Traditional tastes
In the family-run tourist facilities of the Terre di Mugello network, hospitality goes hand in hand with home made food. Our holiday farms offer a unique opportunity to taste delicious typical Tuscan and Florentine dishes based on fresh local and seasonal ingredients. Here are some of the traditional recipes best loved by the Terre di Mugello members.

First courses
Spelt soup – Spelt was the earliest soft wheat variety to be introduced in ancient Italy. Until not long ago it was known only locally, but in recent years it has become a very fashionable ingredient for salads and soups.

Ribollita – The celebrated 'ribollita', a staple of rural Tuscan cuisine, is not really what you would call a 'recipe': as the name in fact suggest, originally it just indicated left-over soup boiled again for eating the day after: as a result, there are countless variations on the recipe.

Ricotta and spinach 'gnudi' – 'Gnudi' means 'naked', and the name comes from the fact that they are made exactly like the stuffed pasta filling, but without the pasta around it! They are round and green due to the spinach in the mix and they taste markedly of spinach and cheese.

Tortelli Mugellani – The local 'tortelli' are golden stuffed pasta squares with boiled potatoes and cheese filling. Since our Tuscan regional cuisine is renowned mostly for soups rather than pasta dishes, the exquisite potato tortelli from Mugello are a rather uncommon exception. This old peasant dish is typical of the Sieve river valley and especially of the villages of Luco, Grezzano, Ronta and San Godenzo. The best results come when using the tasty white potatoes from Upper Mugello.

Chestnut tortelli – The recipe for tortelli with chestnut filling is typical (albeit with some variations) of the Mugello and Lunigiana valleys in Tuscany, two mountain areas where chestnuts have been for centuries the staple of the local peasants' diet.

Second courses
Meat - The ultimate Tuscan dish, 'bistecca alla fiorentina', (Florentine t-bone steak) is a feat for red meat fans: it should be about one inch thick and grilled over an open fire. The Tuscan 'chianina' breed of cattle is unanimously agreed to make the very best bistecca meat. Needless to say, a good chianti red wine is a must to wash this down...

Pork - In case you do not like your beef rare, a savory alternative is rosticciana (sometimes spelt 'rostinciana'): that's barbecued pork ribs. Worth trying are also 'lonza in umido' (pork loin casserole) and 'arista in porchetta' (chine of pork in a bacon wrap).

The celebrated Mugello chestnuts are also used in a variety of dishes such as 'scamerita con le castagne' (scamerita is a pork cut between the neck and shoulder).

Poultry - Mugello boasts its own fowl breed, the miniature 'galline mugellesi', celebrated for their tender and savoury meat. These free-range cockerels are excellent when barbecued (whatch out for 'galletti mugellesi alla griglia' on the menu!), and you will find it convenient that due to their diminutive size one 'galletto' is easily shared between two people.

Anatra in umido (duck casserole) is another tasty option very much in favour in any Mugello kirchen, since the resulting sauce is also excellent to season egg pasta like pappardelle.

Sweets
Chestnut cake – This recipe from Marradi in Upper Mugello is the most typical and most sought-after dessert in the many country festivals celebrating the delicious PGI Mugello chestnuts in the Autumn weekends, and it is certainly the best loved by the locals.

Schiacciata alla fiorentina (Florentine style schiacciata) – In spite of its name ('schiacciata' means something like 'flat bread'!), this is a heavenly spongy and sweet smelling cake. It can be found in Florence and surrounding areas at Carnival time: the recipe was in fact typical of Berlingaccio, a festivity held on the last Thursday before Lent. This 'Schiacciata alla fiorentina' can also be stuffed with whipped cream, but custard is an even more delicious option and can easily make richer or lighter to match your taste.