The Tuscan Year: Life and Food in an Italian Valley

The Tuscan Year recounts the daily life and food preparation of a family living on a farm in Tuscany. Elizabeth Romer chronicles each season's activities month by month: curing prosciutto and making salame in January, planting and cheesemaking in March, harvesting and threshing corn in July, hunting for wild muchrooms in September, and grape crushing in Ocober. Scattered throughout this lovely calendar are recipes―fresh bread and olive oil, grilled mushrooms, broad beans with ham, trout with fresh tomatoes and basil, chicken grilled with fresh sage and garlic, and apples baked with butter, sugar, and lemon peel, among many others. Alive with the rhythms of country tradition, The Tuscan Year is a treasure for the armchair traveler as well as the cook.

Elizabeth Romer studied textile design at the Royal College of Art, London, and has practiced and taught in that field. She lives in Tuscany with her husband.