinterland the food changes completely. So don’t expect to find seafood on the menu here even though the sea glistens on just the other side of the hills. But land or sea, the recipes are always based on the simplicity and authenticity of the Tuscan farmhouse tradition and should always be accompanied by excellent olive oil and wine.

Seafood specialities of the Etruscan Coast

Along the coast south of Livorno, the cuisine remains as straightforward and delicious as that of the province’s capital where the dining experience comes from a fusion of cultures, hospitality, inspiration and from the population’s creativity in times of famine. The city’s most quintessential dish is cacciucco, spelt with five Cs. The name probably derives from the Turkish kuzuk meaning ‘small’, a reference to the size of the fish traditionally used in this poor-man’s stew of mixed seafood and tomato, served with a slice of garlicky bread. It is a recipe deeply linked to the sea and its ways: as the people of Livorno know, any wastage of fish is unthinkable. In restaurants, the catch of the day is always on the menu, accompanied by other traditional recipes such as baccalà alla livornese - fried salt cod dipped in tomato sauce - or triglie (mullet) alla livornese, or  stuffed squid and cuttlefish as well as mussels - also stuffed. Seafood, of course, gets top billing in all the restaurants along the coast, with everything from traditional to more innovative menus: try the cacio e pepe di mare at Il Bucaniere in San Vincenzo.

Val di Cornia for meat-eaters and vegetarians

Just over the boundary marked by the Aurelia highway the seafood specialities make way for those from the land, where meat, or ‘ciccia’ as the Tuscans call it, reigns supreme. The bistecca alla fiorentina is the rib-eye steak (high cut of veal or heifer) cooked on the grill and served rare: it is rooted in this land together with other dishes, many based on game – in particular, wild boar. Wild boar salami, wild boar stew, wild boar with chestnuts, pappardelle with wild boar ragu: these are just a few examples of how this woodland meat is cooked. But the local cuisine also offers great choice for vegetarians. In fine weather, the garden and table are full of fresh vegetables and juicy fruits, while in autumn chestnuts, truffles and mushrooms are aplenty. The soup season begins with winter, the most famous being ribollita made with black cabbage, beans and stale bread, literally ‘reboiled’ the day after its preparation, deepening the flavours. Furthermore, the fertile lands of the Val di Cornia are famous for their tomatoes and the violet artichoke. The tradition of local-made cheese is just as rich and varied, offering fresh ricottas and the typical Tuscan pecorino, to enjoy at all its various stages of ageing with honey or local jams. Finally, if you have a sweet tooth, try the Schiaccia alla campigliese prepared with eggs, sugar, flour, pork lard and lots of pine nuts. The Schiaccia Briaca dell'Elba is also sweet and prepared with flour, sugar, grapes, dried fruit, pine nuts, wine and Alchermes (which gives its red colour and alcoholic aroma!): accompany it with a small glass of Aleatico Passito dell'Elba.

Never without bread, oil and wine

As in many other areas of Tuscany, extra virgin olive oil is a basic ingredient of the cuisine. Here, this green gold is of exceptional quality thanks to the sun-kissed and breezy terrains where the olives are cultivated. It is the perfect ingredient to enrich the simplest slice of traditional unsalted Tuscan bread. Wine, like oil, is always on the table and has a strong farmhouse tradition, refined in the DOC and DOCG wines like the Suvereto DOCG and Val di Cornia Rosso DOCG and the Morellino di Scansano DOCG, the Maremma DOC and the Bianco di Pitigliano DOC. The wines from the islands deserve separate consideration: the Elba Aleatico Passito DOCG and the wines of Giglio are authentic treasures to enjoy in situ, as they are difficult to find anywhere else.

Festivals and Sagra: flavours in all seasons

Many festivals, either dedicated to seafood or land specialities, enliven not just the summer, but all seasons along the Etruscan Coast and in Val di Cornia. The noteworthy seaside festivals include, at the end of July, the Sagra del Pesce Fritto (fried seafood festival) in Piombino and, in the central week of August, the Sagra del Pesce (seafood festival) in Donoratico. There are also several festivals dedicated to the artichoke, including the Artichoke Pride in Venturina Terme (in April). Sassetta holds a celebration in autumn, the Feste d’Ottobre (October Festival), when entire days are dedicated to good food with a sagra where you’ll sit-down to savour chestnuts, soup, polenta and ‘tordata’ (spit roasted meats). Suvereto holds its festival in the weeks between November and December, with the eagerly awaited Sagra del Cinghiale (wild boar festival).