
Olive oil of the hills
The silvery colour of the hills around the city and those of the Montalbano area reveals the vocation of these places for the cultivation of olive trees, a crop undoubtedly introduced by the Etruscans. The oil obtained from these trees is superior in quality, fragrant with the aromas of the herbs that grow under the olive trees, an extra-virgin olive oil with all of the necessary requisites, of superior organoleptic and dietetic properties. Olive oil represents a unique, irreplaceable value in the diet, and Tuscan cooking utilises it above all fresh and uncooked, in almost all of its recipes. The "novo" (new) oil, tangy and green, is appreciated especially on raw vegetables 'in pinzimonio', on Prato bread toasted and rubbed with garlic ('fettunta') and on boiled white beans.