A journey around the world among the Tuscan hills: a holiday in Florence, Part II

When we set off to discover the wonderful surrounding hills of Chianti, we "meet" Mona Lisa once again: the famous model of Leonardo, Lisa Gherardini, in fact lived in nearby Montagliari, a hamlet of Greve in Chianti. The discoveries certainly don't stop here: we are in the land of explorers. If in Florence we were able to admire the Ognissanti church of the family of Amerigo Vespucci, in Montefioralle, not far from Gaville, we can immerse ourselves in the medieval atmosphere of the castle where the great explorer lived for a period. But from this area too, from Greve in Chianti, came Giovanni da Verrazzano, the explorer who in the sixteenth century was the first to reach the bay of New York.

When in the evening we settle at our elegant table for dinner, we discover that we are in turn guests of a great explorer: the owner Jamal, who welcomes us with sincere kindness, before creating this corner of peace and relaxation, had travelled the world for work, visiting no fewer than forty-three countries. "After travelling so much, opening an agriturismo where I could live in contact with nature and with people, sharing with them my innate passion for cooking, was my great dream, which I managed to realise a few years ago," he tells us. "The love of cooking has been with me since I was a child and is my greatest source of energy and enthusiasm.

The cuisine of the agriturismo is based mainly on Tuscan tradition, interpreted with imagination and with the pleasant contamination of other cultures too," continues the chef, a deep connoisseur of the flavours and aromas of many lands, even distant ones. His cooking is in perfect harmony with the Florentine Renaissance spirit: it is well known how much good food was appreciated in the Florence of centuries ago; it is no coincidence that it was precisely here that the fork was used for the first time. At the Museum of Peasant Civilisation in Gaville one can relive the rural atmosphere of the past, but in a certain sense those traditions still continue today and are also followed by chef Jamal, who uses exclusively first-quality, organic ingredients from the local area.

With the addition of his imagination and his skilfully chosen spices, dinners at the agriturismo become something magical, as well as good and healthy. "For me, cooking means dedicating myself to a constant search for new flavours and new experiences, creating each time a new balance of taste, a new sensory harmony," he explains.

If during our holiday we have had the pleasure of enjoying succulent dinners tasting dishes such as the parcel of grouper and courgettes in truffle broth, the flan of fresh tuna with avocado, the Florentine crespelle with cheese and ham in pumpkin cream, ribollita, pappardelle with wild boar, fillet with pepper and berries, bistecca alla fiorentina or even the aphrodisiac chicken with spring onions and peppers, we can also discover many curiosities about Jamal's mouthwatering specialities thanks to his book, entitled "Vivo di gusto! - La cucina creativa toscana secondo Jamal Amin", also available in English under the title "Living with taste - About Creative Tuscan Cooking by Jamal Amin", recently published.

We will thus have the chance to travel with the chef to many exotic countries, discover new cultures, learn the history of the dishes he has devised and brought to success: a journey that will take us from Florence out into the world and that will bring the beauty of the world to Florence. Sipping a good Chianti and giving in to the temptation of desserts such as dark chocolate truffles with pineapple and mint, or panna cotta mousse with berries and liquorice, our Florentine journey continues in the name of the Renaissance joy of living, a joy that will always bring us back to these places where travel is an experience of the senses and of the spirit.

Francesca Bertha

FOR INFORMATION:

Agriturismo Villa Poggio di Gaville Via di Gaville, 30 - Gaville, Figline Valdarno (FI) tel.: 055/961955 Facebook: Villa Poggio di Gaville Jamal Amin's book, "Vivo di gusto! - La cucina creativa toscana secondo Jamal Amin"/"Living with taste - About Creative Tuscan Cooking by Jamal Amin", is available from the best-known online bookstores in both paperback and ebook format and can be ordered in bookshops. Ibs.it:

La Feltrinelli:

Mondadori Store:

Amazon.it: