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“I floated the idea of having lunch on picnic blankets and there was nearly an insurrection,” says cook and author Amber Guinness, who is based between London and Tuscany. “It’s nice to have a sitting-on-the-floor moment with an aperitivo, but with actual food most people want a ledge.”
Amber Guinness and her husband, Matthew Bell, carry down the dishes © Camillo Pasquarelli
Guinness with Giovanni Mazzei and Roger Granville, all eating broad beans from the pods © Camillo Pasquarelli
The trestle table is laid with a Polkra tablecloth and John Derian melamine plates, with beef carpaccio with rucola, pecorino and courgettes in the centre © Camillo Pasquarelli
From left: Gigi Ettedgui, Matthew Granville and Matteo Perduca at the table © Camillo Pasquarelli
Today’s lunch is laid out on trestle tables and benches in the sun-dappled olive groves of Arniano, the Guinness family home. The guest list, a mix of Tuscan natives and expats, includes painter and Connolly fashion designer Gigi Ettedgui, journalist Matthew Bell (Guinness’s husband) and Roger Granville, co-founder of Florentine non-profit Fondazione Mascarade Opera. Winemaker Giovanni Mazzei and Petersham Nurseries’ Lara Boglione are also here, armed with jeroboams of Castello di Fonterutoli and Ser Lapo made by Mazzei’s family. “The best parties have a mix of ages,” says Guinness. “And with picnics, their informality means everyone can join in and crack on.” This includes Guinness and Bell’s one-year-old son Milo, who toddles around happily throughout the afternoon.
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Guinness kicks things off with prosecco limoncello spritzes, ricotta and nduja crostini with crispy sage, and a basket of fresh broad beans – she advises eating the latter straight from their pods with a generous hunk of pecorino.
Sue Townsend by the table in the olive grove © Camillo Pasquarelli
Dishes include fusilli al pesto di pistacchio with lemon zest, garlicky grilled tomatoes and green salad © Camillo Pasquarelli
The guests serve themselves fusilli al pesto di pistacchio © Camillo Pasquarelli
A help-yourself-style banquet is laid out on Lisa Corti and Polkra tablecloths. The dishes include chickpea fritters, garlicky grilled tomatoes, beef carpaccio with raw courgettes, and pistachio pesto pasta. All work well cold or at room temperature, says Guinness. For dessert, there’s a gluten-free lemon caprese topped with chocolate ganache that calls for the zest of five lemons (recipes for all can be found in her latest cookbook, Italian Coastal). She arranges slices onto a selection of floral-printed melamine plates by John Derian, sourced from his store in New York.
The sun shines all afternoon. “We were lucky,” says Guinness, who takes delight in being able to flat-pack her tables. “We’ve had such bad weather in Tuscany over the past couple of months. Suddenly, summer sprang.”
Journalist James Carey-Douglas with Gigi Ettedgui, painter and fashion designer for Connolly © Camillo Pasquarelli
Lemon torta caprese with chocolate ganache © Camillo Pasquarelli
Bell and Guinness in the garden of the Guinness family home Arniano in Murlo, Siena © Camillo Pasquarelli
Italian Coastal: Recipes and Stories from Where the Land Meets the Sea, by Amber Guinness, is published by Thames & Hudson at £29.99
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