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Cuisine and Wines of Zeri, Tuscany

And so we come to food and wine and in Zeri we discover that there are housewives who are refined chefs whose aces up their sleeves are the extreme simplicity and genuineness of the local recipes cooked in “testi” which are cast iron recipients that have been put into the embers of the fire since Etruscan days. The local recipes rely for the most part on mushrooms, chestnuts and vegetables;unique products which can be enjoyed only in Zeri.

The festival of the “testi” is held in April each year and involves food cooked according to this old cooking method and is, of course, a time of much merriment and folklore. Then on each Sunday in May they celebrate the Five days of Taste with each of the Sundays being devoted to a typical dish. Starting with mouth-watering hors d’oeuvres and continuing with the pasta courses, made from chestnut flour, and the entrées where lamb takes pride of place as does sheep’s milk which is said to be an elixir of long life. And in fact the average age of the people of Zeri is over 95, making it one of Italy’s areas with the highest age index. And then there are the delicious local cheeses which are much appreciated by gourmets as are the many sweets made with hazelnuts.

::TYPICAL PRODUCTS::
Zeri’s cuisine is mainly based on chestnuts, mushrooms and lamb. The lamb is delicious and unique and can be found only in Zeri. Zeri’s sheep, an authoctonous race, is waiting to receive the DOP protected origin denomination. These valleys are also famous for their mushrooms and in particular the much-prized “porcini“ mushrooms which grow in the local chestnut groves and have a dark brown and highly perfumed cap. Then there is another particular type of mushroom, called the “cavazza” which has a very strong flavour and grows on the bark of trees.

The chestnut is the basis of the simple cuisine of the rural community. Zeri’s chestnuts are small and very flavoursome and using antique methods they are turned into the chestnut flour which is the foundation of many unique recipes like the “armelette,” which are lasagne made with chestnut flour, the “moglo,” a kind of very thin chestnut cake covered with ricotta cheese and cooked in the embers of wood-fired ovens in the special cast iron “testi.”

Zeri’s ricotta, which is produced in the area and can only be bought from the local farmers, is also quite unique. Then there are the beans and the potatoes for which Zeri is renowned, ancient cultivations which have conserved their traditional production methods and techniques and for which only natural fertilisers are used. These cultivations are known throughout Tuscany and it is thanks to the mountain climate and the composition of the soil if they grow to such a degree of excellence. Zerii’s apples are called “ox eye” for their size, but while small they are really delicious and, like so many of the other local products, can be found only in Zeri.

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