Tuscan Traveler

By now even a glance at TuscanTraveler.com (see here, here, here and here) will tell you of a greater than average interest in gelato. Imagine my distress to find that I would not be able to be in Cefalú on the north coast of Sicily for the fifth annual Sherbeth Festival.

If you love gelato and especially sorbetto and are traveling to Sicily in mid-September, head straight to Cefalú for four days of ice cream heaven.

Cefalú Sherbeth Festival 2011

From September 15 to 18, the historic center of the town will be transformed into the Gelato Village.

Whereas Florence (and Catherine de’Medici) lays claim to the creation of milk-based Italian gelato, Sicily fights for the honor of sorbetto, a divine combination of fruit, sugar and water. Sherbeth is an Arab word that became sorbetto in Italian (and sherbet when I was growing up in New Mexico).

Mango sorbetto will be a favorite at the Sherbeth Festival

The Romans say Emperor Nero started the craze by having his slaves carry buckets of ice and snow down to him from the Appian Way. But the Turks and the Chinese also had sherbeth frozen fruit desserts and Marco Polo is claimed to have carried the idea back from his travels. Certainly Sicily got the inspiration from the Arabs.

Here would be my idea of a perfect September day in Cefalú: In the morning, you can walk Cefalú’s sandy beach, one of the best in Sicily (burning off some calories in preparation for the rest of the day), and swim in the clear, warm sea (mid-70s).

Or you can begin as you mean to go on and order a typical Sicilian summer breakfast, a sweet brioche with gelato inside. (See Joe Ray’s WSJ post that describes the experience perfectly.)

Sicilian breakfast of sorbetto in brioche

Finish off the morning wandering the narrow streets with buildings displaying Arab, Norman and Byzantine influences, seeing the impressive Duomo, and then heading to the Corte delle Stelle and along the waterfront to indulge yourself at 35 Sicilian and international artisanal gelateria stands, savoring their hand-made sorbetto.

Stop by Carpigiani Gelato University’s gelato school and take a class in how to make sherbeth. Carpigiani is providing the equipment at a central production lab for all of the gelato makers where they will create their own proprietary recipes for the delight of the expected crowds.

Fruit flavors reign, but try chocolate sherbeth, too

Under the stars, a final gelato in hand, on my perfect September day, I would take in the wide variety of musical and other entertainment provided by Sorbeth Festival 2011 in Cefalú.

Gelato tourism has to be coming soon. Sign me up!

I have a friend who recently visited Florence for a week with a to-do list that didn’t allow for standing in line for hours – too much to see, too little time. Unfortunately, Florence is the city of lines and, although with some planning a resident or visitor can reserve spots (for a price) in a shorter line at some of the museums, there was no way to avoid the queue at the Duomo. My friend solved her problem by signing up for a 15 euro tour of the cathedral that she didn’t want to take, but this saved her from standing with hundreds of people, waiting to get in the front door.

408 in line for the Duomo at 10am on August 24

I have another friend who is one of those “it’s Tuesday so it must be Florence” type of traveler. He has to see the Uffizi, the David, the Duomo and the Baptistery between 9am and 7pm – no time for lines.

ARTFAST Priority Line Sign

To the rescue comes the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore and a Milan-based company called Key Fast. In partnership, they are trying to give visitors (tourists and citizens, alike) the option to skip the lines at the Duomo (visited by over 25,000 people per day), Brunelleschi’s Dome (approx. 2,000 climbers/day), Giotto’s Bell Tower, the Baptistery, the Duomo Crypt and the Museo Opera del Duomo. The cost? A mere 7 euro for a Priority Pass that is good for unlimited expedited entries for an entire year. (To be clear: this card does not get you free entry, just fast entry (see below).)

For the Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore, this is forward thinking, unexpected of the 715 year-old lay organization that is charged with the conservation of the cathedral. For Key Fast, operating as ARTFAST, it was “simply” seeing a need and providing a solution.

One wishes that listless Ministero per I Beni e le Attivitá Culturali and bureaucratic Polo Fiorentino Museale, which are charged with solving the dual disasters of the never-ending lines at the Uffizi and the Accademia, take note of the ingenuity of the spry Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore.

ARTFAST is a gem of an idea of the folks behind the year-old SKIFAST smart card. (SKIFAST allows skiers to get on the slopes faster by skipping the lines at the lift ticket windows.) ARTFAST, using the various sites in Piazza del Duomo as a trial operation, eventually hopes to aid visitors in Rome, Milan and Venice, to move more quickly into venues to marvel at the art and history, rather than roast slowly in the August sun. And, hopefully, ongoing negotiations will result in the service being offered at other museums in Florence (there may be hope for the Uffizi and Accademia, yet).

ARTPASS representative answers questions about the service

Visitors (and residents) can choose to buy the card and then go directly to the Priority Pass entrance (it may be a different door, it maybe a different speedy lane to the original entrance). Once inside, if there is an entrance fee (as with Brunelleschi’s Dome or the Baptistery) the Priority Pass holder will go immediately to the kiosk to purchase an entry ticket. If there is no entry fee, as with the main sanctuary of the Duomo, those with the Priority Pass will merely show their card to the attendant and enter (later, this activity will be mechanized with a swipe of the smart card).

ARTFAST hopes that soon the visit to the ticket kiosk will be unnecessary because of plans to install (at the cost to the Key Fast company of over 100,000 euro) a wi-fi smart card system that will allow ARTFAST cardholders to pay the fee by swiping the same card that allows them expedited entry.

All aspects of the service are not in place yet (wi-fi repeaters and smartcard readers need to be installed in very wi-fi-unfriendly ancient stone structures (something the prescient Brunelleschi never envisioned), therefore ARTFAST is testing parts of the system by using a simple plastic pass that is being sold by company representatives outside the door to the ticket office at the bottom of the stairway to Brunelleschi’s Dome. They can take all credit cards (except Amex), as well as debit cards. In the first ten days of the trial period, ARTFAST has been surprised and gratified by the popularity of the service. The initial supply of cards has run low some days.

Priority Pass to skip the line at 5 locations in Piazza del Duomo

As an American, I could tell them that my compatriots, on a hot (hitting over 100 F this week) museum-filled day in Florence, would be happy to pay 7 euro to be spared 30 to 45 minutes in line. (Today, I counted 408 people in the queue outside the Duomo just before the door opened at 10am.) This is especially true since the card works in five locations and can be used over and over (by the same person) for a full year. Reportedly, tourists from Spain, however, are outnumbering Americans in purchasing the pass.

Italian newspapers, trying to work up a bit of controversy, argue the card discriminates against the poor who can’t afford to expedite entry into the cost-free Duomo. This is an accusation without basis. The ARTFAST service actually shortens the line for those who don’t take part by getting Priority Pass holders out of the queue. When, in the near future, tour operators and their huge groups use it, the pass will make the Duomo line a thing of the past.

Reportedly, the priests are concerned that the marketing the ARTFAST pass makes it look like the Duomo is not open for free visits (please note that fees are charged at Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella and San Lorenzo…). Hopefully, they will soon realize this is merely a time-saving service that allows hundreds of people to be amazed and awed at the wonders of the third largest cathedral in the world, rather than be forced by time constraints (and perhaps, lack of patience) to forsake a visit the Duomo because of the incredible line.

Who says Florence is empty in August?

“Mangiare la pizza prima delle nove mi fa tristeza,” asserts my friend Teresa, echoing Italians everywhere – “To eat pizza before 9pm makes me sad.”

The Italian Food Rule: No pizza for lunch.

In the U.S. pizza is eaten at any time of the day – even cold for breakfast in dorm rooms on every college campus. Italians refuse to eat food served any which way, at any time of day or night.

The reasoning behind this Food Rule is exact: Pizza is to be eaten at a pizzeria at night because: 1) pizza must be made to order (no frozen pizza); 2) pizza must be eaten immediately after it comes out of the pizza oven (no take out); 3) pizza must be made by an expert – not a generic cook – a pizzaiolo (preferably born in Naples), who 4) is using a wood-burning pizza oven.

The pizzaiolo slides a pizza into the wood-burning oven

A wood-burning pizza oven takes a long time to get to the proper temperature (485º C or 905º F), so it will not produce the perfect pizza before 8:30 or 9 in the evening and it is usually considered a waste of time and energy (as well as a violation of the Food Rule) to fire it up for lunch. Pizzerias stay open until midnight or later, so a pizzaiolo gets in a full shift of work from prep at 7pm to clean up at 1am.

Another reason for the Food Rule is that pizza, unlike pasta, is considered a social food – a food for lovers and friends, not family. Pasta is associated with home and Mom’s cooking. Traditionally, Italians were expected home for lunch for Mom’s pasta. After Mom started working outside the home, the pasta meal moved to dinner – everyone was still expected to have their feet under her table at 7pm and pasta was served more times than not.

Pizza is for lovers and friends

Since the perfect pizza can’t be made at home (no kitchen oven reaches 485º C and most of the private wood-burning pizza ovens built in Italy are installed on the request of foreigners who want a “true Italian experience” at their vacation villa or Tuscan farm house), it becomes a social event. Pizzerias provide an upbeat, carefree, casual environment (no worries about getting tomato sauce on Mom’s favorite tablecloth). If there is a wood-burning pizza oven, it is usually on display, as is the pizzaiolo, adding to the festive atmosphere.

Americans are frequently disappointed with the pizza they eat in Italy. Of course, this is mainly because they ignore the Italian Food Rule: No pizza for lunch. But it is also because they expect Italian pizza to be like the pizza in Chicago, heaped high with everything. Perhaps generic pizza is more of an American fast food than a traditional part of Italian cuisine. Whereas, Italians have eaten pasta since the 12th century, pizza is relatively new on the scene.

History of Italian Pizza & How it Was Introduced to the World

Some say pizza was created in Italy in the late 19th century because of the tale of the queen and the pizza. But the pizzeria that served the queen tells this story:

Queen Margherita - famous because of a pizza

“In 1780, the pizzeria Pietro e basta così (which means “Peter and that’s enough”) started its activity in Salita S.Anna di Palazzo near P.zza del Plebiscito. Its pizza, already extremely favored by the Neapolitans, soon became famous and appreciated in the whole city.

For this reason a century later, in 1889, the pizzaiolo of that pizzeria, now called Pizzeria Brandi, Raffaele Esposito, was invited at Court along with his wife Maria Giovanna Brandi. He baked three different pizzas for King Umberto I and Queen Margherita of Savoy. The Queen’s favorite was a pizza evoking the colors of the Italian flag – green (basil leaves), white (mozzarella), and red (tomatoes). This combination was named Pizza Margherita in her honor.”

Just over 150 years ago, Italy was a land of city states – Florentines did not eat what Romans ate and Venetians did not eat like the Sicilians. Pizza was strictly a food of Naples. But as World War One loomed, Italians from Naples emigrated to the U.S. In 1905, the first Italian pizzeria opened in New York and the fad spread much faster in the states and the rest of the world than it did in Italy.

Only with World War II did pizza become a dish made throughout Italy, this time sought by American soldiers as they made their way from Sicily through Naples to Milan and Venice. The pizza craze was also spread in Italy by the migration of southerners looking for jobs in the north after the war and was made trendy by the popular croonings of Italian-Americans Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin: “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie … that’s amore.” (Turn up the sound on Pizzeria Da Michele’s website.)

Pizza Margherita was named for a queen

Rules for Making Perfect Pizza

The uneven nature of pizza quality throughout Italy, of course, led to new Food Rules. Purists, like the famous pizzeria Da Michele in Naples consider there to be only two true pizzas – the Marinara and the Margherita and that is all they serve. The Marinara has a topping of tomato, oregano, garlic, extra virgin olive oil and usually basil. The Margherita, is simply tomato sauce, mozzarella di bufala, fresh basil, and extra virgin olive oil. In Florence, Enzo, the pizzaiolo at Osteria Cafe Italiano serves three – Marinara, Margherita and Napoli (with capers and anchovies).

Due to the large number of pizzerias in Naples, the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (True Neapolitan Pizza Association) was founded in 1984 to certify the pizzerias using the proper ancient artisan traditions of authentic pizza. They have illuminated signs outside of pizzerias that follow their methods so Neapolitans know where to go for pizza verace.

A thin layer of perfect sauce is all that is needed

The association set out very specific rules that must be followed to create an authentic Neapolitan pizza, including using ‘00’ flour (highly refined Italian flour), San Marzano tomatoes (grown in volcanic soil surrounding Mount Vesuvius – less acidic and slightly sweeter than other tomatoes), and Mozzarella di Bufala or Fior-di-Latte (fresh mozzarella made with milk from either water buffalo or cows).

The dough must be hand-kneaded by the  pizzaiolo and must not be rolled with a pin or prepared by any mechanical means, the pizza must not exceed 35 centimeters in diameter or be more than a third of a centimeter thick at the center. The sauce is spooned on and spread with the back of the spoon into a thin layer. Other ingredients are not piled on, but are scattered in a haphazard way. The pizza must be baked in a wood-fired, domed oven at 900°F for no more than 60 to 90 seconds.

Eccola! The perfect Margherita pizza – the crust is thin, dry and golden at the center; the edge is thicker, breadier and slightly scorched; the sauce is bubbling, but does not pool in the center; the cheese is melted and strings out as the slice is lifted (though some claim another Food Rule – pizza is to be eaten with a knife and fork); the two or three green leaves of basil are whole and only slightly cooked; and finally, a swirl of fresh extra virgin olive oil is added as an accent before the pizzaiolo releases it to the table.

Pizza Marinara - garlic and sauce, but no cheese

Other Italian Food Rules for Pizza:

One pizza per person.

Drink beer or acqua frizzante with pizza

Leftover pizza is left, not taken home.

Do not ask for grated Parmesan for pizza.

Hot chili pepper (peperoncino) in oil or as powdered flakes is an accepted condiment.

Pizza may be eaten by the slice, usually while standing, at lunch.

It is sad to eat pizza alone.

Can you think of other Italian Pizza Food Rules?

Flying pizza dough

Short List of Great Pizzerias:

Best pizza in Naples:

Pizzeria Da Michele

Pizzeria Brandi (formerly Pietro e basta cosi)

Best pizza in Florence:

Pizzeria Osteria Café Italiano

Munaciello

Best pizza in Rome:

bir & fud

Pizzeria Da Remo

What are your favorite pizzerias in Italy?

Legend has it that Florentine Catherine de’ Medici (1519-1589), exported the idea of Italian sorbets to France to the court of Francis I (1494–1547) when she went there to marry the Duc d’Orleans (who later became Henri II and she, his queen) at the age of 14. She reportedly brought her staff along to cook Italian delicacies, not trusting the cuisine of France (or perhaps, her enemies in the French court). Among her chefs was Ruggeri, purported to be the first professional gelato maker. During her month-long wedding celebration, he is said to have created and served a different ice daily, with flavors including lemon, lime, orange, cherry, and wild strawberry to surprise the royal banquets guests.

Gelato University

Whether the story is true is highly debatable, but what is fact is that since the 16^th century, Italian gelato makers have emigrated throughout the world, spreading a craving for their frozen treats. After the two world wars, the fame of Italian gelato reached its peak only to fall back as American ice cream went into industrial production and post-war generations of Italians stayed home.

Now the manufacturer of arguably the best artisanal gelato equipment in the world, Carpigiani, located near Bologna, is seeking to spread the love of Italian gelato throughout the world by encouraging Italian gelato makers to emigrate once again. Through its Gelato University, Carpigiani is offering scholarships to Italians, who take part in the Gelato Pioneers Program, a set of courses that teaches aspiring gelateria owners how to make Italian gelato and sorbetto, as well as the business skills to start and run a thriving gelateria.

The winning Gelato Pioneers with Andrea Cocchi

The catch? The Italian Gelato Pioneers must have the desire and the business plan to start a gelateria in a country, not their own. They must take Italian gelato to foreign shores.

The first graduating class, made up of twelve Gelato Pioneers, was honored on July 20 at the Gelato University with diplomas, accolades, prosecco, and, of course, gelato.

Beatrice Venturi will open a gelateria in Singapore (w/ Andrea Cocchi)

At the end of the four-week course, out of thirty students, the twelve (two working as a team) most talented and motivated students were reimbursed for the course. They were given apprenticeships, as desired, in thriving gelaterias and gained at least a week or more experience in Carpigiani’s own Gelato Lab, a working gelateria where innovation reigns supreme. Through Praxi, an international consultancy and training company with over 40 years’ experience, the Pioneers received business mentoring that will continue for 12 months. Finally, they were offered steep discounts on the Carpigiani equipment needed to start their own gelaterias.

Andrea Morelli (going to the USA) & Carpigiani Managing Director Cocchi

“The project involves a double challenge,” said Carpigiani Managing Director Andrea Cocchi. “First, spreading the culture of home-made gelato around the world.”  And secondly, he described the development of a “start-up model” to assist Italians to successful business careers, based on a quintessential Italian cultural food. “Carpigiani has decided to invest in people with the talent and motivation to win this challenge and is willing to place the strength of the international network that distinguishes it worldwide at their disposal.”

The Gelato Pioneers of 2011 are heading off to Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Singapore, the United States, and Poland. “These twelve Italians have the passion and the talent to take the true culture of artisanal ‘Made in Italy’ gelato to the rest of the world,” concluded Cocchi.

The Gelato Lab at Carpigiani Headquarters

The Gelato University was founded in 2003 as a training division of the Carpigiani Group, which produces around 70% of the world’s gelato and soft serve ice cream machines. The company offers 9,000 courses around the world in 10 languages.

Cocchi said the Gelato Pioneers project had so far been aimed at Italians, but the company wants to do more to promote Italian gelato around the world. Next year, the 2012 class of Gelato Pioneers may be expanded to include more finalists and to allow participants from other countries to compete for the top awards that aim to guarantee success as a gelato entrepreneur.

One of the highlights of this summer was an invitation to spend two days at Carpigiani Gelato University, located just outside Bologna, on the historic Via Emilia, between Lavino di Mezzo and Anzola dell’Emilia.

48 hours of just thinking about gelato and, of course, tasting flavor after flavor of sorbet, semifreddo, granita, frozen yogurt, soft-serve, as well as, traditional Italian gelato.

Gelato Maestro Luigi Perrucci

At the Gelato Lab, Carpigiani’s freestanding high-tech gelateria, two brand new flavors of gelato were introduced to the world on July 20 during the presentation of the 2011 Gelato Pioneers (more about this later).

The two fascinating flavors were created by Gelato Maestro Luigi Perrucci in the Gelato Lab’s research and experimentation kitchen, using the most innovative of Carpigiani’s gelato and soft-serve machines.

Mortadella Gelato Crostini

The crowd cheered as a tray of Mortadella Gelato “crostini” was presented. Mortadella is one of Bologna’s most famous foods, dating back five hundred years. Maestro Luigi chose to serve his mortadella gelato on a small round slice of bread and top it with a shaving of Parmesan cheese, a squiggle of balsamic vinegar and bit of shredded lettuce.

Made with a sorbet base, the pink gelato offered a true mortadella flavor without any fatty mouthfeel or aftertaste. The bread, balsamic, Parmesan and lettuce made it the perfect sandwich, albeit an icy cold one.

Balsamic Gelato from the soft serve machine

For dessert, Maestro Luigi offered a Balsamic Vinegar Soft Serve Gelato. Of the palest purple in color, made with a milk and egg base, the delightful swirl of gelato was sweet with a slight tangy aftertaste.

Balsamic vinegar is not vinegar per se. It begins with late-harvest grapes (usually white Trebbiano) grown near Modena. Traditional balsamic vinegar is thick and sweet and very very expensive.

Balsamic Vinegar Soft Serve

Carpigiani is known for pushing the envelop of the tradition Italian gelato experience. The company seeks to bring Italian gelato to the whole world. Mortadella gelato may not find its way into any gelateria on a regular basis (except for perhaps Humphry Slocombe in San Francisco and on the Food Channel’s Iron Chef), but the balsamic vinegar soft serve is a keeper.

“Italians, it so happens, spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about digestion. The predilection towards a before-dinner drink-known as an aperitivo – is due in large part because Italians believe a drink such as Campari and soda “opens the stomach.” If you launch into your bruschetta – followed by pasta, followed by grilled fish, followed by panna cotta – without first awakening the digestive tract with an aperitivo, you’re just asking for trouble.” (The Daily Traveler for Condé Nast)

Cappuccino Classico

To sip a cappuccino after lunch is a direct and major violation of an Italian Food Rule. Italians believe the fresh whole milk that makes up over half of the contents of this drink plays havoc with digestion. To order a cappuccino after 10am, unless you are breakfasting after said hour, is seen as suspect behavior worthy of at least a slight frown, advancing to a worried shake of the head, and can escalate to outright ridicule.

Francesca, my guide to all of the pitfalls that lead to violations of Italian Food Rules, once had a hilarious exchange with a waiter after two German tourists at a nearby table unwittingly ordered cappuccini after dinner. Scornfully, she wondered if they were going to order breakfast for dessert.

Origins of Cappuccino

Most believe that cappuccino was named after the light brown hoods worn by a hard-core, split-away order of Franciscan monks, founded in the early 16th century – the Capuchin monks, or Cappuccini. The word cappuccio means “hood” in Italian, and the “ino” ending is a diminutive. Thus, cappuccino means “little hood.”

Cappuccino - the Italian breakfast

Others credit Capuchin monk Marco D’Aviano with the invention of the drink, allegedly after he discovered a sack of coffee captured from the Ottomans during the battle of Vienna in 1683. (D’Aviano was beatified in 2003 for his missionary work and miraculous power of healing.)

In reality, the popular coffee, topped with foamed milk, dates back to the early 20th century, but the name wasn’t associated with the beverage until just before 1950.

Cappuccino – Breakfast of Italians

Fresh Milk & Espresso = Cappuccino

To the Italians, milk is almost a meal in itself. So having a cappuccino at the neighborhood bar in the morning on the way to work or school requires no other food to be considered a complete breakfast. (A small pastry may be included, but not always.)

Cappuccino is more milk than coffee, so it is full of calories. Perhaps the reasoning is that slender Italians (the ones that don’t order the pastry) are more likely to burn off the calories through the day. Drunk later, those pesky calories stay on the hips

Some say that cappuccino is best in the morning because the milk has lactose (a sugar) and the body absorbs the lactose and milk fat quickly, so the carbohydrate energy is available immediately before the caffeine stimulant kicks in.

Food Rule – No Cappuccino after Meals

The real reason behind the Food Rule, however, is that Italians are firmly convinced that drinking milk after any meal will mess up the ability to digest food properly. So having a cappuccino at any time after lunch, or after dinner, in Italy is unthinkable.

Tourists, therefore, shouldn’t be shocked when the waiter refuses to grant their cappuccino requests “for your own health.”

Cappuccino Valentine

For further reading:

Best Writing about Italian Coffee

How to Order an Italian Coffee in Italy

Trailing most other museum-intensive cities, Florence finally has two competing museum cards. And before too many more months pass, I promised myself that I would perform an analysis of the relative worth of the Firenze Card and the Amici degli Uffizi Card, which if you click on the foregoing links you will have a chance to read, in detail, about both cards.

Full Disclosure:  I am not good at math. (My sister got those genes from our father. I got our mother’s.)

Michelangelo's David at the Accademia Gallery

Our Mission

(I am assuming you are in this with me.) To determine which museum card, if any, should be bought by: 1) a lone traveler with a larger than normal interest in Renaissance art and history; 2) a couple (related by family (i.e. sisters), married, or domestic partners) with an interest in only seeing the David and the Birth of Venus; 3) a couple who are interested in seeing at least four museums; 4) a family of four (parents, two children) with only an interest in seeing the David; 4) a family of four interested in seeing the David and the Birth of Venus; and 5) a family of four interested in seeing more than those two museums, and also gardens, churches or Medici villas.

And to make us feel like we are lost in an especially complicated SAT math question, let’s add the variables of: a) a three day stay in Florence, or b) a more than three day stay in Florence.

Okay, we have only a limited time (or attention span) to solve this problem. (Spoiler Alert: get the Amici degli Uffizi Card)

Assumptions

Assumption (not proven): both cards are equally easy to purchase and to use at all qualifying museums.

Assumption (proven): both cards are accepted at the Accademia (the “David “(I know that you knew he was located there)) and the Uffizi (housing Botticelli’s Birth of Venus and thousands of other great paintings).

Assumption (proven): if you do not want to wait hours in line, you must have reservations (4 euro extra per ticket for a reserved entry time) to the Uffizi and the Accademia. All of the other museums you can walk into within minutes.

Assumption (not proven): visitors to Florence hardly ever take the bus. (See Firenze Card bonus.)

Assumption (good for today):  1 euro = $1.42

Facts

Firenze Card

Firenze Card- 3 Day Museum Pass

Cost: 50 euro ($72) per person

Free access to 30 major museums, villas and historical gardens in Florence

Admission to museums is granted by showing the card at the entrance, with no reservation requirements

Free travel on public transports: ATAF&Linea buses and trams

Free access to museums and public transport for EU citizens under the age of 18 who are accompanying you (Note to U.S. families: this does not include you.)

Time Limit: 72 hours (3 days)

Amici degli Uffizi Card

Cost: Individual – 60 euro ($86); family of maximum two adults and two children (under 18 years) – 100 euro ($142); or “young people” (up to 26 years) – 40 euro ($57)

Amici degli Uffizi

Free access to 22 major museums, villas and historical gardens in Florence

Admission to museums is granted by showing the card at the entrance, with no reservation requirements

Reduced price tickets for concerts of the Teatro Comunale

Reduced price (15%) tickets for concerts of the Orchestra della Toscana at Teatro Verdi

Discount (20%)on price ticket for premières and Saturday performances at Teatro della Pergola

Time Limit: calendar year January 1 to December 31 (i.e. 3 days, if you buy it on December 29)

Ready for our problem sets?

Birth of Venus found in the Uffizi Gallery

Individual

One person who is in Florence for 3 days and wants to see two museums per day, including the Accademia and the Uffizi (for example, also the Bargello, San Marco, Boboli Gardens and Palatine Gallery (Pitti Palace)

Museum Ticket Prices

Uffizi – 15 euro ($22) (remember this includes the 4 euro surcharge for reservations)
Accademia – 14 euro ($20) (ditto)
Bargello – 4 euro ($6)
San Marco – 4 euro ($6)
Boboli Gardens – 6 euro ($9)
Palatine Gallery (incl. Modern Art Museum) – 8.50 euro ($12)

Cost for an Individual

Firenze Card:  50 euro ($72)
Amici degli Uffizi Card:  60 euro ($86)
No card:  51.50 euro ($74)

Winner: Firenze Card (unless this person is either a) under 27 years of age; or b) a music lover (see Amici degli Uffizi discounts))

But if this person is in Florence for more than three days and/or wants to see more museums, villas, or gardens than those listed above, the Amici degli Uffizi Card is a better choice,

Couple or Two Related People (see Amici degli Uffizi “Family” definition above)

a) A couple who are in Florence for 3 days and only want to see the Birth of Venus and the David

Museum Ticket Prices

Uffizi – 30 euro ($43) (remember this includes the 4 euro surcharge for reservations)
Accademia – 28 euro ($40) (ditto)

Firenze Card

Cost for a Couple or Two Related People

Firenze Card:  100 euro ($142)
Amici degli Uffizi Card:  100 euro ($142) (Family Membership)
No card:  58 euro ($83)

Winner: No card (remember to make reservations well in advance (call +39 055 292883)

b) A couple who are in Florence for 3 days and want to see four or more museums.

Winner: Tie between Firenze Card and Amici degli Uffizi Card (do the math yourself)

c) A couple staying in Florence for more than 3 days or want to see more than 2 museums, but not all in a three-day period.

Winner: Amici degli Uffizi Card

Family – 2 parents and 2 kids (not EU citizens)

a) Family is in Florence for 3 days and only wants to see David

Museum Ticket Prices

Accademia – 56 euro ($80) (remember this includes the 4 euro surcharge for reservations)

Cost for a Family

Firenze Card:  200 euro ($287)
Amici degli Uffizi Card:  100 euro ($142)
No card:  56 euro ($80)

Winner: No Card

b) Family is in Florence for 3 days and only wants to see David and the Birth of Venus

Museum Ticket Prices

Uffizi – 60 euro ($86) (remember this includes the 4 euro surcharge for reservations)
Accademia – 56 euro ($80) (ditto)

Cost for a Family

Firenze Card:  200 euro ($287)
Amici degli Uffizi Card:  100 euro ($142)
No card:  116 euro ($166)

Winner: Amici degli Uffizi Card

c) Family is in Florence for more than three days and seeing everything

If you’ve made it this far, you know that the Amici degli Uffizi Card wins for families staying in Florence for longer than 3 days and if they want to see more than just the Uffizi and Accademia museums.

Summary

If you are under 27 and interested enough to read through this post you are clearly interested in more than the David and the Birth of Venus, so you should buy an Amici degli Uffizi Card for a “young person”, and you should read this post.

Amici degli Uffizi Cards

If you are a couple, or two people related in any way, or at least have the same address, and you want to see more of Florence, either gardens, villas or museums, as well as the incredibly expensive Uffizi and Accademia, you want to purchase the Amici degli Uffizi Card. Read on here.

If you are a family and you want your kids to see more than just the David, you should get an Amici degli Uffizi Card for a family (even if you have more than two kids (compare price for extra one or two “young people” Amici degli Uffizi Cards vs. Firenze Cards)). So read this post.

If you are an individual (over 27 years old) who is going to be in Florence for more than three days and want to see more than two museums or may be returning to Florence within a year or you live in Florence full time – you want to be the proud owner of an Amici degli Uffizi Card. Again, see this post.

BUT, if you (or you and a couple of unrelated friends) are just the type who races through one of the most fascinating cities in the world while checking off the David and the Birth of Venus on your list of 1,000 Things I Have to See Before I Die, then pay cash (but for heaven’s sake make a reservation) at the Uffizi and the Accademia or purchase the Firenze Card. You’ll thank yourself as you cross the Ponte Vecchio, while marking it, too, off your list.

Down a tight road, through a narrow gate, no people, no cars, seemingly abandoned farm buildings, an old red tractor, no animals in sight, but the smell of hay and dung hung in the warm early evening air near Spezzano Albanese, in the arch of the Italian boot. Not a promising start after assurances that we would find the best mozzarella di bufala in the world or, at least, in Italy or, for sure, in Calabria.

Unlikely spots yield wonderful buffalo mozzarella

But on the wall of the smallest ancient building is a beautiful ceramic sign that assures us that we are at Caseificio Torre Mordillo. (The Mordillo Tower, pictured on the sign, is nearby. The tower and the surrounding ruins date from the Iron Age and were expanded by the Greeks.)

Caseificio Torre Mordillo

We enter into a tiny space, the store, empty of any products. A man looks up from the adjoining larger room where he is washing down the white-tiled walls and cream-tiled floor with a hose. His name is Mariano. If we can wait, he will have the mozzarella made fresh in twenty minutes. Why don’t we visit the water buffalos?

Water buffalos at dinner

Across the cracked pavement of the empty parking lot and around the corner of of the huge abandoned building we find about twenty water buffalos munching on their supper of hay. Communing with buffalos is only interesting for five minutes or so and we couldn’t discern where the milking shed might be and we weren’t as happy as the buffalos with the swampy mud. So we headed back to the caseificio to watch the mozzarella being made.

Loaves of cheese curd from which mozzarella is made

Maddalena and Florina had joined Mariano. A round stainless steel vat of water was heating on one side of the room. On a stainless steel table were loaves of porous cheese curd made from milk obtained from the water buffalos during their morning milking.

Crumbled cheese before hot water is added

Mariano carved off a large piece of the curd, placed it in a large round metal pan and crumbled it into small pieces. He added scoops of hot water and  stirred the melting crumbs with a wooden stick into a smooth mass. This is called “stringing the curd.” After the desired elasticity was achieved, Mariano scooped off the excess water.

After "stringing" pieces of mozzarella are carved off to form balls

From the large mass of mozzarella, they used the plastic scoop and the wooden stick to cut off baseball-sized pieces and dumped them into a rectangular bath of warm water where Maddalena and Florina formed them into balls of mozzarella di bufula. Each loaf of cheese made about twenty balls, which then went in to a salted bath to cool.

Balls of mozzarella being formed in a warm water bath

We asked for a large braid (treccia) of mozzarella and Mariano carved off a huge hunk of the smooth elastic mass. He warmed it by dipping it into the hot water bath. Then he held it high and let it stretch.

Stretching the mozzarella

He dipped the long piece into the warm water again and then let it stretch even more. Folding it over at the center he began to twine the treccia into its classic form.

Mariano creates the rope of mozzarella for the braid

Braiding the treccia

Usually fresh mozzarella spends a few hours in a bath of cold salt water. We took our order (2 kilos (about 4.5 pounds)) with us, each ball or braid bouncing around in salted water inside tied-off plastic sacks.

The perfect braid of mozzarella di bufala

Before we left we each got a taste of warm unsalted mozzarella – an intense milky flavor with essence of the air around the Caseificio Torre Mordillo.

From the mud-splattered, scruffy water buffalo (yes, I admit they have soulful brown eyes) comes the most sublime cheese, which due to its short “sell by” date, is only enjoyed by few people outside of Italy. Mozzarella di Bufala or Buffalo Mozzarella is the most prized of all of the mozzarella cheeses. “I always say mozzarella has 99 flavors,” said Antonio Palmieri, a buffalo mozzarella producer from Campania. “You can taste those flavors from the milk itself, without having to add anything, neither salt nor oil.”

Lunch of hay, a roll in the mud, and the result - sublime mozzarella

History

Food historians still argue over the genesis of mozzarella di bufala in Italy. One theory is that Asian water buffalo were brought to Italy by Goths during the migrations of the early medieval period. Some say that Arabs brought water buffalo into Sicily and later, the Normans brought them to the mainland.

Water buffalo were a familiar sight in the swampy coastal countryside of medieval Italy. They were widely used as draught animals in plowing compact and watery terrains, both because of its strength and the size of its hooves, which do not sink too deeply into moist soils.

Cheese products made from water buffalo milk appeared for the first time at the beginning of the 12th century. Buffalo mozzarella became widespread throughout the south of Italy in the late 18th century, going into small-scale commercial production

Bocconcini of mozzarella di bufala go into a saline bath

Production in and around Naples was briefly interrupted during World War II, when retreating Nazis slaughtered the area’s water buffalo herds. The farms were restocked a few years after the armistice was signed and the mozzarella has been growing ever since. Twenty percent of today’s Italian mozzarella di bufala output is shipped to France and an equal amount makes it overnight to the United States.

In early 2010, a scandal erupted over allegations that as much as a quarter of cheese sold as mozzarella di bufala contained cow’s milk rather than water buffalo milk.

It is widely known that the best and most highly prized artisanal produced buffalo mozzarella is still found south of Naples near Battipaglia and Caserta where small factories continue centuries-old traditions making buffalo mozzarella fresh daily for their local customers, who travel for miles to buy it only a few hours after the morning milking.

Obika, the mozzarella bar/restaurant with locations in London, New York and throughout Italy goes to the Campania region for all of the fresh mozzarella di bufala served in each of its unique bars.

How Mozzarella di Bufala is Made

Paula Lambert of the Mozzarella Company of Dallas Texas describes the process of making mozzarella best:

There are two basic ways to make mozzarella: direct acidification of the milk to form the curds or the culture/rennet method. In both methods, raw milk is pasteurized and then coagulated to form curds. Once the curds reach a pH of 5.2 they are cut into small pieces and mixed with hot water and then “strung” or “spun” until long ropes of cheese form.

This “stringing of the curd” is unique to cheeses in the “pasta filata” family, such as mozzarella, scamorza and provolone. When the proper smooth, elastic consistency is reached, the curds are formed by machine or hand into balls which are then tossed into cold water so that they maintain their shapes while they cool. They are then salted and packaged.

It is a short making process, usually less than 8 hours from raw milk to finished cheese. The critical moment is determining exactly when the cheese is mature and ready to be strung…waiting too long can result in a mushy cheese, while stringing too early can result in a tough dry cheese.

Once strung, the curds can be formed into balls of varying sizes: Ovolini (egg size) 4 ounce balls; Bocconcini (bite size) 1.50 ounce balls; Ciliegine (little cherry size) .33 ounce balls. My favorites are the braids (treccia) of mozzarella or, even better, burrata, which is like a mozzarella truffle – a ’skin’ of mozzarella surrounding cheesy “rags” and cream.

A perfect treccia (braid) of mozzarella di bufala

Mozzarella di bufala can be smoked, either in a smoking chamber or by “painting” with a liquid smoke, but a little affumicata can go a long way so use sparingly with a spicy side dish or in bits on a pizza with eggplant. Herbs and sun dried tomato bits can be added. There are many possibilities, but just fresh and plain is always best.

The Queen of Mozzarellas

Mozzarella di Bufala is the ultimate mozzarella tasting experience – everyone remembers their first time. Buffalo mozzarella should taste fresh and reminiscent of cream. Tasted the same day it is made, it will leave a lingering pleasant musky aftertaste – perhaps of hay. It should be mild and delicate, but creamier than cow’s milk mozzarella. There should be a hint of sourness and salt. (If it tastes too tart or sour the cheese is past its prime.) The color should be white; however, seasonally the cheese can be more yellow due to the cows’ diet of grasses. The fresher the cheese, the more elastic and springy the curd, but it shouldn’t be rubbery.

A face only a mother could love?

Once you have tried fresh mozzarella di bufala it is almost impossible to go back to regular mozzarella, or any other cheese.

View a video of Antonio Palmieri’s organic water buffalo farm where happy buffalo make delicious mozzarella.

As holidays go, Italy shines the brightest in the Spring when Easter approaches. Florence goes all out with flowers, but it is the chocolate eggs that are most impressive. Throughout the city shop windows bloom with vibrantly-wrapped chocolate treats from creamy white to mild ganache to darker fondente to extra noir.

The Palazzo Vecchio reflected in Rivoire's Easter window

Long before the Easter Bunny started delivering sugary eggs, the ancient Romans believed that “omne vivum ex ovo” – all life comes from the egg – and it was commonly a symbol of new birth after the winter when everything has lain dormant.

It is all in the details

There is some evidence that in ancient Roman culture eggs were decorated with vegetable dyes, such as beets and carrots, and then given as gifts during the spring festivals.

Vestri bursts forth with chocolate eggs

Easter tradition in Renaissance Italy originally called for eggs colored red. Some say that following the death of Christ, Mary Magdalen traveled to Italy to spread the word of the resurrection. In an audience with a skeptical Emperor Tiberius Caesar, an egg she had brought as a gift miraculously turned red, symbolizing the blood of Christ.

Easter egg for nut lovers

As chocolate became increasingly popular in the early 20th century, the sharing of colored hard-boiled eggs started to fade in Italy and chocolate eggs took their place.

Pretty in pink

Chocolate eggs became increasingly elaborate. They range from the tiny solid milk chocolate to the massive, showy hollowed out eggs containing small toys and even elaborate gifts, such as iPods and diamond rings. Wrapped in foil, cellophane, and sometimes silk with massive bows and even decorated with dangling toys, these creations are a feast for the eyes before they are just a feast.

Easter Eggs for toddlers, too.

The very popular Kinder Eggs are by Ferrero, a family company based in the Piedmont region. ‘Kinder Surprise’ eggs are a treat for children all year long, but at Easter the company’s production ranges from tiny ‘mini-eggs’ to the giant special eggs produced as a limited edition.

Huge chocolate egg honoring Italy's 150th Anniversary of Unification

After the solemnity of Lent, the extravaganza of chocolate Easter eggs can only lead to a return to the Mediterranean diet before it’s time to set up the ombrellone on the beach in June.