On Friday, I was a guest at the Circolo "Il Fortino" in Marina di Pisa, at the invitation of my friend and landlady Sandra. These ARCI Circles (Italian Recreational and Cultural Association) are widespread throughout Italy, often serving social purposes and offering diverse leisure activities. They trace back to the founding of the first circle in 1957 in Florence. Motives of the workers' movement, equality, and participation also underlie their establishment.
The Circolo "Il Fortino" regularly collaborates with the "Slow Food" movement to host culinary-themed events. On Friday, the spotlight was on Baccalà (a very traditional and historic dish), preserved salted cod, which, after careful desalination, retains only a wonderful, delicate hint of sea salt and is served tender and glossy if it's of the highest quality, as we enjoyed on Friday, and Ceci (chickpeas).
We were initially greeted with Cecina, a thinly fried flatbread made from chickpea flour, and a Baccalà cream, lightly drizzled with fresh olive oil—a true delight. Then came a classic dish of Tuscan home cooking, Pasta e Ceci, short pasta with chickpeas. While it may sound easy, it isn't, because here, the quality and consistency of the products, as well as their interplay, are crucial, as with all dishes that require only a few ingredients. Also indispensable for rounding it off: the finest olive oil!
As the main course, we had exceptional quality Baccalà and Humus, simple and delightful. To finish, yogurt and "Miele di Spiaggia," a Tuscan "beach honey" that is a true rarity. It's named so because it's produced between the sand dunes of the San Rossore-Massaciuccoli Park and because its predominant scent recalls the sea, summer, and what one perceives while wandering through the golden dunes of this Mediterranean oasis. It was a wonderful evening with friends and new acquaintances, culinary delights, and, to cap it off, Latin American music.