Tuscany was magical

So many wonderful things were happening that by the time we left Venice for Florence, it was clear to us that we had a guardian angel. We named her, Meg: Patron Saint of Prosecco. We paid homage to her/it as often as we could!

After three days of Michelangelo, da Vinci, the Medici clan, Ponte Vecchio and haggling over prices for hand made leather goods, we traveled deeper into the Tuscan countryside. I have been telling the girls stories about Cortona for so long, I hoped that I had not embellished.

They were enchanted.

They loved the artisans, shops, trattorias and the steep ancient roads but most of all they loved the tall shuttered windows!

The food in Tuscany is superb but if you are unfamiliar with the language you could run into disappointment because the menus are not always well translated. Happily, I was given carte blanche on restaurant selection. We had a ball!

The key to success during a gastronomic marathon is moderation. We shared our dishes to ensure that we were able to taste as much as possible without needing a wheel barrow to get around. OK – I might not have always shared…

Pici is a thick hand rolled pasta typically served with a wild boar or duck sauce. Ristorante Degli Archi in Montepulciano serves a killer pici carbonara.

Etruscans apparently cooked en papillote… it was a stunning presentation of pici with truffles.

Nothing makes me smile more than a breathtaking plate of fresh pasta waiting to be devoured! I had fresh tagliatelle with a sauce of cherry tomatoes, basil and pecorino all wrapped up in Tuscan prosciutto. This was one of my non-sharing moments!

 The drive from Cortona to Monteulciano is stunning. There is eye candy as far as you can see.

 We stopped at my favorite vineyard, Avignonesi and lucked into a tour and tasting.

 After lunching in Montepulciano, we carried on to Pienza, home of Pecorino cheese.

After four culinary magical days, we left for Roma.

Thanks for reading.

Thanks to Christie for the great photos