Early Spring in Lucca

The first wisteria of 2025 in the Giardino degli Observant.

As March heads into April there are definite hints of spring in Lucca.  While the weather is still unpredictable, there have been some days just sunny enough to feel a touch of spring warmth on our faces.  I haven’t put away my warm coat and scarves (or my umbrella) just yet, but I can feel the day coming when I will be able to pack them away until next fall.

In my mind, two things mark the early spring season in Italy.  First is the appearance of blossoms. March’s Magnolias fade quickly but are soon replaced with Wisteria. The Wisteria are just beginning to bloom with the first sprays of flowers appearing last week. This past week also saw the first white rose along the path I walk when heading for my language lessons at Lucca Italian School. Soon the whole path will be lined with them. In the past few days I also came across a bed of white calla lilies, something I had not seen before in Lucca.  Gorgeous!

Calla Lilies in bloom at the entrance to the Casa di Cura Santa Zita

Flowers are also blooming in window boxes and on terraces throughout Lucca, spots that will become even more colorful after the spring Verde Mura which is scheduled for the first weekend in April. The annual garden show showcases flowers, herbs, fruit trees, and anything else needed for the garden. 

The second sign of early spring for me happens in the markets.  Agretti is the first to appear (sometimes as early as late January / early February).  This past week asparagus and artichokes were in abundance. Pots of herbs arrived at the Ortofrutta this week too.

There are also fresh spring peas, perfect raw in salads or added to a pasta primavera.  And zucchini flowers!  While they are wonderful stuffed and fried, I never actually go to the trouble to prepare them in that way (isn’t that what restaurants are for?).  But, chopped along with the zucchini itself they make a tasty addition to a frittata. Big bundles of Tropea Onions, available year round from southern Italy, add a splash of color to the Spring market.

From southern Italy come bright red, flavorful strawberries.  Topped with a whipped combination of cream and mascarpone they make a delicious yet simple dessert. Crumble a few amaretti cookies on top for an extra treat.

As early spring progresses to the warmth of late April and May, Lucca will provide an evolving parade of opportunities to enjoy the colors, blooms, and tastes of Tuscany.

Craving Cicchetti

Sometimes, when planning an evening out, someone will ask where I would like to go for dinner.  Often a local restaurant (whether I am in Lucca or back in New Mexico) sounds just right. But other times the place I want, the flavors I crave, are far, far away.  And nothing else will do. Right now, what I am craving is some really good cicchetti. 

The word cicchetti does not have an exact English translation.  Not to mention it may be second only to bruschetta as the most mis-pronounced Italian culinary word.   Let’s start there – the “ci” in Italian is pronounced like the English ”ch”, and the “ch” in Italian is a hard sound, like an English K.  So, pretty much backwards from English.  And those double consonants are drawn out. So, for an English speaker, cicchetti is pronounced something like this:  chik-KET-tee.  Cicchetti. Yum.

A plate of assorted cicchetti from Bacaro Frascoli in Padova. Fried cheese wedges, a tuna croquette, a cheese and caponata crostino, some fried anchovies, and - my favorite - baccalà mantecato .

The closest translation to the word cicchetti would be the Spanish word tapas. Or perhaps small bites or little side dishes.  A bruschetta can be a type of cicchetti as can miniature panini. Both cold and hot little dishes can be cicchetti. Put a bunch of these tasty little bites together, add a glass of wine, and you have dinner.  

All’Ombra della Piazza in Padova has a wonderful cicchetti bar with a seemingly endless variety from which to choose. No problem going back for seconds!

Bacari, or wine bars, serving cicchetti, are a Venetian tradition. They can be found in wonderful hidden corners of Venice and in some of the nearby towns of the Veneto, such as Padova.   Just about 4 hours by train from Lucca, a visit to either place is sure to include a stop for cicchetti at a local bacaro or cantina. It is a sure bet that the atmosphere will be lively, the wines good, and the variety of cicchetti will make it hard to choose.

It is no surprise that, like many Venetian dishes, cicchetti often feature fish. The classic version is a small piece of toasted bread topped with baccalà mantecato, a creamy, whipped salted cod.  Mixed with good olive oil, it is a simple but oh so good dish.

Sardines are often on the menu too, fried and in a vinegary dressing or just served fried and hot. 

Also classic are polpette, little fried croquettes made of meat or fish.   Some versions include potatoes mixed with cheese, meat, or fish. 

At Cantina Do Spade there were many types of fried cicchetti to try.

Hot dishes of a couple of spicy shrimp or a single flavorful scallop are on the menu too. Not a fish fan?  Well there are also fried olives or crostini topped with assorted ingredients – cheese, caponata, pumpkin, caramelized onions, lardo, salumi. The selections are endless and change over the course of an evening because as fast as they are eaten they are replaced with something new and different!

The cicchetti bar at Cantina Do Spade is tiny (though there is a bigger restaurant in the back). We were fortunate to find 4 seats!

A bacaro is typically small with limited seating or sometimes no seating at all.  Head to the bar, pick out an assortment of cicchetti, order a glass of wine and either stand at the bar or head outside to enjoy your dish perched on a bench or a canal wall.  If you arrive right when the place opens you just might snag one of the few seats. This was the case at Cantina Do Spade in Venice when some friends and I enjoyed a plate (ok, several plates) of cicchetti and a glass (maybe two) of wine. 

I am in Lucca now, far from my favorite cicchetti places in Padova and Venice.  I’ll have an aperitivo with friends tonight, but the little bowls of peanuts and potato chips they’ll serve will leave me longing for a good bacaro and some of my favorite varieties of cicchetti.   Time to plan a couple of days in the Veneto!

A selection of cicchetti at All’Ombra della Piazza in Padova. Most of their selections on the night we visited were crostini topped with cheese plus a variety of toppings. It was impossible to choose a favorite.

Cantina Do Spade S. Polo 859 Venezia

All’Ombra della Piazza Via Pietro d’Abano 16. Padova

Frascoli Bacaro / Cicchetterai Veneziana. Via del Santo 93. Padova

Carnevale 2025

Corso Garibaldi is the street where the Magnolias bloom in Lucca.

We are on the cusp of a change of seasons in Italy.  No, not winter into spring quite yet (though here in Lucca the Magnolias are just beginning to bloom).  I mean the shift from the season of Carnevale into the season of Lent. 

The last Carnevale events in Lucca and Viareggio are scheduled for the first week of March, a last bit of fun and folly just before the seriousness of Lent begins on the 5th. 

In Lucca, the biggest Carnival event was the Sfilata delle Maschere (Parade of Masks) on February 23rd.  The procession began along Lucca’s historic walls and slowly worked its way to the center of town, ending in a big celebration in Piazza San Michele. 

The sfilata involved much more than just masks.  Viareggio sent groups of costumed performers and some of their smaller floats.

 While the huge floats in Viareggio’s parades require big crews to operate them and move them along, the ones sent to Lucca were the smaller carri (wagons) that take just one or two persons to operate. 

The parade began with the arrival of Burlamacco and Ondina, the official mascots of the event.  Their arrival was followed by a marching band and a special float – a large leopard created especially for Lucca.

This leopard was one of the biggest floats, requiring a tractor to pull it along the parade route.

Then came groups of costumed dancers and performers.  Could I tell you exactly what some of these groups represented?  Not a chance – but all were entertaining and, in the tradition of Viareggio’s Carnevale, a bit political, with a dash of the allegorical, and a whole lot of wild.

 One group of carri, each with a single person steering it, represented the spoils of war and the big money interests that favor it (at least that is my interpretation). The giant money hungry pig was certainly impressive. The sign on his float translates to “Lunch is served. As long there is war there is hope”. His waiters served up barrels of oil and tanks. This type of social commentary is exactly what I expect from Viareggio during Carnevale.

My favorite group of floats brought graceful acrobats twirling high above the crowd.  The were called In Equilibrio Sopra La Follia which translates to Balanced Above the Madness.  Seemed an appropriate theme for this year to me. 

The final float was the largest.  A train full of paper mâché people waving to the crowd.

Alongside the parade, the crowd included lots of costumed children and adults too. 

What a fun way to celebrate Carnevale before the much more sedate season of Lent arrives.

Keeping Busy on Cold Winter Days in Tuscany

Watching kids enjoy the giostra (carousel) on nice days is a good pastime.

It’s important to make the most of the cold January days in Lucca, even the rainy ones. 

While the heavy periods of rain have definitely kept me indoors at times, lighter rains and clear periods see me heading out for walks, window shopping, photography, meeting up with friends, watching the giostra (carousel) go round and round, and looking for general inspiration.

The monthly antiques market was a great diversion in between rain showers on a cold and cloudy day earlier this month.  Many of the vendors are the same from month to month, but a scavenger hunt to search for new and unusual finds is always fun.  

Cooking is a good rainy-day activity and, after finding some really nice guanciale in the market, I’ve been working on perfecting my pasta carbonara skills. But sometimes eating out is a good rainy-day activity too.

Pasta is cold weather comfort food and Macelleria Pucci is a butcher shop / restaurant that makes a great southern Italian spaghetti with polpettini (little meatballs). Lunch there with friends was a treat as it is unusual to find this dish in northern Italy. I requires lots of rainy afternoon walks to balance out those pasta calories!

Catching up with friends after being away from Italy over the holidays has been great too.  Lucca has lots of cafes, perfect for meeting over a cup of coffee, pot of tea, or glass of wine.  The indoor cafes are warm and cozy and have led to some great chats about world issues with locals at the next tables.  It is always interesting to get the Italian perspective on US and World events.  And it is great for practicing my Italian.

 A stop at the Saturday flower market, on one of the few sunny days this past weekend, brought a touch of spring and some bright color into my apartment, a necessity on these winter days.

The Saturday flower market in Piazza San Michele is great in any season

One of my favorite winter cold weather activities is planning spring travel and I’ve been busy doing just that.  Spring in Emilia- Romagna and Umbria is a welcome thought on these cold days. And the planning is almost as much fun as the travel will be.

 My book club selection for the month is The Stolen Lady by Laura Morelli.  It has transported me to Florence in the late 1400s and Paris in the 1930s.  A great escape on a cold or cloudy day.

 And for real escapism, day dreaming about spring blossoms is hard to beat.  Photos can make the gray skies fade away and bring a reminder that spring is just around the corner.  I think that readers in the frigid parts of the US and Canada might appreciate these reminders as much as I do.  Stay warm everyone!

The Olive Press Kitchen (Formerly Extra Virgin Cooking Classes)

Chef Giuseppe at work

Here is a recipe for a wonderful day of cooking in Italy:

Start with Chef Giuseppe Mazzocchi (he makes the magic happen). You’ll meet Giuseppe, along with your small group of classmates, for a bit of shopping at Montecatini’s market. Here you’ll find fresh herbs, veggies, and just the right beans for soup. It’s a great way to start the day and learn about local ingredients.

This very old “hog-back” bridge spans the stream behind Il Molino

Next, spend the day at the historic molino (mill) where Giuseppe’s grandparents lived and worked. The mill property is over 600 years old and sits alongside a stream whose waters once powered the mill equipment.

Inside the old mill you’ll find a professional kitchen with lots of workspace. Here, under the chef’s guidance, you will prepare and cook authentic Italian dishes. If the day is chilly, there will be a fire burning in the kitchen’s large fireplace. Could there be a better atmosphere for cooking? I think not!

To make the atmosphere even better, enjoy some Prosecco while prepping ingredients and take a break to sample some regional olive oils and cheeses.

Later, when all the work is done, you’ll share a fabulous lunch with your classmates in the beautiful dining room, the spot which once housed the olive press. Today it is a rustic yet elegant space with a table large enough for all to gather. Giuseppe will select wines that pair perfectly with the food you’ve prepared. A member of the Italian Sommelier Association, he knows his wines and happily shares that knowledge during the meal.

A beautiful table setting adds to the enjoyment of lunch

Some of you may have done a class with Giuseppe at Extra Virgin Cooking when it was located inside the historic center of Lucca. Those classes were wonderful and inspired me to write an earlier blog post (from April 2022). With completion of the mill renovations, all of the classes moved out to Il Molino last summer. New location and a new name - The Olive Press Kitche. I was excited to experience the new location when, with a couple of friends, I signed up for a class this past October.

The cooking school is in the hills outside of Montecatini. Montecatini can be reached by train along the Florence - Lucca line. Coming from either Lucca or Florence, it is about 30 minutes to the Montecatini Centro stop. Once there, Giuseppe will meet you and it is just a short walk to the market. Classes include round trip transportation between Montecatini and Il Molino.

My October class took place on a chilly, rainy day so we enjoyed the fireplace while we prepared our first course, a Zuppa Frantoiana. This is a typical fall soup of vegetables and beans drizzled with the season’s fresh pressed olive oil.

We also prepared a beef based ragu to go with Gnudi, a light as a cloud ricotta and spinach dumpling. Shaping the gnudi takes practice and we all had fun learning the technique (but even more fun eating them at lunch).

Fall is funghi (mushroom) season, so we also made a risotto with several types of mushrooms, including porcinis.

I can almost smell these thyme scented mushrooms cooking!

Last, we made a wonderful classic Italian dessert - zabaglione. Rich with egg yolk, sugar, marsala wine, and whipped cream, it was topped with fresh berries. A perfect way to end our meal.

Everything about classes with The Olive Press Kitchen is special. From Giuseppe’s care and teaching, to the gorgeous setting, to the small group of students, to the shared meal of authentic foods and wines. For anyone interested in food, cooking, or just good eating, a day spent at the mill cooking with Giuseppe is a fabulous experience.

Classes are scheduled 3 days per week, 9 am to about 2:30 pm. All classes are in English. Cost (as of January 2025) is €130 per person.

Contact info: info@theolivepresskitchen.com

Website: theolivepresskitchen.com