It’s still snowing in the Maremma, as you can see from the picture above.

In fact, this is the most snow my little Southern Tuscan region has experienced in more than a century. Most of us are taking it in our stride.

A dear friend of mine was snowed into her house. Two metres of snow blocked her doorway, but she climbed out the window and is now enjoying herself tremendously, going from friend to friend recounting the terrible experience.

My mother-in-law, who stockpiled enough food to feed a small army just before the snow hit, is smugly content in her weather prediction skills, and my husband is in a constant state of awe, driving from town to town taking pictures of two metre tall snow dunes, partially covered cars and the snow plows with utter glee.

I’m stuck at home on kid watching duty, so in between the Manny Tutto fare and Bear in the Big Blue House, I’ve had plenty of time to think.

I can just imagine the Northern Italians scoffing at our exaggerated reaction to a mere three metres of snow. In fact, most of Europe would be calling us drama queens right about now, but you’d be amazed at just how under prepared we are.

Rome has come to a standstill because the emergency services thought they were getting three centimetres, rather than three metres of snow.

We’re not THAT bad off, but we’ve still taken quite a hit. Roads into the smaller towns and frazione are no-go zones, no one is getting or out. In Pitigliano, the emergency services were called to help those who have been snowed out and many of the roads are at risk of small scale avalanches as the weather heats up.

But I don’t want to stew on the weather conditions. I want to share an old family recipe of mine. When bad weather keeps me inside or when I’m just itching for something really traditionally and quintessentially Maremman, I make acquacotta.

Acquacotta is a Maremma staple. An extremely hearty vegetable stew, it was made by the farmers who would spend 12 hours in the fields for days on end during harvest.

As well as being extremely healthy and delicious, acquacotta is also very filling. It had to be. The farmers couldn’t survive all day long on vegetables alone, so the soup was enriched with bread and a perfectly cooked poached egg on top.

I love to use really seasonal vegetables whenever I make this. I know you can get carrots and potatoes any time of the year, but the traditional soup would have been made with whatever the farmers had picked that day.

This emphasis on seasonality is what defines Maremman cooking as a whole and it makes this soup extremely versatile. Just swap the vegetables with whatever you have on hand or in the fridge and you’ll have a new soup every time!

Perfect for a chilly winter’s day or if, like me, you’re snowed in with an almost bare pantry and three hungry munchkins with the sniffles to feed!

Acquacotta

For: 4 people
Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time: 35 min

Ingredients
2 red onions
5 ripe tomatoes
1 cabbage
1 carrot
1 stick of celery
4 eggs
4 slices of crusty bread
Pecorino cheese (to serve)
Olive oil

Method
Clean and slice vegetables into bite size pieces.

Heat 4 tablespoons of oil in a casserole dish. Add the vegetables and fry on medium-high heat for ten minutes.

Add the tomatoes, deseeded and sliced into wedges, a litre of water and a pinch of salt.

Boil for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are soft.

Fill another pan with a shallow layer of water. Bring to the boil with a pinch of salt. When boiling lower the heat to a gentle simmer.

Break eggs into a bowl and slide them one at a time into the pan of water. Cook for 3-4 mins or until the white of the egg is set and opaque.

Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon .

To serve:
Place a slice of toasted bread and the bottom of each bowl. Put the poached egg on top and pour the vegetable stew over it. Grate over a generous amount of pecorino cheese and enjoy.

Buon Appetito!

On Wednesday morning, I woke up to the eager screams of “IT’S SNOWING” or “STA NEVICANDO” in the Tuscan Maremma.

At first, I thought my household was being a little over exuberant. We live fairly close to the sea, in a part of Italy that never sees snow. In the five years I’ve lived here, it has snowed once, and the snow melted into a dirty muck in a matter of hours.

So I stumble out of bed, looked outside and low and behold, it’s actually snowing. Mountains of snow, fluttering down on the completely unprepared olive trees in my garden. For a second, I actually felt pity for them. They don’t know how to react to this sort of weather. They’re olive trees! Made for sunny climates and warm thoughts.

Unfortunately, this snow didn’t follow conventions and melt away before it got annoying. We’re now in day 7 and what started as a fun diversion from daily routine has turned into a bit of a pain in the arse, frankly.

Europe is being hit with its coldest snap in decades. Cars are freezing on the streets in Norway. Planes are being cancelled in London. And people like me in the Tuscan Maremma are slowly being driven insane by the unwanted and inconvenient snow that refuses to abate.

We haven’t seen weather like this since 1935, and being Italian, we, naturally, haven’t prepared for it since 1935.  When my mother-in-law heard that it might snow, she stocked up on every non-perishable she could get her hands on. Her basement looks like a WWIII bunker.

While I admit, she was taking things to the extreme, the local supermarket shelves are looking a little bare after days of delayed deliveries. The Maremmani didn’t consider snow when they built their roads. Why would they? This is central Italy we’re talking about, so far from the Alps, they might as well be in another country.

But as every day dawns with a new dusting of operating room white snow, I’ve devised my own surviving-unseasonable-snow contingency plan.

It starts with a pot full of richly made and slowly stewed beef ragu, which I can dish up at a moment’s notice with pasta to freezing hubby after a day of work.

To make it, I simply season a piece of braising steak, brown it and add it to a pot with a can of tomatoes and a cup or two of chicken stock. Then I just leave it on the stove until the meat melts into tender pieces. It takes a couple of hours, but I don’t have to do more than stir it once or twice.

Yesterday, the pipes from the heater froze and exploded, so the ragu has definitely come in handy when trying to trick the body into thinking it’s warmer than it actually is. So has a good glass of Morellino di Scansano, the Maremma’s national red wine!

But the number one survival technique I’ve adopted since we became snowed in is… drum roll… company.

No I don’t mean stripping down and huddling together for warmth.

All over the Maremma, friends and family have been getting together to wait out the snowstorm together.

We head over to my father-in-law’s every evening and he lights the wood stove in the kitchen. Almost immediately the freezing temperatures are forgotten as the flames flicker across the room and everyone screams over one another as they try to share their close encounter with the recent snowy conditions.

It mightn’t sound like much, but there’s a certain comfort to be had in sharing life’s extreme with your nearest and dearest. The snow doesn’t seem so thick, the olive trees don’t seem so sad and your bones don’t feel as frozen.

The Maremmani are a naturally social bunch. They’ll take any old excuse to gossip, or complain, but the recent snow has brought out the most hospitable in all of us, and I have to admit, I sort of like having an excuse to spend more time with my extended family.

Finding an authentic Italian restaurant in Italy is hard.

No, I’m not pulling your leg

I have been to Florence at least 20 times and am yet to find a restaurant that serves good, traditional Tuscan food. It doesn’t matter that I can speak Italian. It doesn’t matter how far I wander away from Il Duomo. I just can’t for the life of me find a restaurant that doesn’t feature a tourist menu or overpriced and badly made pasta dishes.

It’s the same in Rome, Siena, Pisa, Venice, Naples, the Amalfi Coast, pretty much anywhere in this beautiful country.

It doesn’t matter whether your experience of Italian cooking is confined to pasta and pizza or whether you’ve eaten at and rated every restaurant in your home country, no one wants to eat dodgy Italian food in Italy.

Admittedly, I can’t speak for any of the cities mentioned above. I’m as lost as you are in the quest to find authentic Lazian cooking in Rome.

But I consider myself quite the expert on the restaurants in my home region.

Maremman cooking is different from the rest of Tuscany. Like most Italians, the Maremmani look for seasonality and genuine ingredients, but they also remain ardently faithful to the old ways.

There is nothing more comforting than a table full of the hearty and humble dishes like acquacotta (a vegetable soup) or lepre stufato (braised hare), and the modern Maremmani uses their cuisine to celebrate their agrarian ancestors.

Often that means trading beef and chicken for wild boar and pheasant. The Maremmani first tasted game during the Roman Empire 2,000 years ago, and while many no longer hunt today, game is still a significant part of their traditional cuisine.

You might think finding an authentic restaurant in the Maremma is easier than finding one in the big cities, but good cooking is hard to come by anywhere and with the spread of convenience cooking, even the Maremma has fallen victim to ready made ragu sauces and shop bought tiramisus.

When I eat out in this region, I want homemade pasta that is soaked in an unctuously slow braised meat sauce and tender grilled steaks with breadcrumb-stuffed artichokes that were grown in the owner’s own garden.

I want to taste the traditions of this gorgeous corner of Italy in every bite and I want to wash it down with locally produced wines like the Morellino di Scansano.

Luckily I have a handful of local restaurants that never fail me, no matter what my budget is. Here they are:

Affordable and unforgettable:

Il Miravale da Meloni
Where: Via A. Gramsci, Manciano
Prices: €12 for the most expensive main

Completely self taught, the owners of this sweet provincial restaurant serve up Maremman classics like braised wild boar and tortelloni di gnudi that are so good they’ll make you drool with delight. Everything is homemade, including the vegetables, which are loving grown and tended by the owner’s parents in their own home garden. And the best part? The menu is so affordable and so authentic, you’ll feel like you’re getting everything at steal!

La Tana del Orso
Where: Via Veneto, Castell’Azzara
Prices: €9 for the most expensive main

Every morning, the chef and owner of this quirky little mountain restaurant wakes and decides what he wants to cook for the day. It might sound a little disorganised, but the locals absolutely love it and liken the experience to eating at their nonna’s (grandmother’s) house everyday. From melt-in-the-mouth tripe to pasta dishes garnished with thick shavings of black truffle or porcini mushrooms, the menu here is unpredictable, but always delicious.

Middle of the road in price, but excellent in taste:

Due Cippi
Where: Piazza Vittorio Veneto, Saturnia
Price: €35 for a dinner with a starter, main and dessert

A warm and welcoming restaurant where the bistecca alla fiorentina is always tender, the carpaccio of chianina beef is always fresh and the tortelli maremmani is always flavourful. The dining room is actually a converted wine cellar, which inspires a romantic atmosphere, no matter when or with whom you visit! And to finish, you don’t want to miss out on their divine ricotta mousse, a local specialty.

Osteria dei Nobili Santi
Where: Via dell’ Ospizio, 8, Porto Ercole
Price: €40 for a dinner with starter, main and dessert

There are VERY few places in Italy where you can get a fish dinner this good for a price this reasonable. We’re talking freshly caught scampi served with homemade potato gnocchi, whole roasted fish served with sweet fennel and grilled lemon wedges and desserts that are out of this world. Not to mention a brilliant wine list that compliments everything on the menu.

A splurge that’s worth it

Most of the restaurants in the Maremma are reasonably priced. In fact, authentic homecooking in this region is usually unfussy and served in big quantities for hardly any euros at all. But if there is one restaurant worth spending the big bucks on, it’s this one.

Da Caino
Where: Via della Chiesa, Montemerano
Price: starting at €120 per person

Da Caino might be in little known Montemerano, but it is one of the most celebrated restaurants in Italy! Since 1971, this husband and wife team have been cooking traditional dishes that not only play on taste, but also smell, sight and texture. Sure there are plenty of good Maremman restaurants that cost a fraction of this one, but they’re not serving up award winning dishes like beautifully cooked pigeon with a terrine of cherry foie gras and hazelnuts or Argentario anchovies with a panzarella (bread salad) gelato and artichoke flan.

Alright, so I’ve gone a little art mad in the Maremma recently.

But it’s winter. The region has fallen into a contented slumber and everything is oh so quiet, which of course makes it the perfect time to really appreciate the artists who call the beautiful Maremma home.

All of the 5 art parks in the Tuscan Maremma are currently closed unless you call beforehand.

To be honest, I think it’s actually preferable to visit these parks now, even if it’s a little chilly, than in the middle of summer when it can get scorching hot and you’re elbowing tourists in the eyes for space… or in my case, the stomach because I’m so short!

As long as you wrap up nice and warm, you’ll find that these art parks are a real dream to visit in winter. Just as I did when I visited the Daniel Spoerri Sculpture Garden in Seggiano yesterday.

I was lucky enough to be the only person in the park. More than 15 hectares of gorgeous Maremman countryside and 100 sculptures just for me! Pure bliss.

I knew nothing about Daniel Spoerri before I visited. Now in his 80s, Spoerri was born in Romania, but moved with his family to Switzerland to escape racial persecution.

There he excelled as a ballerina in Bern before turning to Eat Art, a movement that uses food to create art. Spoerri has written cookbooks, dabbled in theatre, owned a restaurant and been exalted for his creative genius all over the world.

His garden in Seggiano is a labor of love. The majority of the pieces, placed almost randomly throughout the countryside, are his, but there are also numerous contributions from international artists of almost every calibre.

This eclectic mix of sculpture art makes for a very enjoyable morning or afternoon’s worth of exploring. There is no path, no signs and the sculptures don’t follow any sequential order.

I sincerely felt like Alice in Wonderland lost in a 15 hectare world filled with weird and wonderful things. In the orchard, I came across Alfonso Huupi’s Le torre degli Amanti, a brick well that towers overhead, guarded by four very Hitchcock like ravens.

Among the olive trees and cedars, Spoerri’s own Guerrieri della notte bronze soldiers greeted me in the midst of a small pond, while out in the forest behind them, Pavel Schmidt’s Non aprire prima che il treno sia fermo called me from afar with its magnificent steel and stone Venus and David, suspended from the sky on a buffer stop of an old train.

And everywhere I looked, I’d spot a stone meals laid out on marble tabletops, couches covered in grass or eternal looking faces staring at me from pedestals.

Even if you’re no art expert, like me, the garden is a spectacular way to spend a few hours. At one point, I threw order to the wind and began stumbling through the gardens completely lost and utterly enthralled by what was waiting for me behind the next corner. I became a sort of lost traveller and the artworks became my signposts.

I would stumble upon them, admire them, look around into the horizon for the next piece I could see and then stumble off in that direction. As the sculptures are only tenuously linked in style or inspiration, the experience never becomes stale. Every new piece you find is a new surprise as you stare upon it trying to guess its meaning.

My two favourite pieces in the entire garden were:

1. Spoerri’s own Sentiero murato labirintiforme. Every Italian garden needs a maze and while Spoerri’s might be too small to get lost in, it’s incredible to behold, shaped like pre-Colombian petroglyph, which the simpleton in me thought looked like face.

2. Oliver Estoppey’s Dies Irae – Jour de colère. Possibly the most famous piece in the entire garden, this gorgeous sculpture features 160 stone ducks marching their way towards Seggiano at the beat of three colossal Drummer Men. The picture is only made more evocative by the sounds of real ducks quacking in the grounds around you. A stone boy hides behind one of the olive trees hugging his duck, so be sure to look out for him!

Daniel Spoerri’s Sculpture Garden is both at home with the Maremman countryside and completely alien, but it really does make for an unforgettable holiday experience, especially if you’re lucky enough to admire it alone as I did.

Important info: Just remember, there is a lot to see, so make sure you leave plenty of time to admire the sculptures properly. Wear comfortable shoes and bring a bottle of water and something to eat if you’re visiting around lunchtime. The restaurant and cafe are only open during the high summer season.

If it’s winter, rug up and bring gloves because the Seggiano winds can be nippy. If it’s summer, wear a hat or risk passing out before you’ve seen anything!

Address: Localita’ Il Giardino, Seggiano, GR 58038

Opening hours:
1st April – 1st July: Tue- Sun: 11am to 8pm
1st July- 15th Sept: daily, 11am-8pm
15th Sept- 31st Oct: Tues -Sun: 11am-7pm
1st  November- 31st March: by appointment only

Price: €10 for adults

For more information visit: www.danielspoerri.org

I have spent the last week revisiting all the amazing local artists in the Maremma, and it has been a blast!

To be honest, I’m not surprised artists from all over the world have gravitated towards the Maremma. The region is inspiration in itself, and I’m not just saying that because I happen to live here!

But what did strike me was just how varied the local art scene is. Contemporary artists, classic artists, super realists, modernists and truly inspirational sculptors from all over the globe call the Maremma home.

And so, it is in homage to them that I write this blog post.

You might travel to the Tuscan Maremma looking for gorgeous countrysides and beautiful medieval cities. But if you miss its artists then you’re missing out on a really beautiful aspect of this part of Tuscany!

Niki Saint Phalle
Where: Garavicchio, Capalbio
What: Tarot card sculpture garden
Useful info: Open April 1- October 15, 2.30pm-7.30pm, www.nikidesaintphalle.com, €10.50 for adults

The queen of the Maremma’s art parks, Niki Saint Phalle was a French-American artist who decided to leave a very impressive legacy to the gorgeous seaside city of Capalbio. Over many years, Niki worked with fellow artist friends to represent the 22 tarot cards in gigantic handmade mosaic sculptures.

Visitors are invited to wander the park at their whim, admiring each sculpture randomly, almost as if it was drawn from the deck. The sculptures have a definite Gaudie feel about them, but they’re loved by adults and kids alike, with the latter finding an infinite amount of fun in climbing all over the statues, especially the Castle, which is effectively, one big castle.

Daniel Spoerri
Where: Seggiano
What: A sculpture park where nature meets industrialism
Useful Info: Open different times throughout the year, www.danielspoerri.org, €10.50 for adults

Swiss artist Daniel Spoerri built this incredible open-air gallery at the foot of Monte Amiata in Seggiano. The almost 100 strong collection isn’t just of his own creation though. Sculpture artists from all over the world have donated pieces to this amazing project.

Originally inspired by the artistry found in food, Spoerri became infatuated with bronze and many of his works in the garden are made from this and other industrial materials. They present such an incredible contrast to the organic environment around them that you can lose hours musing over the conundrums of naturalism and manmade art.

Piero Bonacina
Where: Montegiove, Castel del Piano
What: An eccentric and eclectic collection of 15 years worth of sculpting.
Useful info: Open upon request, ph: 0564.969602, sistemamusealeamiata@cm-amiata.gr.it

Piero Bonacina came to Castel del Piano to be close to the Buddhist enclave, Merrigar. He opened this garden on the wave of popular demand so that everyone could admire his fantastic and whimsical sculptures.

Most of Piero’s work can be divided into two categories. There are his beautifully shaped wooden sculptures, which are so smooth and curved that you could be forgiven for thinking they were made of some easier to manipulate material like steel.

And then there are his more poignant pieces, which use discarded materials like old steel support frames, teapots and kitchen sinks to make veritable works of art. There’s even a sculpture completely covered in ivy and shaped to look like a man with his arms extended.

Paul Fuchs
Where: Boccheggiano, Montieri
What: A sound/sculpture garden
Useful info: Open by request, ph: 0566.998221, paul.fuchs@tiscalinet.it

German artist Paul Fuchs wasn’t content making beautiful architectural sculptures. His pieces double as fantastic musical instruments. The more than 20 pieces in this garden have all been produced by Fuchs himself and scattered across a beautiful and open corner of lush Montieri.

The fantastic thing about this garden is that you’re not just admiring the art with your eyes, but also with your ears. The pieces move on their own and with some help from the wind to generate sounds that are in perfect harmony with their environment.

Rodolfo Lacquaniti
Where: Castiglione della Pescaia
What: Recycle art
Useful info: Open by request, ph: 39 0564.948904, r.lacquanti@tiscali.it

Rodolfo is a bio-architect turned artist and his garden is a Viaggo di Ritorno (A Return Journey). In short, Rodolfo takes what we consider to be rubbish and recycles it into beautiful pieces like ‘My Office’ – a brightly coloured, semi-human sculpture, which he’s placed under a tree, or ‘Large Whale’ – a huge piece made entirely out of fishing nets.

What’s interesting about Rodolfo is that he doesn’t buy his art materials, he finds them, so everything he produces and displays is intrinsically connected to the terrain where it is displayed. I guess you could say it’s the Maremma seen through the eyes of an artistically inclined recycler.

On January 13, the Costa Concordia cruise liner crashed just off Giglio Island in the Tuscan Maremma. More than 4,000 passengers were trapped as the ship slowly keened over to one side. So far, 11 people have been declared dead and more than 17 are still missing. The Costa Concordia is the biggest cruise ship to crash in recorded history.

Paola Franci is a Giglio Island native and was in Porto Santo Stefano when the crash happened. She’s a good friend of mine and has kindly written this guest post sharing her experiences of the event:

“I’ve lived on Giglio Island for more than 10 years. We’re used to cruise ships passing us by from Porto Santo Stefano and on to the Mediterranean Sea. It’s all part of island life.

Last Friday, I was with friends in Porto Santo Stefano. The Costa Concordia left from Civitavecchia and wasn’t meant to stop anywhere near us. I heard on the news later that the ship was going on a seven day cruise. I’m sure everyone was looking forward to leaving.

I was enjoying dinner with friends when the crash happened. Word got around fast and soon the whole restaurant was buzzing with the news. We couldn’t believe it. The waters around Porto Santo Stefano are safe waters. The night was clear and calm. We couldn’t imagine what went wrong.

And then we saw it with our own eyes. The cruise ship had crashed off what we call Le Scole, a cluster of rocks that surround the east coast of Giglio Island.

photo from Wikipedia

Everyone islander knows Le Scole is no place for a cruise ship. The rocks out there are deadly and impossible to see at night. I wouldn’t go there with a fishing boat, let alone a massive ship. It’s too dangerous.

There has been plenty of speculation as to why the captain was so far off course and so close to our island. I know why. I knew all along. I just can’t believe it actually happened.

There is a favourite pastime in Giglio where the locals and tourists head to the east coast to watch the ships sail by. Local gossip suggests the captains compete to see who can get the closest to shore. The closer they are, the more thrilling it is.

In August, the Costa Concordia sailed right through Le Scole without incident. The captain blew his horn and everyone watching cheered. It was an amazing sight. There is no doubt in my mind the captain was trying to do the exact same thing last Friday night.

I heard there was a sailor on board who lived in Giglio and was meant to return home last week. Rumour has it the captain was trying to salute the man’s family on the island when it hit the rocks.

The impact tore a 50m hole in the hull. The captain turned the ship around and tried get closer to Giglio harbour. The water rushed in faster and the anchor pulled the ship down to rest on a rocky shelf.

photo from All Voices

Those who died were trapped or jumped into the water only to be sucked under the ship. One elderly couple died in each other’s arms waiting to be saved.

I don’t personally know the captain, Franco Schettino, but everyone on the island can’t believe he abandoned the ship before the emergency services arrived.

Since the crash, I, like everyone else on Porto Santo Stefano and Giglio Island, have been doing all we can for the passengers. It was heartbreaking to see them standing on the port, their eyes full of fear and their holiday dreams destroyed.

Not only did they lose everything on the ship, but they watched as their worst nightmare came true. Ships are meant to be safe. They are not meant to crash off calm waters, mere kilometres from an Italian port, killing people in the process.

In the days since the crash, we’ve offered food, accommodation, shelter and counselling to the passengers. Those in the emergency services have spent day and night searching for survivors. We don’t want anyone else to suffer.

Giglio is a small island with a small island mentality. Nothing like this has ever happened before. The only way we can react is to give everything we have, both to the survivors and to those who are still out there.

I can see the Costa Concordia from my street. It is leaning in such a way that it looks as if it’s just resting. I pray for those who are still missing and I hope the ship can be recovered without damaging the environment.

The ship is resting in a marine wildlife park. More than 2,300 tons of fuel threaten the fish and coral species and will continue to threaten them until Dutch salvage experts Smit International clean up this mess.

This crash has left a dark smudge on what was, before January 13, a completely quiet, beautiful and unremarkable corner of the Tuscan Maremma.

Giglio Island will never be the same.”

I was writing a guest post the other day about expat life, and it got me thinking. I should blog more about what it’s like to call the Maremma home.

I always tell people that it’s so important to appreciate the Maremma as a local would. This region has so much to offer, natural beauty, incredible history, gorgeous cities, but it’s most endearing feature has and always will be its residents.

They’re the ones who maintain the centuries’ old traditions that manifest in every aspect of daily life, from the bedtime stories they tell their children to the dishes they serve on their dinner tables.

They’re the ones who tirelessly organise festival after festival, year after year, not only for themselves, but for their children and for visitors to experience the spirit and culture of their home.

And they’re the ones who always do their best to extend a warm welcome to those tourists who are lucky enough to vacation in the Maremma.

I was watching Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre Foods yesterday and from the way he spoke, ‘tourist’ sounded like  a dirty word. It’s almost as if tourist has come represent something negative, annoying, someone who travels to a destination, but doesn’t want to experience it properly, something no self-respecting city wants.

Granted, most tourists don’t eat tongues or testicles, but you have to give people props for having the courage to leave their homes and actually travel somewhere else in the world. Obviously, they’ve demonstrated some sort of worldliness or interest in other cultures, otherwise they wouldn’t have left their sofas.

But that’s beside the point. For me, one of the best things about the Maremma is that you can be a tourist and still feel like you’re experiencing the Maremman way of life.

I think it’s because the Maremma is yet to really know what it’s like to be bombarded by tourists, so it’s residents are still hospitable and welcoming, genuinely happy to show you about their homes and eager for you to have a great holiday.

This is Italy of the 1960s and the silver screen, no exaggeration needed. You’ll be hard pressed to find a place where the food is more authentic, the sights are more breathtaking and the attractions aren’t ruined by long lines or hecklers dressed up in Roman soldier costumes.

To explore the Maremma is to explore country Tuscany at its most authentic. But whatever you do and wherever you visit, be sure to chat to the locals.

My home, Manciano

You don’t need to speak perfect Italian. Most Maremmani are proficient in English and more than happy to share their insider’s knowledge of this gorgeous region with you.

But just so you know, I don’t expect the Maremma to be like this forever. Like all good things, it will eventually become as popular and as crowded as the Amalfi Coast or Sicily.

So in my most cliche salesperson’s voice, ‘Catch it now or miss out later!’

Okay, so that was a little corny, but you get what I mean. Visit the Maremma while it’s still off most tourists’ radars and you’ll have an unforgettable experience.

Whether you or I (the sun loving Australian) like to admit it or not, we still have almost two full months of winter left in the Tuscan Maremma.

A lot of people would shudder at the idea of visiting anywhere in Europe during the wintertime, but the chilly season in my home region is actually really mild.

As I write this in Manciano, the sun is literally pouring through my office window. It looks incredibly inviting, and I am inclined to whip out my shorts and run outside. Not that that’s a good idea. The temperature is still in the mid-teens, 14°C (57°F) I think, and unless things get really glacial, it will remain in the mid-teens until the end of winter with minimal rainfall. Not bad huh?

Aside from the weather, there are other perks to visiting the Tuscan Maremma in winter, and here are a few of them:

1. Less tourists = cheap accommodation and plenty of space at the Saturnia hot springs

Most tourists travel to the Tuscan Maremma to escape the other millions of tourists who flock to Florence, Siena and Rome, but in winter, this idyllic corner of Southern Tuscany has even less tourists than usual.

Accommodation is seriously cheap in January and February and you might even be lucky enough to be the only person staying in your chosen agriturismo, which means lovingly homemade breakfasts just for you!

Sure no lines to get into Massa Marittima’s cathedral is good, but not having to elbow people for space in Saturnia’s hot springs is even better!

Saturnia is one of Europe’s most sought after hot springs destinations. In the summer months, you have to share the springs with hundreds of tourists.

But from December onward, most are too chicken to strip down in the cold air. Their loss! With the suggestive steam rising above your head and almost no one to disturb you, the Cascate del Mulino in winter are paradisaical.

Saturnia’s luxurious Terme di Saturnia Spa Complex is closed from January 16-February 1, but you can enjoy the Cascate del Mulino for free all year round.

2. Affordable skiing on Monte Amiata

Sure you could go to northern Italy to ski, but if you’re a novice, like me, or someone just looking to enjoy an afternoon on the slopes, then there’s no place better than Monte Amiata.

A full day ski pass on Monte Amiata costs €19, which is an absolute steal!

You can whiz your way around more than 10,000km of spacious slopes of varying degrees of difficulty and not have to wait in the long lines you get up north.

The skiers are more family friendly on Monte Amiata too, so you don’t have to worry about getting bowled over by some nut doing 100km/h down the slopes!

If you don’t ski, Monte Amiata is still the place to be in winter.

Rent some Nordic skis and try out the slopes for €3, take the kids snow boarding at the snow park or just enjoy an infinitely pleasurable walk or hike through the snow-flecked six nature parks that sit at the mountain’s feet.

3. Enjoy lagoon life in Orbetello

In Orbetello, there is no such thing as winter. Day in day out throughout December, January and February, the city never has a day below 20°C (68°F) and it never ever rains. I guess you could call it the tropics of the Maremma!

You can thank the lagoon that surrounds the city on either side. It keeps Orbetello blissfully warm, carefree and always well stocked with incredible fish dishes, like bottarga, a local salt cured delicacy that is held in the same esteem as caviar.

Maybe it’s the weather or the local’s love for partying, but Orbetello really comes alive in winter. There are festivals, events and sagre held around the lagoon almost on a weekly basis, as well as late night shopping and some great bars and night spots.

You’re probably thinking, ‘So why don’t I visit in summer?’ Let’s just say, what’s warm in winter is sometimes unbearably hot in summer. Orbetello is definitely at its best and most tolerable in winter.

4. Appreciate the culture with the locals in Pitigliano

When the last of the summer tourists have gone, the Maremma breathes a sign of relief and the locals reclaim their cities. It’s a beautiful time to be in the region, especially if you want to really soak up the local atmosphere.

Winter traditions are alive and well across the Tuscan Maremma, but if I had to take a pick, I’d go to Pitigliano.

The Pitiglianese have the most beautiful culture. It’s heavily influenced by their agrarian roots, or in the local dialect Giubbonai, but it also has a unique hint of Jewish.

In the 16th century, the city welcomed a large Jewish community, which continues to influence the festivals the modern city celebrates, the stories its locals tell their children and the dishes they serve on their dinner table a night.

Take advantage of the winter deals and book an apartment in or around Pitigliano. That way you can really feel like a local and savour the enviable life of the Maremman countryside, and maybe try a bit of Goym cooking – Jewish/Italian fusion!

Everywhere in Italy, La Befana, the generous gift giving witch who competes for children’s affection with Santa, flies from home to home on a fantastical broomstick.

In the Tuscan Maremma, she rides a donkey… imagine trying to explain that to your half Australian, half Tuscan children. They’ve seen donkeys, so they know said animal neither flies nor moves particularly fast. Suffice to say they’re suspicious already.

But tradition reigns in my household, and in the Tuscan Maremman, tradition dictates that you leave a cup of coffee for La Befana and some water and hay for her donkey.

You also appreciate the fact that she has travelled through a million dangers, been ambushed by the dead and the evil spirits, and crossed the world where no one sleeps just to bring you presents. No arguments.

While La Befana has lost a certain about of significance since indulgent Italian parents decided their kids could receive gifts from Santa as well, she still symbolises one of the oldest and most important holidays in the country.

When my mother was a little girl in Calabria, the only stocking she got was from La Befana. There was no such thing as Santa Claus! Still, La Befana remains a day to spend with your family, embrace Italian traditions and, unsurprisingly, eat until you explode.

La Befana delivers her gifts on January 6. According to Catholic tradition, it’s the same day the three wise men delivered their gifts to Baby Jesus. It also happens to be the last day of the festive season in Italy!

So if you’re in the Tuscan Maremma on January 6, don’t miss out on these great events:

1. Presepe Vivente
Historic Centre, Porto Ercole, 4.30pm-7pm
A beautiful reenactment of the nativity scene by the locals of Porto Ercole. Easily the most evocative and anticipated event of the day anywhere in the Tuscan Maremma. The Porto Ercolani fight to the death to get the best roles each year!

2. Dicesa La Befana
Castello Aldobrandesco, Arcidosso, 4pm
A fantastic, if somewhat dangerous, annual rite where La Befana climbs down the town’s fortress tower to hand out gifts and sweets to all the children present. Don’t worry about any accidents, the local fire brigade is there to help her if she gets stuck!

3. Canti della Befana (La Befanata)
San Martino sul Fiora, 9pm on Jan 5
For more than 30 years, locals have been dressing up as La Befana, her husband and their musical helpers and travelling from home to home singing traditional and, usually hilarious, songs connected to the holiday. In exchange, the householders donate small, but tasty offerings. At the end of the evening, the singers meet in the main piazza to share their bounty of food and wine with everyone, and dance the night away.

4. Arriva la Befana per per Poggiosolidate
Sala Parrocchiale, Poggio Murella, from 4pm
I love bingo anywhere and in any form and the Poggioli make it an event the entire community can get involved in. The evening kicks off with stockings for all the children and a kid’s bingo or, as we call it tombola, game, followed by an adult’s bingo (the prizes are bigger and boozer). There will also be a charity auction.

5. Mercato della Befana
Piazza Caribaldi, Castiglione della Pescaia, all day
The last of the Christmas markets with cute stalls selling festive knickknacks, roasted chestnuts and vin brule by the barrel-full.

6. Concerto della Befana
Historic Centre, Massa Marittima, 5.30pm
You wouldn’t expect anything else from Massa Marittima, and lucky, this concert promises to be a fantastic and really enjoyable event for children and adults alike. It always draws a massive crowd and the music is a fun mix of traditional, usually folkloric, songs and more contemporary hits, performed by a collection of local bands.

I’m sad to say that that’s it for the festive season in the Tuscan Maremma, so enjoy it before it ends!

I have lived in the Tuscan Maremma now for more than five years and I’m ashamed to say I don’t know how to make what most would regard as their national dish – tortelli maremmani.

To tourists this gorgeous pasta dish is made up of fluffy pillows of egg pasta stuffed with an aromatic blend of nutmeg, spinach and ricotta and topped off with a generous helping of ragù sauce. Sounds pretty delicious right?

Well in my eyes, tortelli maremmani are torturous bundles of pain, disappointment and failure. Nightmares of shriveled up pasta that leaks its filling into the boiling water and mutinous grumbles from my children that nonna’s ragù sauce doesn’t have burnt bits of meat in it or oversized, raw carrots.

But this year. 2012! I have resolved to learn how make proper tortelli maremmani once and for all. After all, the world’s going to end, so I might as well spend my time doing something useful and delicious.

To learn how make this Maremman classic, I bit the bullet and begrudgingly turned to my mother-in-law for guidance.

I love my mother-in-law, but I just couldn’t bear the thought of her telling all of Manciano that I was inflicting some sort of cruel and unusual punishment on my family by forcing them to eat substandard pasta. Especially when the recipe is so facile (easy) for her!

There are three parts to the perfect tortelli maremmani. The first is the pasta. You can cheat and buy ready made pasta, if you’re lucky enough to have it in your supermarket, but I’ll include the recipe here anyway. The second is the spiced filling. And the last is the sauce. Again, you can cheat and buy a really good quality ragù sauce here and no one will know the difference!

Get all the parts right and your partner, family or friends will be fawning over you like all those lucky people who get to eat at Nigella’s house whenever she’s filming a series.

So let’s start with the pasta. NB: My sudden expertise is not a ruse. I have spent the last week slaving away in the kitchen with my beloved mother-in-law trying to perfect this recipe. Suffice to say I may need counselling at some future date.

For the pasta you’ll need:

Mix the flour and the eggs in a bowl. Add a pitch of salt and a drizzle of oil and mix to combine. Then add enough water to bring together the mix into a homogeneous ball. Cover with a tea towel and leave to rest for 30 mins.

In the meantime, make your tortelli filling, for which you’ll need

Parboil your spinach and chard in separate pots of boiling salted water for six minutes. Drain them, squeeze out any excess water and chop finely.

Place the ricotta in a bowl. Add the chopped spinach and chard, a pinch of nutmeg and marjoram and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and set aside.

Back to the pasta:
Lightly flour a clean surface. Roll out your pasta dough until it’s 2-3 millimetres thick and cut into 5-6 centimetre squares. They don’t have to be perfect. Aim for 12 even squares and you don’t even have to measure them out.

With a teaspoon, place a small dollop of filling on the left hand side of the pasta square and fold the other side over to cover. Press down to seal the sides with your thumb and then use a fork to press all the way around the edges. Continue with the rest of the filling.

Once you’re done, place a big pot of salted water on to boil. Add the tortelli to the water, making sure they don’t stick together. When the tortelli float to the top, they’re cooked!

For the sauce:
I love my tortelli maremmani liberally doused in melted butter and sage, but the traditionalist that is my mother-in-law insisted a proper ragù was the only way to honour all our hard work. So you’ll need:

• 2 garlic cloves
• parsley
• bay leaf
• 1 carrot
• 500g minced beef
• glass of red wine
• 350g can of chopped tomatoes
• 1tbsp tomato paste
• salt and pepper
• olive oil
• Parmesan to serve

Chopped the garlic and a handful of parsley and fry in a hot saucepan with a drizzle of oil. Add the bay leaf, finely chopped carrots and minced meat and cook until the meat is browned. Pour in the red wine and cook until reduced.

Lower the heat, add the canned tomatoes, a cup of water and the tomato paste and simmer for 40-45 minutes or until lovely and thick. Season with salt and pepper. If you thick the sauce is a little tart, add a teaspoon of sugar.

Serve with the tortelli and a good shaving of Parmesan cheese

Enjoy! And have a fantastic start to 2012.