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Heirloom beans from Lucca (Tuscany) Read more…

ABOUT

ABOUT

Curious Appetite is a Gourmet Blog by Coral Sisk, Italian-American writer, certified Italian sommelier & culinary tourism specialist from Seattle living in Florence, Italy


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Florence’s mini zona rosa (much preferred over r Florence’s mini zona rosa (much preferred over rossa) around the corner from Borgo Allegri...most of Florence’s color scheme has rhyme and reason, corresponding to periods from the gold tinted Middle Ages to Rococo pastels- and it’s not easy to change/add shades on a whim! I was determined to find historic meaning behind this pretty in pink facade, even grilling one of our guides Valeria who says it was probably just painted over recently. But! In the process I learned the corner of the building (the angle where one of my favorite spots of pizza in town @ladivinapizzafirenze stands) has a coat of arms (not pictured) and that looks like that of the Pazzi family- so while the pink hues are probably for fun, the building itself has crazy history. Like pretty much everything around Italy! This is one of the ways I’m staying entertained in zona arancione- spiraling down random rabbit holes. What about you?! 💕🇮🇹#curiousappetite #florenceitaly
WHO LOVES LASAGNA?! Come make some with layers of WHO LOVES LASAGNA?! Come make some with layers of béchamel, mozzarella and pesto as a win-win for those curious about pesto and for meatless eaters this Sunday at 12noon ET with culinary teacher Patrizia in Florence via zoom! We send an easy shop list with recipes after booking tickets We’re not sillies and appreciate THE traditional version is Bolognese (registered with the chamber of commerce!) with slow cooked ragù but there’s room to make pop versions of this layered caloric vessel. And like nearly everything, this ‘sta dates back to Roman times, less like the saucy richness we indulge in today but rather as fire-baked “lagana” square shaped wheat sheets. Deets and tickets on our Sunday pasta classes online are via link in bio branch- buona lasagna! #curiousappetite #takemetoItaly
When I first moved to Florence nearly a decade ago When I first moved to Florence nearly a decade ago via Seattle, I missed quality-driven/origin-focused coffee although loved the culture and ritual surrounding its consumption. @dittaartigianale opened less than 2 years after I landed and now Florence has a notable “blended” coffee scene, like @melaleuca.florence where this @d612coffee heirloom single origin ☕️ pour over and pistachio cream cheese frosted brownie cupcake was delightfully devoured (sorry budino di riso...) On our food tours in Florence we stop at coffee shops to partake in traditional espresso and sweets, now pivoted to virtual offerings like Italian coffee workshops and curated gourmet boxes including favorite made in Italy hits with craft flair. I miss sharing these aspects of Florence’s food scene with you all in person, but hope these alternatives help you feel closer to the endorphin inducing calories I love What are the comestible experiences you are missing from Italia? (I mean at this point, probably all of them...) More ideas for connecting to Italy via link in bio- buon appetito! 💚🇮🇹 #curiousappetite #florentinegourmetclub
If you’re a meat and potatoes kinda eater, you m If you’re a meat and potatoes kinda eater, you might love Tortelli Mugellani- a hyper regional pasta from the Mugello zone of Tuscany (north of Florence!), which are ravioli stuffed with potato dressed in a tomato-y meat sugo. Anyone out there into carb-on-carb action? (imagine if these were stuffed in a panino roll 😍) This is one of the pastas Patrizia (journalist/sommelier/all around joy) will be rolling from Florence online in March- check out our Sunday pasta making schedule and sign up via link in bio under “fresh pasta classes” branch! Buona domenica a tutti 🍝 🥔
Now that Lent started Wednesday, we’re spotting Now that Lent started Wednesday, we’re spotting “quaresimali” biscotti at bakeries around Italy, which were sneaky ways to sneak in decadence, one of my favorites are chocolate meat-decoy cookies in Modica. These ones in Florence are egg white and cacao-based baked into letters meant to spell out verses. When you bite into them you’re surprised to find them rather chewy and chalky, because they’re made without added fats (you know, Lent) but they kinda grow on you, and make for good dipping in a macchiato or vin santo (those are permissible substances, right? Can’t give up everything!) Also- I wonder what is actually there left to give up?! I tried wine but that lasted a whole 4 days...whoops! Well, buon venerdì a tutti! 🍷 🍪 #curiousappetite #quaresimali
One of my favorite restaurants in Florence @culina One of my favorite restaurants in Florence @culinariafirenze has a fantastic take-away/delivery menu including an artichoke flan (sformatino) over a pecorino fondue 😍 plus other Tuscan hits like baccalà, vin santo reduction infused fegatino and dark chocolate almond biscotti (plus 🍷 bottles they source from tiny organic/biodynamic producers) Please consider ordering directly from restaurants/supporting your neighborhood spots for take-away and avoid the delivery apps at all costs- I’m sure you’re aware they take a massive cut from the restaurants. Their colossal fees have discouraged many from even offering a delivery format as a result. I know the apps have overhead/provide a platform/pay people etc etc but honestly I think that cost should be passed to the consumer and not burdened to the restauranteur. It’s so hard to understand how to best support restaurants who can’t be open, but I think if we support the spots in our immediate vicinity it’s a fair start. In Florence this topic is complicated as high rent costs/and airbnb have pushed residents outside the city center, and without visitors/international students-there aren’t many neighbors to support restaurants in the center. This became long winded but the point is if you live near Piazza Tasso at all, a curated gourmet meal from @culinariafirenze is damn tasty (and supports local producers) make sure to add on a bottle of wine or 6! They do their own delivery too if you can’t take-away. Love these guys so much, my heart would break if they ever closed. 💔 P.s. plated pictures were pre-arancione/baby lockdown How is tomorrow Friday already?!?! #curiousappetite #florenceitaly
When we were still in zona gialla (yellow-tiered r When we were still in zona gialla (yellow-tiered restrictions) I got to visit a nearly century old pasta factory near Pisa I’ve been crushing on for years- @pastamartelli with colleagues for artisanal culinary tours around Tuscany Still family run, this impressive operation cuts and dries pasta the old fashioned way with bronze dies and low temperature (under 96*F) for 50hrs in humidity controlled rooms on ventilated wooden trays. The reason for this “slow” process is to preserve precious aromas and flavor- as cutting via Teflon dies and high temp drying distort the pasta matrix making it a challenge to maintain an “al dente” bite with integrity. I wish you could have been inside to smell- bakeryish without the butter! The Martelli family also sources wheat flour from the Maremma, Tuscany’s south, their legendary noodles are pasted, cut and dried in the medieval town of Lari, also prized for cherries which go into locally-made salumi and digestivo liqueurs Those of us in travel are taking advantage of this time to research new possible experiences for when you can visit, luckily this is tasty research also for our gourmet club boxes! The verdict is these maccheroni are quite the catch for a meaty ragù. 😆 🥁 Now I have about 2 kilos of their fusilli and maccheroni in my pantry- any tips on how to dress all these noodles?! 🍝#curiousappetite #foodtours Fusilli comedy sketch by #CharlesBarsotti @newyorkermag
FAT TUESDAY TREATS LIVE FROM ZONA ARANCIONE (Aka b FAT TUESDAY TREATS LIVE FROM ZONA ARANCIONE (Aka baby lockdown) pictured here are @pasticceriabuonamici’s Cenci- (aka bugie in Liguria, frappe in Rome, etc) carnival snacks hurled from ancient Rome, are caloric rags of fried dough dusted in sugar, along with fried rice pudding frittelle sold by the bag. Except me- I was the wack party pooper and got the “linea salute” cookies made with stevia and buckwheat flour. I don’t know how I sleep at night either. Hope you don’t pull a lame “salutista” move like me and eat something rich today, wear a flashy mask and throw some beads around in your quarantine pretending it’s a Mardi Gras rager vs a raging pandemic. Smooches 😘 #curiousappetite #martedìgrasso 🦹🏻‍♀️🎭🎉
Every Sunday we conduct online pasta making classe Every Sunday we conduct online pasta making classes with a different menu, this evening we made tagliatelle with an artichoke sauce! Next Sunday is stuffed tortelli with pear and pecorino- it’s already sold out but you can contact us to arrange a private class! The next available class with tickets left is Feb 28th on lasagna! Reserve your spot via link in bio! For those who watched the pasta wine live last week, I mentioned wanting to experiment with lower carb/starch flours which I put to the test tonight- it was indeed edible I must say! I experimented with ancient grain flour Sicilian Timilia as it’s nutrient-sense with gluten needed for elasticity, then lupin flour, coconut flour and organic soybean flour. I did about equal parts for 100gr recipe with an egg, and I found it “worked” but needed extra grain flour for dusting to make sure the sheets/cut pasta stayed intact. The taste was decent- the mix of legume + grain flour gave the pasta some texture and rich flavor but didn’t give any funny aftertaste as sometimes alternative-flour based pastas can have. Final verdict: it’s okay if you are trying to stay mindful of starches but want to eat noodles regularly, but I’d rather just have the full-on “00” flour pasta load on special occasions. Now what do I do with all these flours! 🤣 Naturally the online classes we teach follow traditional Italian recipes but I deviated in secret for my own curiosity. I highly encourage anyone to get creative with different flours once you get the hang of your pasta machine or rolling pin to see what YOU like! Sorry Patrizia and pasta grannies/mammas everywhere, hope you’ll forgive me for my “00” rebellion 😘🍝 #curiousappetite #onlinecookingclasses
Tonight’s Saturday somm-led Italian wine & chees Tonight’s Saturday somm-led Italian wine & cheese pairing swirled to a Valentine’s Day theme, including Italian rosati! If you’re planning to make dinner at home or take-out, consider rosato with: 🥩crudo meat plates (i.e. tartare) 🍇prosciutto or soft cheeses (like mozz!) drizzled with aged balsamic or mortadella crostini specifically with Lambrusco di Sorbara Rosato 🍝tomato-based pastas like amatriciana 🍖skewered meats like pork or lamb with herbaceous dressings 🐟 wild salmon things 🍕of course even pizza. 🌿 I also really love light high acid Italian rosati like Bardolino Chiaretto made in the cool Lake Garda zone with herb-rich Persian legume stews or dizi! These are general suggestions, of course each Italian Rosato has its own story (I also love “cerasuolo”, structured can-pair-with-anything attitude 🍒 blush from Abruzzo via Montepulciano grapes) which if you were on today’s tasting, we chatted heaps about along with cheese pairings 🤓🧀 Thanks to all who joined and sold out this week’s tasting- if you missed it, join us next Saturday! We send a list of wines you can easily find online, nearest specialty grocer or wine shop. Have any wine pairing qs for tomorrow? 💕Buon appetito! #curiousappetite #onlinewinetasting