Italian cities street foods is very different and particular. Today’s stop is Florence: a city full of art and with a fairytale-like atmosphere, where cuisine is an integral part of the tradition that inspired hundreds of artists over the years. Let us find out what the typical street food of Florence is!
Our journey through Italy’s street food continue, today’s stop is Florence. The nerve centre of Renaissance, art, poetry but also – staying on topic – of Tuscan cuisine. A cuisine, as we know very well, characterized by strong flavours that take us back to tradition and by wonderful smells. This might have inspired all those artists that have made of Florence their home, making it the beauty that it is today.
Florence’s street food has quite a lot of elements: going from fried food to doughs, but with that extra flavour, typical of Tuscany. Let us find out 5 of Florence’s street foods!
Here are the 5 typical street food in Florence!
1) Schiacciata with prosciutto
It is a kind of white stuffed pizza, with the typical holes on top. It is usually worked by hand and pressed with fingers so as to create those holes that during cooking fill up with the oil, salt and condiment used, trapping a smell and a flavour that will make your mouth water. Usually it is filled with prosciutto and stracchino or with any other local cold cut.
2) la ciabatta fiorentina
The ciabatta fiorentina is another kind of stuffed pizza, characterized by a particular type of proofing, the so-called lievitazione in bigoncia. The bigoncia was a high and narrow container, traditionally made of brass, inside of which they used to leave – and they still do – the dough to proof. The ciabatta fiorentina is filled with cheese and/or with tomato and it is a great snack to eat walking around Florence, after a tour of the Uffizi museum.
3) lampredotto
The lampredotto is one of the most iconic elements of Florence’s street food. It is a dish based on one of the four section of the bovine stomach, very similar to Roman trippa. In the Tuscan capital there are many kiosks of “lampredottai”, spread around town, where you can buy the local bread, semelle, stuffed with lampredotto.
4) il covaccino
The covaccino is a kind of schiacciatabut much thinner and tasty. It is usually seasoned with salt, oil, and rosemary but – unlike the classical schiacciata – is more crunchy on the surface and is usually stuffed with sausages. It is great for lunch after a morning spent walking around the city.
5) il fritto
Like every town, Florence’s street food comes with a significant part of fried food. Traditionally, fried food is present in every Italian town and Florence is no exception. The typical cartocci of florentine fried food feature ficattole, fritters and calzoni. Furthermore, if you are thinking of having an aperitif with some fried food, you can taste the coccoli, savoury fried pastry that is usually coupled with cold cuts, cheese and local wine.
Cover Image: theculturetrip
