The verdant landscape of Tuscany, with her rolling hills and valleys blanketed in olive groves, vineyards, oaks, and farmland, is famously picturesque and is also a highly productive agricultural area. Tuscany is, furthermore, famously a foodie capital, not just because of the dishes made in the region but also due to the incredible raw ingredients grown throughout her stunning landscape. As such, while there are plenty of cakes, pasta dishes, street food favourites, cured meats, cheeses, and other delicious specialties to be tried while exploring the foodie scene of Tuscany, there are also some delectable local fruits and vegetables to be tried as well. While you shop in grocery stores and weekly markets in the region, you should try and keep an eye out for these wonderful foodie fundamentals to try and incorporate into dishes put together while enjoying the experience of cooking in the stunning kitchens of our amazing luxury villas in Tuscany. From the rich chestnuts of Caprese Michelangelo and the sweet chestnuts of Mugello, to the colourful carrots of Pastinocello, to vibrant Certaldo onions, to the famous Queen peaches of Londa, there are all sorts of delicious local produce items to get your hands on (dependent on the time of year, of course) while on vacation in Tuscany. However, if you have found a luxury villa in Florence and are exploring the foodie scene of the surrounding area, be sure to discover the incredible figs of Carmignano.
An area long known for its culinary heritage and wonderful produce, Carmignano was favoured by the Etruscans as a land abundant in wine, olive oil, and fig trees. Nicknamed Carmignan da' fichi (Carmignano of the Figs), there are several varieties of fig grown in the area around the town including the Verdino, San Piero fig, Brogiotto Nero, Corbo, or the rare Perticone, Pécciolo, and Rossellino varieties. While the figs are harvested in late summer (usually from the latter half of August into September), it is the dried fig from Carmignano that is most famous and these cannot hit the market until the 29th of September (the feast of San Michele, the patron saint of the town) each year. The sweet dried figs and products made from them are then consumed throughout the winter and particularly over the Christmas period. The best variety of fig for drying is the dottato, a white fruit variety that makes up a whopping 90% of all the figs grown in the area.
Dried for around forty days, the figs of Carmignano and Poggio a Caiano, in the province of Prato, are often served stuffed with cream and pine nuts or combined with Vin Santo wine and walnuts. When eaten fresh, the figs are usually served with cuts of cured meat or on their own. No matter what way you eat them, however, you can rest assured knowing that they are some of the best and most tasty figs produced in the entire world.
The area that surrounds Carmignano is also rich in lots of other delicious products and there are many different food festivals dedicated to these incredible delights that take place throughout the year. The town itself plays host to the Welcome Dried Fig (Benvenuto Fico Secco) festival in October but other neighbouring towns and municipalities also host festivals dedicated to cherries, chestnuts, wine, polenta, Porcini mushrooms, wild boar meat, and more. So, if you are a foodie who has found a vacation rental in Florence , then be sure to check out what is in season, get out of the city during your trip, and head the 20km west to Carmignano to come explore the rich abundance of yummy treats to be found in this part of Tuscany.
Dried for around forty days, the figs of Carmignano and Poggio a Caiano, in the province of Prato, are often served stuffed with cream and pine nuts or combined with Vin Santo wine and walnuts. When eaten fresh, the figs are usually served with cuts of cured meat or on their own. No matter what way you eat them, however, you can rest assured knowing that they are some of the best and most tasty figs produced in the entire world.
The area that surrounds Carmignano is also rich in lots of other delicious products and there are many different food festivals dedicated to these incredible delights that take place throughout the year. The town itself plays host to the Welcome Dried Fig (Benvenuto Fico Secco) festival in October but other neighbouring towns and municipalities also host festivals dedicated to cherries, chestnuts, wine, polenta, Porcini mushrooms, wild boar meat, and more. So, if you are a foodie who has found a vacation rental in Florence , then be sure to check out what is in season, get out of the city during your trip, and head the 20km west to Carmignano to come explore the rich abundance of yummy treats to be found in this part of Tuscany.
