I am writing this post from Bologna, where I am spending part of a two week vacation in northern Italy. Away from my computer, and with very limited ability to create a blog post on my iPhone, today will be a picture day. Look for a regular post next week with some vacation highlights.
For today, here are some fragments of frescoes found in Bologna’s mystical church complex of Santo Stefano. These faded remnants of the past are always intriguing.
Some recurring events serve to mark time, shepherding in a new year or a new season. One such event in Lucca is the annual spring garden show, Verde Mura.
Each April, Verde Mura takes place atop the walls that surround Lucca. Just about anything one wants for a garden – whether garden means a small herb patch, several long rows of vegetables, a bed full of flowers, or a small stand of fruit trees – is available.
With garden art and assorted crafts on display, there is little need to look elsewhere for spring garden inspiration.
This year - surprise - there were chickens and one very loud rooster !
Readers of this blog may recognize scenes from Verde Mura because I’ve written about it in past years. But the event always seems to bring something new, not to mention it really does mark the beginning of spring for me, and so each year I go, camera in hand, learning about everything from heirloom beans to new varieties of tulips and daffodils.
Sadly, I don’t have space for a garden in my tiny Lucca apartment. I can sometimes manage a few potted herbs, but that’s about all. Despite that, I always come home with at least a gorgeous bunch of flowers, some treats from the food vendors (this year delicious black pepper and almond taralli), and the joy of having spent a few hours on a spring morning up on Lucca’s walls immersed in the colors and scents of the Verde Mura.
One of the many delights of living in Tuscany is having a pranzo di domenica (Sunday lunch) with friends. Even better when one of those friends is a local chef who knows just where to find a special place in an out of the way little village. Rule # 1: always let the chef pick the restaurant! I was lucky enough to enjoy such a lunch recently, in the tiny village of Colognora di Compito, a lovely drive of about 6 miles, 15-20 minutes through the countryside from Lucca.
At first glance the restaurant, La Cantina di Alfredo, seems to have been dropped down in the middle of nowhere. It sits in tiny village along a pretty stone lined stream. The unassuming building that houses the restaurant (in business since 1965) barely hints at the lively atmosphere and wonderful flavors to be found within.
The first thing to reach my senses, before even opening the door, was the smell of the wood ovens. A very nice welcome and a hint of the flavors to come.
Next, the sound of Italian chatter reached my ears. Families with children of all ages filled the restaurant, happily interacting and sharing a meal. Not one cell phone or other device in sight. Sharing a Sunday lunch with friends, surrounded by a roomful of Italian families, is always a treat. La Cantina di Alfredo provided the perfect Sunday atmosphere.
There are house specialty antipasti that get the meal off to an abundant start. I have to admit (with only a pinch of guilt) that between the three of us we shared several of them, almost a meal on its own. I blame my chef friend, who ordered for us – cancel that – I meant to say that I THANK my chef friend - because each bite was delicious. First, we shared a board of cured meats including prosciutto, salami, other cured meats, and lardo (a buttery soft cubed pork fat) served with thin wedges of herb-flecked wood fired oven baked focaccia.
Alongside that came a platter of bruschetta featuring fegato (a liver paté) on bread or squares of fried polenta, “meatballs” made of chopped mushrooms, and a pile of pasta fritta. Pasta fritta is addictive – small bites of hot, fried, salty dough. How bad could that be? Topped with a slice of the prosciutto it was delicious.
Having eaten a very big antipasto course, we skipped the primi selections (first courses) and headed straight to the main dishes.
The house specialties include meats grilled in the wood oven, especially Florentine steaks and other cuts of beef. And the big piles of meats waiting to be cooked in one of their two wood fired ovens looked amazing.
In addition to beef, other dishes are prepared on the grill as well, including as fish, pork, and chicken. And a second, even hotter, wood fired oven is reserved for pizza. Both of my companions ordered the Baccalà alla Brace (alla brace means on the grill) while I opted for the Rosticianna alla Brace (grilled pork ribs).
Alongside we shared a dish of fagioli al forno (oven roasted beans). Cooking beans in a wood oven turns them from ordinary into something special. Creamy on the inside but a touch crisp on the outside, drizzled with good olive oil, they were perfect with both the fish and the pork.
Much too full for a dolce (sweet), we finished our meal with coffee (and a doggie bag for me - those ribs were hefty). Leaving the restaurant by way of a small stone bridge, it was worth the short detour to see the small church with its unique short bell tower and mosaic decoration. And then it was back in the car for the short drive back to Lucca.
Good friends + a drive in the Tuscan countryside + a fabulous lunch = a perfect Sunday in Tuscany.
La Cantina di Alfredo, Via di Colognora, 32. Colognora di Compito Capannori
Phone: +39 058 3980192. Cell phone: +39 331 3876800
Email: info@lacantinadialfredo.it
Closed Monday & Tuesday, open Wednesday – Sunday 12 – 2:30 NS 7 – 11 PM
Late March in Lucca. The trees may be bare but there are hints of spring all around.
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.
The courtyard of Palazzo Santini, Lucca
The time between the end of Carnevale and the beginning of April is pretty calm in Lucca – it’s as if everyone and everything is just holding their breath waiting for spring.
There is one annual March event that is special - the celebration of the camellias blooming in and around Lucca. This will soon be followed by wild poppies, wisteria, and roses. I can hardly wait!
In Lucca, the historic center has been quiet, especially on weekdays. This has given me plenty of time to wander about town. As I’ve walked. I’ve been thinking of the ways in which Lucca has changed over the years. It was a much quieter place when I first visited back in 2012 – fewer cars, fewer tourists, just one general grocery store in the historic center. Today Lucca is much busier and, during peak travel season, a definite tourist hot spot.
This wonderful little shop closed for good last year.
An unwelcome change is the closure of some of the oldest shops and restaurants in town.
One of my favorite small shops, Il Mercatino, home of delicious caprini (no, not small goats, but a mild marinated cheese log) closed last year. It left a vacancy along Via San Paolino.
And now two more of Lucca’s iconic shops are closing. One is the Ferramenta e Mesticheria Di Barsanti e Marlia, also on Via San Paolino. This small hardware shop, in business since 1949, has one of the best windows in Lucca. On display are all sorts of specialized knives and kitchen tools, including rolling pins designed for hand cutting pasta of various widths. Inside are a variety of tools, pans, brass fittings, etc. It is hard to imagine a stroll down Via San Paolino without stopping to look in the window and imagining just how one might use forbici da pecore (sheep scissors).
Ferramenta e Mesticheria Di Barsanti e Marlia
Polleria Volpi, closing after Easter
The most shocking one to me is the upcoming (just after Easter) closure of Polleria Volpi, the beloved “chicken shop”. Run by sister butchers Caterina and Valentina, they have the best poultry in town. And boy do those ladies know how to wield a cleaver! They gave me my first lessons in how to order chicken parts in Italian, offered large roasting hens to stand in for Thanksgiving turkey, and taught me how to cook their little rolls of rabbit meat wrapped around lardo. They also stock lots of food items and wonderful seasonal treats, like Christmas Panetone and Easter Colomba cakes in gorgeous tins by Dolce & Gabbana. In business since 1973, it is hard for me to conceive of a future without a stop at the Polleria to do some shopping. That all three of these closures are on the same street, one that funnels lots of tourists into town, I have to wonder about the role that the many day trippers (who rarely buy anything) have on the ability of these unique places to remain viable.
Easter goodies in the window at Polleria Volpi
While thinking of these closures makes me sad, some of my wanderings around Lucca have been more inspiring. In the past week I’ve wandered into some places that are outside of my everyday routes, marveling that Lucca still holds surprises for me.
First, I was directed to pass through the courtyard of Palazzo Santini (above), a detour made necessary by some work being done on a nearby street. The 17th century palazzo now houses city offices. The courtyard connects to two streets, Via del Moro and Via Cesare Battisti. It is filled with bikes and people coming and going from the offices these days, but has remnants of its former life as home to the wealthy Santini family. The columns support broad arches, old worn doors lead to unknown places, and the vaulted ceilings have faded frescoes. It made for a very pleasant detour.
Chapel of Madonna del Sasso, in the church of Sant’Agostino
On one of my wanders, I passed by the church of Sant’Agostino, built in the 1300s right up against a section of the ancient Roman theater. I had never been inside but the nun standing in front of the church, one of the Sisters of the Holy Spirit who maintain the church, invited me to enter. The church seems very plain at first glance, but there is a wonderful side chapel, The Chapel of the Madonna del Sasso, off to the right. After admiring the altar, paintings, and statues look for the grate in the floor – legend has it that it connects straight to hell. Ornate and frescoed, the chapel is a surprise in the otherwise plain interior.
Large displays around the church explain the founding of the Sisters of the Holy Spirit (Suore Oblate dello Santo Spirito) by Elena Guerra in 1959. Don’t be surprised to find her body below the main altar in a glass sarcophagus.
The painted double ceiling of Santa Caterina
My last wander for the week took me to the tiny Church of Santa Caterina. Once the chapel for workers at the now shuttered tobacco factory, it is rarely open. Restored several years ago by FAI (Fondo per L’Ambiente Italiano, an Italian organization which restores and cares for historic properties), it was opened this past weekend for a special FAI event. With its beautifully frescoed and decorated interior it is a jewel box of a space. Looking up at the frescoed ceiling, the illusion of great depth is due to an oculus that opens to the even higher painted second ceiling.
Such amazing gifts a quiet weekend in Lucca brings !