Food Glorious Food…..!!!

Mangiare is the Italian for ‘to eat’.
A long ‘a’ makes it ‘mangiaaare’ (add a little theatrical Sophia Loren movement), and just by opening up your jaw to pronounce the Italian word your whole body starts to desire getting that deliciousness off the plate and into your mouth.

Whereas the English word ‘eat’ (pronounced ‘eeet’) closes the mouth and jaw and sounds like ‘eeeek’, which doesn’t exactly get the system going does it?

Food for thought….. (I know, I know, but hey!)

The Italians love their food, in case no one had ever noticed, and they really notice if there is a lack of taste as they are so used to locally grown food in great conditions.
The Mediterranean diet has many scientific studies extolling it’s virtues and on your holiday you will understand why.

Food is fresh, sourced and sold locally where possible, picked when ready to eat, and there is a good organic movement too.
Alot of places are biodynamic and natural laws and rhythms are followed.
Many people also have the possibility of eating their own home grown fruit and veg.

Worth noting is the fact that many Tuscans won’t eat foods out of season………because the taste isn’t as good.
Some are only seasonal – truffles, chestnuts etc.
They live what I’m doing my masters on, what so many others have forgotten, and what, after all, is a natural way of eating.

Here in Tuscany some vines are sprayed with chemicals against this and that, but so many villa owners I talk to are not doing that, in fact they don’t use anything and don’t have any problems.
The same goes for the olives our villa owners grow.
The taste of Tuscan cold pressed olive oil is just something else.
For those who have never had the privilege of tasting it please try sourcing it as it is so worth it.
Add this oil to freshly picked nutrient packed salad, in season vegetables, raisins, maybe some soaked seeds or sprouts, and you find, there before you, an amazing source of vital force energy.

So many Villas-in-Tuscany.com villas and farmhouses have their own orchards and vegetable patches that guests have access to.
There is just something so beautiful about eating food you know has been grown on the property you’re holidaying in, that has been picked 10 minutes before eating it, that maybe you yourself chose and that is bursting with real flavour, not to mention the rest!

Farmers markets are always great to go to, as there is local freshly made cheese, milk, yoghurt, meat, and of course fruit and veg.
You can go there by yourself and wander around buying whatever takes your fancy, or be accompanied by your cooking teacher and then go do the lesson and eat it afterwards.

There are also so many events around Tuscany that you can bet your bottom dollar great food will be there too.
Specialised raw foods are harder to find, and raw & vegan food is not mainstream.
Tuscans know they have the most amazing food, and can see raw as a restriction.
However, when food is prepared with love and is local produce it is a winner every time!

Meal times are an important part of Italian life, it’s a social thing.
The preparation beforehand, talking, laughing, joking, even singing all happens around food (ever been to a olive or grape harvest?).
It’s family and friends time – so many people around a table all together.
Children and grown-ups alike all join in, and it really brings people back into that community spirit, it’s a time to pass down family history, keep communication open, discuss everything in an open manner.
It’s a very positive aspect of life.

Many property owners tell me that guests love getting involved with the preparation of meals, and whilst some nights they will go out to restaurants, others they will stay in and get someone to prepare for them, do it themselves or even organise a cooking class.

So much of the time we take food for granted, and just think of it as delicious fuel, but there is so much more to it, and Tuscany has a subtle way of making you realise and appreciate food in a totally different light.

Whatever your way of eating, there is so much the Tuscan earth can provide for you to enjoy to the max on your vacation.
Contact ViT to find out which villas, apartments and farmhouses have organic home grown produce.

Buon appetito!!!