FROM TUSCANY WITH LOVE

plus a recipe for Torta Caprese

The internet can be a cruel place, by sharing parts of your life with the wider world you are opening yourself up to criticism, but you are also opening the door to new friendships, connection and adventures. Around a year ago, I got a message on Instagram from a new follower, Daniela, saying she liked my style and asking if I would like to come visit her and her husband’s farm in Italy. Having had a quick look at their account, The Lazy Olive, I understood that her farm was a collection of stunning farmhouse villas, set on the top of a hill, in the heart of Tuscany with one of the most breathtaking views I’ve ever seen. I was sure this offer was too good to be true and mildly suspicious of it being a scam, so asked her to drop me an email with some more details. Flash forward a year and I am writing this newsletter on a hot Ryanair flight back from Pisa back to Stansted after five perfect days at The Lazy Olive.

We agreed an Autumn visit would be best, once the wedding season had wrapped up at The Lazy Olive and owners Daniela and Malcom had returned to a sort of calm. Daniela had impressed on me that it was a brilliant time for a cook to visit with the porcini and truffle in peak season, all the tourists gone and the weather still pretty warm. I had tried to work out before going if there was something they wanted in return for this trip, perhaps they were looking for a bit of content, some promotion for their wedding business, or were hoping I could host a dinner of some kind. Daniela told me in no uncertain terms that they wanted nothing in return, they were as busy as they wanted to be during wedding season, were in fact trying to slow things down a bit, and they were also very good cooks thank you very much – so no cooking would be necessary. People like Daniela and Malcom are a rare and beautiful thing; generous, kind, open and honest. They truly wanted to share their home and life with me, as they like my work and thought I might like theirs too, wanting nothing in return.

After a very long drive from Pisa airport, in part due to some issues with google maps and a little detour down a very bumpy track, a few wild boar and porcupine sightings (!), we arrived at almost midnight to The Lazy Olive. Waiting for us in their candlelit farmhouse kitchen was a pot of the most delicious tomato trofie, made with their own tomato sauce, bottled and preserved in the summer. Red wine was poured, pasta was devoured, we got to hear Daniela & Malcolm’s widely romantic story of how they came to be together and renovate the house they now live in. In short: it was a story of an Italian and a New Zealander meeting in South America, neither of them speaking the other’s language, falling in love and ultimately finding their way to Tuscany where they renovated a dilapidated farm house and turned it into not only their home but their business as well - there is hope for us all. We went to bed happily full, more than a little tipsy and with a restored faith in humanity. The following day we explored the local area, going for lunch in a little Trattoria called Locanda Paradiso in Chiasure that Daniela had recommended. It couldn’t have been more perfect, we wanted a simple meal of traditional food and that’s exactly what we got, rustic Tuscan food cooked impeccably well. We started with some toasted bread, rubbed with a little garlic and drenched in the new season olive oil from the area – a seasonal treat! Then we shared a selection of pastas, Cacio e Pepe (ofc), Ravioli Burro e Salvia and Pasta e Ceci alongside some fagioli, chard, a selection of pecorino with truffle honey (omg) and anchovies with pesto – plus a carafe of their house white.  It was the perfect beige meal, eaten outside with a light drizzle enveloping the little terrace we had to ourselves – and all for €25 each, shall we start a revolution and move to Tuscany? If you find yourself in the area, near Trequanda, Asciano or Rapolano – I highly recommend a visit to Locanda Paradiso.

After lunch we went in search of gelato and found a great spot, famous for it’s unusual flavours but I surprised no one and stuck to pistachio and stracciatella. After a little walk around the walled town we drove to a local COOP and picked up ingredients for dinner. I will never not be amazed at the quality of produce in Italian supermarkets, even the small ones, in tiny villages, you can find top quality fresh pasta, cheeses, fresh vegetables and wine at better quality and lower prices than anywhere in the UK. I know that I am the epitome of “British woman in European supermarket” cliché, but I truly couldn’t name a single place I would rather be than a large COOP in Italy with an empty trolley and nothing but time – I could spend a whole day in there and be quite content. We picked up some gnocchetti, rocket, pecorino, taralli, olives, some wine and a few things for breakfast and then headed back to the house for a cosy dinner and a much needed catch up. I’d brought my current housemate Virginia, and two former housemates, Bee and Frida. Bee now lives in Berlin and Frida has only recently moved back to London so it’s been a long while since the four of us have been able to spend some proper time together and we had a lot to update each other on.

On Friday the real fun began. Daniela and Malcom had casually mentioned it would be nice to have dinner together one night and maybe they would invite a couple of friends. I volunteered to help cook, not realising how capable and talented of a chef Malcom was, and come Friday I popped into the kitchen, donned an apron and before I knew it, we were preparing dinner for 18. Malcom had been up early, brining chickens, salting sirloin and baking the Torta Caprese (for which the recipe is below). He’d had drawn up a menu on the kitchen notice board, which read like an autumnal dream; bitter leaf salad, roasted fennel a selection of pecorino, mozzarella, burrata, cherry tomatoes, roasted potatoes, pumpkin, cavolo nero, fresh porcini, roasted porcini, sirloin and roasted chicken with quince glaze . The pudding listed was something I hadn’t come across before, Torta Caprese – a rich, damp chocolate & almond cake filled with whipped mascarpone, cream and fresh strawberries (the recipe for which I have included below!). I got started breaking down pumpkins, frying sage, harvesting cavolo nero from the garden to be added to both to make one large roasted pumpkin, cavolo nero & crispy sage salad with toasted pumpkin seeds and walnuts. I chopped onions and herbs for a stuffing and generally tried to help, but Malcom pretty much had everything covered. He’s been cooking in Italy for over 20 years, catering all the weddings that take place at The Lazy Olive and clearly very much enjoying it.

That evening a group of their friends joined us, of all ages, from a rich tapestry of backgrounds and nationalities. We spent a beautiful evening eating the feast we had pulled together, getting to know one another and drinking more wine than was probably necessary. It felt so special to be there, with a whole group of people we otherwise would never have known, brought together by the power of the internet and the generosity of Daniela and Malcom. My friends and I all fell a little bit in love with the couple who have built a beautiful home and business with a lot of hard work, passion and talent. It gave us all hope for the future, and as we drove away, we all agreed that knowing them and that they are there, gives us a deep sense of comfort. It’s unlikely I will ever own a large Italian villa in the rolling Tuscan hills, but coming away from this trip, I am more desperate than ever to be able to grow my own food and one day have chickens. There is something so magical about going out into your garden to look at what’s growing, what’s ready to be harvested and to make a meal out of it. To nourish yourself with food you have grown, to me, is one of life’s great luxuries. Daniela and Malcom have a flourishing kitchen garden, a cow called Cindy, some chickens and a lot of olive trees. Every year they harvest the olives, take them to the local processing plant and come back with roughly 500L of olive oil, Malcom tells me they haven’t bought olive oil for nearly twenty years. What a dream.

I feel very lucky to have gotten to know Daniela and Malcom, to have visited and witnessed their beautiful home and to have cooked with them. If you are thinking of getting married in Italy, firstly congratulations, and secondly, make sure to check out The Lazy Olive. There’s no saying they will have any space left in the calendar, I think next year is already fully booked, but it would be worth an ask. I can’t think of anywhere more beautiful, or anyone more perfect, to host a wedding in Italy.

Enjoy this recipe for Daniela’s Caprese cake.

Sending love, Rosie x