Recipe: Castagnaccio or Tuscan Chestnut Flour Cake

Tuscan Castagnaccio or Chestnut Flour Cake

Next in my series of veganizing traditional Tuscan food, I want to share with you a recipe for a rustic peasant cake called castagnaccio (otherwise known as migliaccio in some regions of Italy). This is a slightly sweet, slightly savory flat chestnut flour cake. It uses only simple, seasonal ingredients to create a distinct, unique dish!

My Babbo (Italian for daddy) showed me how to make castagnaccio, and got me hooked on this treat! He remembers eating it growing up in Fiesole, Italy, though outside of Tuscany he doesn't think it is very well-known. It's such a traditional taste of Tuscany that I wanted to share it with you! Below you'll find the recipe my dad handed down to me, which was handed down to him from his mother, my Italian Nonna.

Recipe: Rustic Tuscan Summer Bread Salad

Not many people know this, but I was actually born near Florence, Italy and moved to the States with my parents when I was around 4 years old (my mom was American, and my dad Italian, so I have dual citizenship). Even though we moved to the States, I grew up on Tuscan cooking, with recipes handed down to my dad from my Italian Nonna. These recipes are near and dear to my heart since I was never able to meet my Italian grandparents.

With some help from my parents, I've decided to veganize the Tuscan dishes I grew up with, and share these veganized recipes with you. Luckily, some are already vegan (like today's recipe), so I'll be sharing those as well, since many aren't commonly know outside of Tuscany.

My first recipe I'd like to share is Panzanella, which is a bread salad dish typically served on hot summer days. I know that bread salad sounds a little weird, but trust me, it's actually quite delicious! And if you're a carb queen like myself, you'll love it!!