Pienza (Tuscany)

Fagioli all’uccelletto is a mainstay of Florentine households and comes out best with pre-soaked beans — but we won’t tell the Tuscan purists if you opt for a canned shortcut. 

Ribollita is a hearty but healthy soup from the Tuscan cucina povera tradition — the perfect thing to make on a chilly weekend.

It’s universal: Every country with a coastline has its many seafood stews. In Italy, Tuscany has two that spark fierce debate: cacciucco alla viareggina from Viareggio and cacciucco alla livornese from Livorno. Today, we make the case for the Livorno version. 

Simple to make and not too sweet, buccellato is a traditional aromatic dessert bread of Lucca. It’s said that if you come to town and don’t try it, you may as well never have visited.