FLORENCE, ITALY – Wine bars, tasting sessions, showcooking, entertainment and training seminars compose an ideal presentation of Florence in the city of Expo 2015. From 2 to 10 May, the Florentine stars of agri-food excellence are presenting a selection of the area’s most famous products at #FirenzeFuoriExpo, a unique, free-of-charge event in Milan. For a whole semester, the Region of Tuscany is in the suggestive cloisters of the Società Umanitaria (Via Daverio), a stone’s throw from the historic centre, with a calendar of initiatives produced by PromoFirenze in collaboration with the Biennale Enogastronomica Fiorentina, coordinated by the Chamber of Commerce of Florence and Toscana Promozione, with the sponsorship of Expo 2015.
To add to the fun and excitement, Florence’s and Tuscany’s best-known chefs will be in the kitchen, proposing traditional products and innovative methods and ingredients: from the world of vegan products and dishes to tripe, from artisan beers to the great red wines, from the bistecca alla Fiorentina to the art of table setting, with a scientific information section prepared by university professors and selected experts from Florence’s prestigious Accademia dei Georgofili.
«Expo 2015 is a great opportunity for the entire country, for international development, for the growth of our economies,» says the President of the Chamber of Commerce of Florence, e della Camera di Commercio di Firenze, Leonardo Bassilichi. «We are also convinced that an full-immersion emotional journey such as that offered by FirenzeFuoriExpo is an optimal starting point for whetting international visitors’ appetites for our artisan and industrial know-how and the excellences of our commerce and our tourism offer, true strategic assets for Florence in the world.»
Saturday, 2 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
At the opening appointment (at 12 noon, by invitation), Marco Stabile, the ‘testimonial chef’ of the Tuscan adventure at Expo 2015, is introducing his emblematic Tuscan ‘good living’ dish. He is flanked by his colleagues Sara Conforti and Entiana Osmenzeza, who are presenting an exclusive inaugural aperitif and, in the afternoon – with journalist Annamaria Tossani – are showing off their culinary skills at a cooking exhibition and presentation of a research project exploring the ways in which Tuscan cooking is the natural precursor of the vegan diet.
Sunday, 3 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
The second day alternates showcooking by Francesco Altomare, Duccio Pistolesi, Maria Probst and Beatrice Segoni. Cascading new tasting sessions present typical products under the expert guidance of Annamaria Tossani. At 5:00 pm, the chefs welcome Donna Giorgiana Corsini and her interpretations of Tuscan dishes.
Monday, 4 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
Spotlight on the trippaio, the street food pioneer par excellence. Tripe, lampredotto and typical Florentine dishes are the protagonists at the showcooking space; at the ‘trippa lunch’ presented by Leonardo Romanelli at 12 noon, trippaio Alessandro Corso reveals all the secrets of this ancient Tuscan specialty food, reinterpreted by Tuscan chef Emanuele Vallini and Matteo Donati.
Tuesday, 5 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
This is the day of ‘God Save the Wine’, the event at which Tuscany’s major winemakers are offering tastes of their wines matched with famous Cinta Senese pork delicacies and regaling visitors with little-known facts about the products. The highlight of the day is a showcooking challenge squaring off Paolo Gori against vegetarian chef Cristian Giorni: a hard-fought competition at the stove, pitting tradition against experimentation: a farro-and-bean soup, a peppery Chianina beef stew Impruneta-style and chicken-liver crostini on the one hand; vegetarian versions of ribollita soup and the crostini and a zuppa inglese trifle on the other – and it will be up to the public to crown the winner. At 3:30 pm, ‘Il vigneto di Leonardo a Milano: cronaca di una scoperta’ is recounted by Attilio Scienza, professor at the University of Milan.
Wednesday, 6 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
A day devoted to wine- and oil-tasting, presentations and showcooking of two typically Florentine desserts: zuccotto and zuppa inglese, interpreted by Andrea Bianchini. Other delicacies there for the tasting include chocolate, organic products, sauces, soups and other typical Tuscan products and dishes in a medley of ancient flavours and new recipes.
Thursday, 7 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
A day devoted to the Tuscan excellences: “Progetto Qualita” with showcooking, round tables, guided tasting of products, encounters with selected food journalists and food bloggers. At 3:30 pm, Dario Casati, professor at the University of Milan, will speak about how agriculture can contribute to our country’s economic growth.
Friday, 8 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
Tuscany, the third-place region in Italy’s ranking of active artisan beer labels, is presenting the products of a vast array of brewers and, only naturally, Florence’s cheeses, for a quality ‘birro-gastronomico’ festival at the tasting tables and three workshops at which sector experts will illustrate beer/cheese matches. And a mini-course in beer tasting. At 3:30 pm, Gianfranco Piva of the Università Cattolica of Piacenza tells the story of the ‘Paese dei mille formaggi’. At 5:00 pm, Antonio Michele Stanca, professor at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, talks about the properties of cereals.
Saturday, 9 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
This is the day for “Toscana Bio Wine & Food”, an appointment intended to valorise the output of a regional production sector now enjoying exponential growth: organic foods capable of attracting the attention of a public which is increasingly attentive to – and aware of – what they eat. The day’s appointment, structured as a tasting fest and market, presents the products of a dozen small wine and food concerns from various parts of Tuscany. At 3:30 pm, Elvio Bellini of the Centro Studi e Documentazione sul Castagno di Marradi will give a talk on the chestnut, long a staple food in Tuscany.
Sunday, 10 May (from 11:00 am to 11:00 pm)
Florence’s historic San Lorenzo central market presents products from tradition. Salamis, meats, breads and schiacciata, honey, sauces, truffle products and wines, oils and typical deserts and sweets dominate the tasting tables – but fruit and vegetables are also excellent starting points for recounting the territory’s typical recipes, just as flowers are the stars on sumptuously laid tables. The day’s standard-bearer is the typical bistecca alla Fiorentina: this time, exquisite Chianina beef becomes a knife-cut tartare in a cooking exhibition curated by Leonardo Romanelli. And at 3:30 pm, Professor Aldo Ferrero of the University of Turin explains all the properties of rice.
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