Gelato in Florence is always a good idea! Read on for more Holiday foodie tips.
Italy is magical 24-7, but the country is pretty special come winter. The summer crowds have well and truly left, and the locals have reclaimed their cities... just in time to deck them out in bright lights and beautifully decorated Nativity scenes!
Italians love the festive season. From the stories and the tales that have been told in their families for generations. To the food – think roasted chestnuts and vin brulé and dishes that differ from region to region. And the festivities! From quiet small-town shindigs with live music to big city Befana parades flush with candy and treats for the kids.
Natale in Italy officially begins on 8 December. This is the feast of the Immaculate Conception and is when the locals put up their Christmas tree. Celebrations come to an end on 6 January, which is the Epiphany or Three Kings’ Day. In between are literally hundreds of festivals, events and other celebrations.
With so much to see and do and eat, this is your cheat sheet to the unmissable holiday foods, traditions and markets in the regions our culinary wine experiences spend the most time in: Tuscany (where Florence is capital) and Emilia Romagna (where Bologna is capital). Plus some Italian fan favorites.
Or… if visiting during the holidays, join one of our gourmet tours, festive-themed crawls in Florence or our La Grassa food tour in Bologna to get directed to remarkable flavors.
Stay up to date with the latest from Italy plus plenty more insider morsels and travel guides: http://eepurl.com/cEl6cf
Said to have been inspired by Venus’ belly button, Bologna’s tortellini are a Holiday must have.
Italian Holiday foods
Fish and seafood
If you watched season 2 of The Bear, you might remember the Feast of the Seven Fishes. It’s tradition on Christmas Eve or La Vigilia to not eat meat as the day is classified a giorno di magro, or lean day meant to purify your body for the holiday.
Capitone (eel) is an old favorite, but it’s more common these days to find baccalà (salted cod), octopus, and shellfish. The Feast of the Seven Fishes is an Italian American tradition. In Italy, there is no hard or fast rule on the number of fish dishes enjoyed.
Tortellini in brodo
There can be no Christmas celebration in Emilia-Romagna without cappelletti or tortellini in brodo. The meat-filled pasta parcels swimming in a rich broth is a staple of an Italian Christmas lunch. It's tradition for the whole family to make stuffed pastas together with each member assigned their own role from cutting the pasta circles to adding a spoonful of filling, and folding each to close The final stage, the closing of the pasta parcels, is the most important and entrusted only to the most experienced member of the operation.
Crostini di fegatini
While Emilia-Romagna has its cappelletti and tortellini, Tuscany has its crostini di fegatini. Closely tied to the local peasant tradition in which nothing is thrown away, chicken liver is sauted with onions and Vin Santo for sweetness before being spooned over slices of warm bread and served as a hearty appetizers.
... If you’re dining with Italians from the South, don't be surprised if the dishes are left on the table after everyone has finished. They’re waiting for the Madonna and the baby Jesus to come… and taste the food!
There’s nothing like a pretty panettone to get me into the Holiday mood.
Italian Holiday desserts
Panforte
Most of us have heard of Panettone. The Milanese sweet bread studded with raisins and candied citrus peels is a Christmas tradition Italy-wide, but both Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna have their own holiday desserts that are just as beloved.
Panforte or ‘strong bread’ is a chewy, dense fruitcake from Siena, heavily flavored with honey, cloves, coriander, cinnamon and white pepper. Legend suggests it originated from the hands of an abbess in a local convent who was asked to prepare the sweet for the banquet tables of religious aristocrats.
Another Tuscan variation of this cake is called panpepato (spiced bread) - a heavy fruitcake spiced with cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, honey, nuts, dark chocolate.
In stories from the 15th century, dukes and other noble families would put gold ducats in their panpepato to serve to their guests. The person who found one in their slice was guaranteed a year’s good luck.
Certosino
Bologna’s answer to panforte is certosino. In the 14th century, the city’s Carthusian monks would make food to use in bartering or as gifts. Every year, for Christmas, they would send Certosino cakes to Rome as a gift to Cardinal Lambertini, later Pope Benedict XIV, who had Bolognese origins. Rich and heavily spiced with cinnamon and dark chocolate, this cake is decorated with candied fruits and nuts. A poor man’s version is called Panone Bolognese and was originally made without the candied fruit.
Italian Holiday drinks
Vin brulé or mulled wine is a firm Italian holiday favorite and a staple at Christmas markets, but for other traditional tipples try Bombardino is an eggnog cocktail made with warm eggnog, brandy, whipped cream, and cinnamon popular in the North.
A bit of Florence “Christmafied.”… yes that is now a word!
Italian Holiday traditions
La Befana
The undisputed star of Italian Christmas is La Befana. In the classic story, this good witch was so busy cleaning that she declined an invitation from the Three Wise Men (Tre Magi) to join them on their journey to see the newborn baby Jesus. If you’ve ever met a nonna, you’ll know that they really do believe cleanliness is next to godliness!
Realising her mistake, La Befana rushes off after the men laden with a basket of gifts, but she can't find the baby Jesus. Today, she continues to search houses, leaving candy or coal or candy coal for all the children she meets.
The biggest La Befana festival takes place in Urbania in Le Marche, her traditional home. Activities include dancing and juggling, singing in the streets — and appearances by hundreds of Befanas, who begin their Epiphany gift-giving journeys by handing out sweets.
Il Presepe
You’ll usually find a Nativity scene or two in every Italian city. Beautifully decorated and often centuries old, they always feature the main players of Catholic tradition – Jesus, Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus, as well as a host of others.
The O.G workshops are in Naples on Via dei Presepi or Nativity Road. It was they who began to incorporate the birth of Christ into scenes of daily life in the 17th century, with characters that could be traced back to local inhabitants.
In Tuscany, some of the best-known Navitty scenes are in Siena’s Ss. Annunziata Church and Lucca’s Church Santa Maria Corteorlandini. In Florence, head to the Cathedral or book a guided tour at Villa La Quiete. You can also catch a Presepe Vivente or Living Nativity where locals reenact the biblical nativity scene at Pescia on 6 and 7 January each year.
While in Bologna, you can see beautiful Nativity scenes at Palazzo d'Accursio and the Basilica of San Petronio.
Trading Places
In the States, when we think Christmas movie, we think It’s a Wonderful Life or Home Alone, but in Italy, they think Trading Places – the 1983 comedy starring Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd
Every Christmas Eve since 1989, the Italian TV station Italia 1 airs the film, which is called Una Poltrona per Due in Italian. The annual screening is so popular that Trading Places has a cult following of Christmas-lovers who see the Italian version of sugar plums dancing in their heads every time they hear the opening credits.
Bologna’s beautiful and distinctive porticoes transform into a Christmas market between 17 November and 26 December 2024.
Italian Christmas Markets
Smaller and more intimate than the famous German markets, Italy’s Mercatini di Natale offer a more intimate and traditional Christmas experience. Think wooden advent cottages, decorated Christmas trees and nativity scenes with life-size figures.
Piazza Santa Croce, Florence
From 18 November to 17 December 2024, Florence flourishes with Christmas cheer and a huge market inspired by the traditions of the German city of Heidelberg. Over 50 wooden huts and stalls selling Italian and German delicacies, decorations and handicrafts fill one of the most beautiful squares of the city.
Santa Lucia, Bologna
This recently designated UNESCO World Heritage Site under one of Bologna’s beautiful and distinctive porticoes transforms into a Christmas market between 17 November and 26 December 2024. Expect plenty of vin brule, roasted chestnuts and wooden toys and ornaments.
As for Christmas markets outside of Tuscany and Emilia Romagna, I recommend Rome’s Piazza Navona, Milan’s Piazza Castello, which dates back to the 16th century, Bolzano’s Piazza Walther, which is Italy’s largest and best-known Christmas market, and Merano’s River Passirio. Check online for dates as they change each year.
Celebrate the holidays with a decadent food and wine tour in Florence.
Holiday Food Tours in Florence
Spend the holidays with the Curious Appetite on one of our pop-up food tours.
Festive Food Lover’s Tour (Downtown Centro Storico) (Book here on Christmas Eve Dec 24th)
This special blended Festive-themed Food Lover’s Tour of Florence features traditional holiday treats like ricciarelli (super soft and moorish almond cookies) and cavallucci (cookies flavored with honey, candied orange, cinnamon and walnuts), artisan chocolate and other sweet treats, plus “Metodo Classico” bubbles and decadent truffle nibbles for the must-have sparkling wine aperitivo.
Tickets can be booked directly via this link (click through to “book group experience” button and select Xmas Eve- custom event pricing displayed at check-out)
Festive Progressive Dining Crawl (Oltrarno & Santa Croce)
Celebrate the holidays with a decadent tasting of fresh pastas traditionally served during Christmas with sommelier-selected wine pairings, flavorful meat courses with seasonal vegetable sides and Italian Christmas desserts with sweet wine in an all-inclusive 4-hour food and drink tour led by a food historian and sommelier.
Tickets can be booked directly via https://curiousappetitetravel.com/dinner-crawl-in-florence (click through to “book group experience” button and select Xmas day- custom event pricing displayed at check-out)
New Years Eve Aperitivo Cocktail Tour (all over town!)
On the 31st (New Years Eve), Curious Appetite will be doing a special Aperitivo tour with more “Metodo Classico” bubbles to ring in the new year paired with a special festive tagliere at a wine bistro that sources local and artisanal salumi and formaggi. We’ll finish off with craft negronis and chef-prepared nibbles prepared by a master Florentine cocktail maker.
Tickets can be booked directly via https://curiousappetitetravel.com/aperitivo-tour-in-florence (click through to “book group experience” button and select NYE- custom event pricing displayed at check-out)
