Art and cuisine in Tuscany, of course!

Our last supper!

How can we leave without underlining the marvellous food we had. “At Studio Italia”, proclaimed Yves in that ebulliently Gallic Yves manner, “we eat very well, but we do not gain weight!”   Hmmm.  We’ll let our scales be the judge of that.

What is undoubtedly true, however, is that food as an art form is alive and well at Studio Italia and, here, for the vicarious and calorie-free enjoyment of you foodies out there, let me share the line-up of our incredibly delicious evening meals (the main gastronomic events of our time here): chicken with olives and rosemary; pork with sun-dried tomatoes and capers; blanquette de veau alla Pinot Griggio; pork with coriander, fennel and pancetta (alla Martino); quail with porcini; barbequed sausages; rabbit with tarragon cream sauce; sausages alla Toscana (with green grapes); and guinea fowl with a Marsala prune sauce. The enormous serving platters were always accompanied by contorni (side dishes) such as risotto alla Milanese, polenta al tartuffi, rosemary potatoes and, of course, pasta.  And to finish, there was always salad, then cheese, (glorious Italian cheese), and finally, some small sweet.  Brava, Monica! To talk about the endless bicchieri of wine, grappa and limoncello, would only incriminate some among us, so I prefer to plead the fifth (no pun intended) on that subject.

On our penultimate evening at Studio Italia, we ate (and ate and ate) at Ristorante el Forcillo in Sinalunga.  The succulent dishes kept coming until even the most gluttonous among us begged for mercy.  Somewhere toward the end of the several antipasti (when most of us had already eaten our fill), the idea of applying some culinary restraint was born.  And so, most of us have decided that we will be embarking on “the starving artist’ diet” when we get home.  We invite any encouraging words or tips from our readers, and we will be reporting on our progress in future posts.

Arrivederci, la cucina Toscana!

Halina currently in London (UK)