Acquacotta

Book excerpt: Discover the cuisine of a secret part of southernmost Tuscany, known as La Costa D’Argento — the silver coast, in the second edition of Acquacotta. In this cookbook, Tuscan-based, Australian-born writer and photographer Emiko Davies has compiled and adapted her Italian family’s best-loved recipes from Capalbio, Monte Argentario, Giglio Island and inland to the hot springs of Saturnia and the ancient Pitigliano. It is a celebration of the region that's named for the shimmery salt-and-pepper sand along this part of the Tyrrhenian Sea, its rolling hills, long beaches, overgrown fig trees, rambling vineyards – and rich culinary history. The latest iteration of Acquacotta features a beautiful new cover and a vegetarian and gluten-free index that highlights a different side to Italian cuisine. In words and pictures, Emiko guides readers through the use of local ingredients, as well as sharing the history of rustic, storied dishes including scampi and potato soup, hand-rolled strozzapreti noodles, spinach and ricotta tortelli, chestnut gnocchi and the classic fig and chocolate bread, pagnotella. Plus, of course, the book’s namesake acquacotta, a quintessential Maremman peasant dish that captures the spirit of this special place.