an unmissable early Fall daintly
Simply Divine
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Maddalena Delli]
“Schiacciata con l'uva” translates as “flat bread with grapes” and it is a seasonal dessert available at the time of grape harvest – roughly between late August and early October. Just like many other traditional Tuscan specialities, the recipe is a bread-based preparation with added seasonal “leftovers”, attesting to its genuine peasant origins. The grapes are black wine grapes – usually of the “sangiovese” or “canaiolo” varieties, and often second-rate (that is, not good enough for turning into fine Chianti wine). In fact, large eating grapes are unsuitable because they are too watery and not sweet enough: in the oven the grapes must release their juice which, combined with the sugar, produces a delicious jelly. Let me point out that although this is a dessert, it is not a “cake” proper, but – true to its name – a sweet sort of bread, which peasant women used to make out of the same dough and bake together with their bread. Therefore, beware of anyone trying to pass any plumcake-looking thing as “schiacciata con l’uva”: in fact, the real thing is more easily found in bakeries than from confectioners’! Last but not least, “schiacciata con l’uva” is perfectly suitable for vegetarians and even vegans, because it contains no trace of eggs, milk or butter: just flour, water, yeast, black grapes, sugar and olive oil, with maybe the occasional additiom of rosemary leaves or fennel seeds. And – do take my word for it – if you have a sweet tooth it is definitely worth trying!
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an unmissable early Fall daintly