A census of Tuscan schiacciata, organized by Aset and Vetrina Toscana together with the Accademia della Crusca: a scientific survey of the 617 names and types of focaccia found in the region.
617 names to describe Tuscan schiacciata
Ndon’t just call it Tuscan schiacciatawhen you ask for a piece at the bakery. Also, in Tuscany, you might receive different products than you expect.
Tuscan schiacciata, a must since the times of the Grand Duchy
Despite the Tuscan schiacciata is now a must of the “food chain” since the times of the Grand Duchy, in every area of Tuscany this dish is called with a different nameAnd vice versa, depending on the region, the same name can refer to focaccias that are light years apart.
The task of bringing some order to this semantic mess was taken care of byAcademy of the Crusca (nomen omen…) who decided to catalogue the various “chaccino“, “fugassa“, “carsenta“, “coface” And “panigaccio” together with the journalists of theAset (Tuscany Food and Wine Press Association) and Tuscan Showcase (the project of the Region and Unioncamere Toscana that promotes restaurants and shops that use typical local products) for the first census of the sector. With a surprising result: in Tuscany, schiacciata has 617 names.
👉 Read also: A mini guide to Tuscan schiacciata, province by province
The investigation by Aset and Vetrina Toscana
The investigation, which lasted nearly five months, involved over 200 Tuscan bakers, who filled out almost 150 forms, while the trade journalists (including myself) had to taste – sorry, analyze – about a hundred samples. In addition, a study byAcademy of the Crusca He illustrated the 617 different names in use at the end of the twentieth century in over 200 Tuscan towns, then traced them back to the territory in which they are widespread and studied to verify their roots in cultural tradition.
It was thus discovered that the “ciaccia” of the Garfagnana, the “fogazeta”, the “panèllo” and the “pieda” of theApennines, or the “fugassa” of Mass, the “cofaccia” Pistoia or the “carsenta” of the LunigianaLikewise, it was discovered that there are five macro-types on which the current art of preparing schiacciata is based: thin, stuffed, traditional, with bread dough and with flour from special grains.
The Tuscan schiacciata
Ultimately, the Tuscan schiacciata differs from the others existing in Italy because it was not created as a “support” for the side dish, but as a product that can be consumed alone.
Yet, despite the extreme ssimplicity of the ingredients (water, flour, oil, salt, yeast), the experience of each of us shows that there is a Tuscan schiacciata infinite fan: high and low, soft and crunchy, saltier and less saltier, floury and not, greasy and dry, crumbly and compact, high edges and low edges, more cooked and less cooked, to be stuffed and not, etc… The Tuscan schiacciata has then given rise to sayings and proverbs, starting from “steal the smoke from the dunks” to indicate a thief particularly skilled in his profession.
👉 Read also: All the schiacciate lead to the Antico Vinaio in Florence
The event of the Georgofili Academy
The investigation was presented to theAcademy of Georgofili in the presence of the president of the Friends of the Georgofili, the Marchioness Vittoria Gondi, who offered the wines and the family palace for the tasting that followed the official presentation.
“The most obvious result of this census on the Tuscan schiacciata – the researchers explain – is that the product is still extremely alive both due to the rooting of consumption and for variety of production, both for its development and dissemination potential, also in terms of territorial promotion, and thanks to this it is not currently in danger of standardisation”.
📍FOR MORE INFORMATION:
👉 Curiosities, history, and recipe for Tuscan schiacciata
👉 September in Tuscany: grape harvest, festivals, and…schiacciata with grapes
👉 A smash against Fiorentina: and it’s always Sunday
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