Tuscany, Italy

On the 27^th of October we caught the train from La Spezia to Florence. From the train station we caught a bus to the airport where our hire car awaited us. From the airport it was a 40 minute drive to our airbnb apartment we had booked in St.Michele, Tuscany. We arrived at 4pm and were informed the closest town / shops near by were 3kms away and would most likely be closed because it was a Sunday so we quickly got back in our car and went for a drive to try and find something for dinner. We ended up finding a take-away pizza shop in the closest town. That night we ate traditional wood fired pizza in our cute little apartment and had an early night sleep.

The following morning we went to Incisia, the closest town with a decent size supermarket. Here we stocked up on groceries for the week and used the internet to book a cooking class in Florence for the following day.

That night we ate vegetable and chicken ragu with tortellini, one of our first home cooked meals in a long time!

The following day we got up early, had breaky and drove to the train station in Incisia so we could get the train to Florence. We arrived just in time for our cooking class tour which started off in the main Florence market. Here we tasted various cheeses, breads, oils, jams and balsamic vinegar. Our guide taught us the differences between various balsamic vinegar, about the differences in various olive oils and what Tuscans traditionally eat.

Afterwards we headed to the kitchen across the road. Here our teacher introduced himself and started preparing the ingredients for our first dish, Tiramisu.  We took turns in beating the egg whites and the yoke with sugar and mascarpone. Once both were ready we got individual cups and layered our own tiramisu beginning with cocoa powder, cream, biscuits that had been dipped in coffee followed by another layer of cocoa powder and cream.

Once all cups had been put in the refrigerator we gathered around the stove to watch the Bolognese sauce being prepared. Our teacher began chopping onions and carrots and then placed them in the saucepan. Once softened he added the mixture of pork and beef mince, followed by a large swig of red wine. Once the one had evaporated he added some tomato paste and then let the sauce simmer.

After this we headed back to the kitchen where we began to make our own pasta. First we created a well in our cup of flour and then added one egg, a tablespoon of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Once all mixed together we worked the dough until it was smooth all over. Then we wrapped the dough in glad wrap and let the dough rest for 15 minutes. Once it was ready we rolled the dough out until it was paper thin and then folded the dough over so we could easily cut it into shapes. First was ravioli squares and second was noodle strips.

Once all the pasta had boiled for 4 minutes it was ready for us to feast on! First we started with some bruschetta and red wine and then we had the ravioli with a butter sage sauce and the noodles with the Bolognese sauce. Then we had our tiramisu’s and the class was finished.

By the time we arrived back at our apartment we were quite tired and still full from our big lunch so we snacked on some bruschetta and had an early night.

The next day we drove to Greve in Chianti where we had some wine and cold meat tastings. That night we had home made meatballs with leftover tortellini.

The following day we went wine tasting. First up was our 10am tour at Verazzano …..  which we had booked online the night before. We didn’t have any expectations of what the tour would be like as it only cost 10 euro per person but we were blown away with our guide’s knowledge and how much of winery they allow you to see (the winery is privately owned). Built around a castle, the cellars are underground and have existed since the 1190’s with some of the original wine barrels still in use today. Afterwards we had a tasting of 3 different wines and some olive oil with bread, which had been freshly pressed the previous day. Our guide was extremely nice and gave us an extra tasting of one of the vintage wines and some of their balsamic vinegar as well! After the tasting we bought a couple of bottles including a limited edition wine which our guide explained will be ready to drink in 7 years – a great memory from Tuscany that we will be able to enjoy one day.

Our next stop was back in Greve so we could buy some lunch and figure out the directions to our next destination, which was Montefirolle. Unfortunately once we arrived in the fortress town we couldn’t find the wine shop so after walking around and taking some photos we headed to the next winery Villa veranzo.

We had sent an e-mail the night before to book the 3:30pm tour but on arrival we were told their internet had been down and they did not receive our request and could not do the tour because the didn’t have the staff. They did however let us walk around the grounds and try two of their most famous wines. After buying a bottle we headed back to the apartment before it got dark.

That night we shared a bottle from Villa Veranzo and ate ravioli with a pesto / broccoli sauce..

Our last day at our Tuscan apartment we slept in and took it easy. That afternoon we headed to The Mall which was a 20 minute drive away. Here they have designer outlet stores including brands like Gucci, Prada, Fendi, an Dior just to name a few. Unfortunately neither of us found anything of interest or in our price range so we left empty handed and headed back to our apartment for one last night.

That night we had porcini mushroom risotto for dinner with a side of apple, rocket salad and a bottle of wine from Verazzano.

The following day we packed up and returned our car to Florence Aiport. Then we caught the bus back to the train station and got on the long (4 hours) but cheaper train to Rome where we will stay 3 nights at the Ivanhone hostel.