Tuscans use this approach to life in general, paying attention to each aspect or each moment along the way of any process. It is with each inspired brush stroke that Leonardo painted his masterpieces and with each perfect note that Puccini constructed his melodious operas.

In fact, music can be used as an analogy to many ways in which Tuscans approach life; paying attention to each single note, not going “off-key” or “out-of-tune…”

I was recently reminded of the “off-key” aspect in a conversation I had near Lucca with Maria a.k.a. “The Pasta Lady” at the villa Maionchi estate. Maria and her sister-in-law Alba take 100 of only the freshest, newly-laid eggs each morning to make pasta by hand for the Villa Maionchi restaurant. They also make those amazing vegetable soups (with bread or farro) found only in Lucca.

I have tried to replicate the Lucca soups by using the classic recipes. Soups made anywhere else never taste quite like those in Lucca. The reason for this is that the Lucchesi (people from Lucca) are famous for the use of Erbi (wild greens) found in the surrounding areas of Lucca and in the Garfagnana region. There are wild asparagus, tomatoes, lettuces, bitter greens, etc.

Maria attended classes in Lucca at a cooking school dedicated to these Erbi. She shared with me that there are more than 100 varieties of Erbi and that it takes much studying and field experience to learn them all. I found this interesting because, until now, the mothers and grandmothers from the Lucca area (including my own grandmother) have gathered Erbi for thousands of years handing down their knowledge from generation to generation. I suppose it’s a sign of modern times that aspiring cooks are going to an official cooking school to learn Erbi!

Besides soup, Erbi are cooked in pies, as a side dish and even in some desserts. Maria explained that the most important thing she learned at this school was to always use the right taste and balance of Erbi in any preparation. She was taught to be sure that the preparation contained no wild green that “stonava” (stonare means to be “out-of-tune” or “off-key”). In other words, when cooking, you should always make sure there is no ingredient that clashes with the others and that everything blends together harmoniously.

The concept of food being balanced and “in tune” is one often used in Tuscany. It goes side-by-side with the philosophy of paying attention to each detail. All ingredients used in each step along the way should complement each other and form a great-tasting end result like the notes in a musical symphony. Tuscans use the “out-of-tune” guide as an aesthetic barometer in many ways: In fashion, art, cooking, architecture and in family life, it is important to make sure things are always “In tune.” Do you cook in tune? Is your life in tune?

Wine appreciation in Tuscany goes well beyond wine tasting – it is a total sensual experience! Where else can sip wine and savor food made with the freshest most delectable ingredients resulting from recipes going back hundreds of years?  In Tuscany, wine and food are intentionally meant to ‘marry’ well.
 
If you are looking for a romantic wine getaway, ideal locations in Tuscany include the high peaks of the Apuan Alps, the cypress-outlined, rolling hills of the Chianti area, jagged seaside cliffs, the enchanting Tuscan islands or the beautiful beaches of the Italian Riviera. It does not get much sexier than the self-assured way Tuscans dress or carry themselves. Stay a while and learn to fit in with the locals.
 
As for specific wines, Chianti is one of Italy’s robust reds and there are over 10,000 acres of vineyards in the Chianti area. How long will it take you to cruise all that acreage with your rented red Ferrari?
 
If great restaurant explorations are your cup of tea, you have but to choose from a list of world-class offerings around the Tuscany region.  Or, you can go exploring country roads and discover your own favorite romantic hideaway with “Mamma” cooking in the kitchen and the rest of the family making you feel welcome.
 
Did you know that Tuscany’s wines go way beyond Chianti?  The world-renowned Brunello di Montalcino area is ideal for having an exquisite meal with your lover in a beautiful castle among the vineyards and olive groves  while enjoying pasta, cured meats, crostini, bruschette and an array of world-class cheeses – all this and one of the world’s great wines.
 
You can be tantalized by the blending of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon used to make the full-bodied Super Tuscan Wines.  Or, if you find decadent desserts more alluring, try pairing one with Vin Santo (a Tuscan dessert wine).  A stand-alone sweet wine for staying “in the moment” is a sweet Vino di Meditation or wine to meditate on.
 
The ultimate experience may be to visit Tuscany in the autumn harvest season to get your arms around the grape gathering and crushing then taste the wonderful result of your labors. Some winemakers in Tuscany still stomp grapes with their feet and welcome visitors to get in on the action. Squishing grapes with your toes in the middle of a picturesque landscape and involving all your senses is quite sexy indeed.
 
serenella@toscanamia.biz

http://www.tuscany.org/Food-and-Wine/Tuscan-Wines/
http://www.intoscana.it/intoscana/home.jsp?language=en

The villa is situated in the little village of Falacrine in the province of Rieti in what used to be the Sabine territory  in antiquity.

Leading the group of international archeologists on this dig is Filippo Coarelli, a professor from the University of Perugia.  Coarelli stated:

“The villas of this period generally don’t bear any inscriptions which makes it difficult to attribute ownership.  But there are many indications, including the location, that lead us to believe that this is the villa where the Emperor Vespasian was born.”

Using small shovels and scalpels, the archeologists worked for four years close to an ancient necropolis and a little church of probable medieval origins when they uncovered the perimeter of this villa.

Part of a 14 thousand square meter complex (about 150,000 square feet), the building was constructed with luxury features; grand reception halls decorated with multi-colored marbles from north Africa, columns and private thermal baths. Some rooms have floors covered in delicate mosaics.

According to the archeologists, a villa of this type could only be built for an extremely wealthy family such as that of Vespasian.

Tito Flavio Vespasiano became emperor of the Roman Empire in 69 AD following a turbulent and unstable period that led to the death of Nero.  Vespasian ruled for 10 years and gave birth to the Flavi dynasty.  His name is tied to the construction of the Coliseum which was actually inaugurated under Titus in 80 AD. Vespasian also built the new forum and the Roman public baths (and instituted the taxes that went along with them).

For more information Great Italy site for villa rentals, weddings, tours, real estate, e-books, products and more!

During her long television career, Julia was known as the “French Chef.”  Julia studied at length in France at the famous Cordon Bleu cooking school.  However, Julia and her husband were gourmets and loved food from many nations.  In fact, according to a Julia Child biography on Answers.com, Julia’s passion for cooking originated during her assignment to China in 1941 where she was influenced by her future husband Paul’s passion for food.

What you may not know, is that Julia Child had a great love for Italy and Italian food as well. This one-woman dynamo hosted an annual luxury tour to Italy for food buffs during her long career.

In 1987, Julia Child traveled to Italy for ABC’s Good Morning America and hosted a hugely popular, 5-part series on Italy and Italian food.  Here are three of the most entertaining of those clips from the ABC News site:

WATCH: 1987: Italian Bread Dishes
During her trip to Italy, Julia Child learns about various bread dishes.

WATCH: 1987: Parmesan Cheese and Homemade Pasta
While in Italy, Julia Child prepares pasta and meets makers of parmesan cheese.

WATCH: 1987: Italy’s Olive Oil, Wine and Tuscan Cuisine
Through pork roast and olive oil, Julia Child explores flavorful Tuscan cuisine.

Learn more about Italy and Italian food on the Toscana Mia Blog.
Great Italy site for villa rentals, weddings, tours, real estate, ebooks, products and more!

Leonardo (from Ansa in the Foggia area), is a retired physician, married with children and the ex mayor of his native town Troia.

“There is nothing extraordinary about this,” says Leonardo. “I only study before each test.”

His first degree was in medicine followed by degrees in law, political science, the arts, philosophy, agriculture, science of tourism, history of science, social history and this last one in Biotechnology.

One wonders what he might do next!

A project and creation of the students of the Scuola Superiore di Sant’Anna of Pisa, a scientific research institute of the University of Pisa, the DustBots are part of a 3-year project aimed at finding new ways to dispose of urban trash.  The project is gathering world-wide interest.

The robots have a touch screen for ease of use and are adorable to look at. They are fitted with GPS navigation, a gyroscope, beacons and a multitude of sensors to keep them from running into humans (an excellent idea since these robots weigh in at 1.5 tons)!

The DustBot can also serve as a personal concierge for anyone needing information on the town.

According to the Institute of Sant’Anna:

The DustBot project is aimed at designing, developing, testing and demonstrating a system for improving the management of urban hygiene based on a network of autonomous and cooperating robots, embedded in an Ambient Intelligence infrastructure.

As always, an initial experiment is never perfect: these first robots are slow moving and have a small bin capacity.  But, with just a call from a customer’s cell phone, these bots are ready to help Italians move towards a greener world!

My friend Ada of My Italian online – Il mio Italiano online has shared with us  8 household tips handed down to her from her Italian nonna:

1. Vinegar:  Is your vinegar too strong?  Place two small slices of apples in the vinegar and let them sit for three days.  This will make your vinegar much lighter and better tasting
2. Home made broth: To make a good broth, you must add the meat when the water is cold and add a pinch of bicarbonate of soda
3. Old coffee maker (that’s been sitting around):  To take away the bad odor, fill the pot with milk and bring to a boil
4. Carrots:  When you are boiling carrots, adding a little apple juice to the water will add to the flavor
5. Gnocchi: A pinch of saffron added to the dough gives them a light yellow color and is pleasing to the palate
6. Yogurt: Purchase yogurt that contains live and active cultures.  In a small pan, warm up some milk then pour it into a jar.  Add a few teaspoons of the yogurt.  Close the jar and let it rest for an entire day (10 – 12 hours).  When you open the jar, you will have an excellent yogurt.  If you use a few teaspoons of this yogurt and repeat the process over again, the yogurt will continue to get creamier. Repeat as often as you like
7. Lemon: To preserve a lemon that has been used (like one sliced in half), place in sliced-side-down in a plate containing some fresh water.  It will stay fresh for a number of days
8. Bread (no Italian tip list can be complete without something about bread): To store bread (or cake) and keep it fresh, add half an apple to the bag

Next time we will talk about Nonna’s kitchen remedies.  Meanwhile, do you have any wisdom handed down from your grandmother that you’d like to share?

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As I look at my mother Velia, who at 93 is still vibrant, stylish and feisty, I can’t help but think of all the women of her generation with their indomitable spirit and resilience.

Born in San Mateo, CA in 1916 of immigrant parents, my mother was taken back to Italy at the age of 3. During her childhood, Velia’s father was often gone for years at a time, working hard to send money back to his family in Italy. This was the story of many Italian families in those days. Later, my mother was moved to locations all over France, Italy and Corsica following my grandfather’s and grandmother’s peregrinations. My grandfather was a masonry contractor but also ventured into restaurant ownership and the wholesale produce business among other things.

My mother lost her only brother to peritonitis when she was only 11. She survived the Great Depression and World War II during which she lost her first two babies, saw many friends suffer and was separated from my father with no communication for 24 months while he was a prisoner in a Nazi prison camp. She and my father lost another infant of six months after the war. I was her fourth child. My sister was born later after we came to America. My mother has been widowed since 1980.

Despite all the life challenges thrown her way, Velia continues to amaze us all as well as her doctors who think she is in unbelievable shape. She still makes her award-winning home-made vinegar, bread and pizza from scratch and all the traditional Tuscan treats for the holidays. She labors for many days to prepare surprises for unforgettable Christmas dinners. She has always worked hard. She has learned to use her computer email and Skype to keep up with our family and friends in Italy. Unfortunately, her macular degeneration has made it difficult for her to knit, crochet and sew, three things she loved to do. Many are the newborns who received Velia’s special “lucky booties.”

Velia’s pride and joy are her two grandsons (my sons). And woe betide them if they go a long time without calling or visiting their Nonna!

My sister and I have definitely taken a back seat when it comes to her attention. Even though they are in their 30s, Nonna Velia continues to make David and Angelo (home-made) goodie baskets for Befana and Easter – and they love it!

Perhaps it is my mother’s example that explains my reaction to the story of the 98-year-olds, Maria D’Antuono and Ines Alessandro who survived the recent  L’Aquila, Italy earthquake. This is not really surprising. The women of that generation symbolize the Italian people themselves; they have survived thousands of years of invasions, famines, wars and the ravages of nature only to always rise stronger than before.

In honor of Mother’s Day, current articles are about the spirit of Italian mothers or grandmothers and their recipes. Past articles include:

Nonna’s coffee liqueur recipe for Mother’s Day
Recipes from Italian mothers and grandmothers for Mother’s Day – Ribollita
Recipes from Italian mothers and grandmothers for Mother’s Day – Tiramisú
Mother’s from Italy share recipes for Mother’s Day– Salt Cod and Risotto
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E-mail:  toscanamiawork@gmail.com

Following are reader suggestions and some recipes. Buon Appetito!

1. Leftovers vegetables make great pasta sauce: Take leftover vegetables, chop them up, sauté in some olive oil with garlic and add a little tomato sauce or chopped tomatoes. Add salt and pepper. This makes a great pasta sauce. You can sauté the cooked pasta in this sauce and add parmesan cheese just before serving
2. Leftovers for a creative frittata: All sorts of leftovers are good for making a frittata. If you have some leftover veggies or meat, you can cut them in pieces. Sauté some onions in olive oil, add the leftovers and add salt and pepper. In a separate bowl lightly beat some eggs (quantity will vary depending on the amount of leftovers) with a teaspoon of olive oil, salt, pepper and a teaspoon of grated parmesan. Add to the cooked vegetables and cook on the stovetop or pop into a hot oven for a flavorful frittata
3. Roast chicken or turkey leftovers: Make chicken pot pie or turkey pot pie using chopped meat and adding flavorful ingredients. Use the bones for making broth for soup.
4. Fish leftovers: chop the fish to make fish tacos or fish burritos
5. Potato leftovers: Make potato pancakes or try potato gnocchi
6. Leftover beans:  Make chli or bean soups or do as this reader suggests:
   “I made this recipe for Kemp’s Black Beans today. Unbelievably delicious. I used onion powder and more sherry than called for.”
7. Leftover meat: chop or grind the meat and use to stuff peppers, zucchini or to make stuffed eggplants

Please send in more suggestions and I will share with everyone,. Let’s help each other eat live better!

Photo: Stuffed eggplant (melanzana ripiena)

For more info: serenella@toscanamia.biz.

In 2008, Italy was named as one of the top 5 retirement destinations for U.S. citizens by

One of the best decisions I could have made when moving to Italy last year was to bring my adorable miniature dachshunds with me. Ruby and Ginger, ages 4 and 3 respectively, are little red cuties who attract lots of attention here. They are referred to as Bassoto or “short legs.” Because mine are miniature, they are called bassotini.

When I take the girls out for their walks, I get stopped by at least half the people I see so they can pet them, talk to them or just call them “belline” (pretty little girls). The girls are very friendly, so this helps tremendously. Many of the folks I see on a daily basis make a beeline for the girls and I am just the one who happens to be holding their leashes. Ruby and Ginger have many, many friends here who don’t mind in the least if they jump on them and give them kisses. I have tried in vain to teach them not to jump on people, but here it’s encouraged.

There are so many differences in the way dogs are treated and respected here than in America. Now, I know many pet owners in America who consider their dogs their children as I do, but here it is unreal! I regularly take them into any market, coffee bar or restaurant that I frequent. I’ve even taken them in with me when I’m shopping for shoes and clothing. There are very few places where they are not welcome.

It’s not uncommon for me to be walking Ruby and Ginger down a street and have someone in a car or on a bike stop in mid-traffic to gush over them. Little children regularly run up to them and pet and hug them. This scares me a bit because they are animals and I’m always worried that they might be frightened and hurt a child. In America, it seems as if parents encourage their children to ask before touching a dog that they haven’t seen before. In Italy, they just mimic their parents. Last week, I had two men who were coming from their corporate building stop in mid-conversation to pet them and give them hugs.

In America, Ruby and Ginger used their pet door to go outside. Lucca is a city and I live in an apartment so I take them out for their walks regularly here. I am one of those responsible pet owners who cleans up after my dogs. Others, unfortunately, don’t. On more than one occasion, I’ve had an Italian woman open her shutters and scream out the window for me to clean up after my dogs! I usually don’t know what they are saying because my Italian is poor but I can certainly guess. I pull my bags out of my pocket to try to explain that I do follow the rules and they just slam the shutters closed. Lucca has street sweepers who sweep at least once a day, so it’s not something that is too much of a problem but they can’t be everywhere all the time.

Lucca has become very conscientious now and has placed bags completely around the fortress walls at regular intervals to encourage pet owners to keep the areas clean. I’ve definitely seen an improvement.

Even though Lucca is very dog-friendly, there are some negative and distressful things that occur. Many dogs are left to wander on their own and it can be very upsetting when I am walking my girls on their leashes, only to have a loose dog come up and challenge or fight them. There are many strays that rummage through the garbage and run around town all day, but it’s usually the ones who are with their rude owners who cause the problems. Every time a dog has ever fought with one of my girls, its owner has stood several feet away calling him back.

All in all, though, I couldn’t have made a better decision than to bring them. Since there isn’t a quarantine period here, it was great to have lovable company to get me through the first few weeks of being a stranger in a new land. They are truly my best friends.
For more info: serenella@toscanamia.biz.
Marlene’s Life in Tuscany