Sweet Specialities

Producing organic honey means avoiding pesticides, sustaining biodiversity by offering these insects uncontaminated “pastures”, which are fundamental for their survival – which means obtaining healthy honey. Organic agriculture, or even better biodynamic agriculture, is the solution. At Fattoria La Vialla we have learnt from our parents and grandparents, from the farming methods of days gone by, firmly believing in their relevance today. And the results? We have several million bees here; they are the hard-working inhabitants of about a hundred little “houses” (hives), divided into groups located at a sufficient distance from each other.

How the honey is produced at La Vialla

At the Fattoria, as the seasons go by, the bees have numerous “grazing” possibilities, offered by a natural environment rich in fields, woods, flowers and aromas. Every day they travel for kilometres, far and wide, in search of pollen. The hives are arranged (according to blooming) in sheltered spots, in the highest areas. Twice a year – in spring and autumn – the “Viallino” beekeeper, Umberto Paperini, visits the beehives to collect the wooden frames that house the wax cells, which, in turn, contain the honey. These are taken to the Fattoria’s “mielificio” or honey workshop, where they are centrifuged in an extractor, keeping the temperature below the limit of 35 °C set for so-called “raw” honey.

The honey is collected at environment temperature and put directly into jars, without filtering, undergoing any other processes or having anything added. (Naturally, plenty of honey is left in the hives for the bees to get by on for the rest of the year; occasionally, in years in which flowers were scarce, we have had to return a small amount of the precious liquid nectar to the hives.) La Vialla’s honey, besides being certified organic and – in part – biodynamic (Demeter), is neither filtered nor pasteurised, so it is a completely natural product. At the Fattoria we produce Miele Millefiori (Wildflower Honey) and Miele di Castagno (Chestnut Honey). Each one reflects the aromas and characteristics of the environment in which the bees fly. Every year they are slightly different, due to the varying weather conditions and blossoms.

Many varieties go to make up the Wildflower Honey: acacia, French honeysuckle, graminaceous plants, legumes, olive trees, grapevines, cereals, numerous wild flowers that grow in the fields and woods; the delicate, floral aromas vary from one season to the next; its bright, clear amber colour seems to glow. A part of our woods – approximately 30 hectares – is made up of ancient chestnut trees, which give the honey of the same name its characteristic intense flavour and darker amber colour with brown highlights.

What organic and biodynamic honey means

Using organic or biodynamic honey means choosing a product that is natural, nutritious and, at the same time, it means respect for the bees and their floral world. Here is some information for you about various different beekeeping methods. Certified organic agriculture imposes a series of rules for beekeeping, according to which pesticides are prohibited, boundaries and methods used by neighbouring farmers are verified, chemical fertiliser for crops is forbidden, the area in which the bees “graze” is defined, and the use of antibiotics, hormones and chemical remedies for the bees is not permitted. Biodynamic beekeeping goes beyond these (already excellent) rules.
Biodynamics is based on the principle of strengthening the vitality of the bees and the whole swarm. Environmental protection and taking care of biodiversity are the only two ways of intervening. From this it’s possible to see that, in today’s world, not everywhere is suitable for organic or – even less so – biodynamic beekeeping (close to cities, areas exposed to overuse of pesticides, to conventional/chemical agriculture and to industrial pollution).

How the bees live at Fattoria La Vialla

At La Vialla the bees have at their disposal an “oasis” of over 1,500 hectares, harmoniously divided between woods, pastures, vineyards, olive groves and arable land (naturally all cared for with organic and biodynamic methods!). This area is surrounded on 3 sides – north, east and west – by woodland and rural farmhouses. To the south, apart from the small towns of Meliciano and Castiglion Fibocchi, there are no industrial facilities, just a few neighbouring farmers (who have converted to organic methods following the “Viallino” example).
In addition to the organic methods, biodynamics imposes adequate “grazing” areas for each beehive. It requires the use of natural materials for the construction and cleaning of beehives, and natural Demeter certified wax. Biodynamics also encourages unrestricted bee reproduction and natural swarming, however it allows the original swarm – with its queen – to be collected and relocated in a hive. This method, thanks to which the new queen bees develop through natural selection, tends, over time, to strengthen the entire colony. Artificial breeding of queen bees is prohibited, as is artificial insemination and the use of genetically modified bees. During winter, the bees must feed on their own honey; the only supplements allowed are camomile tea and salt. Stimulative feeding is forbidden, as are the conventional techniques used to artificially increase productivity. There is a list of natural substances and treatments that can be used for the bees. The occasional loss of bees, or entire weaker colonies, should be accepted as part of the evolution of the species, in that particular environment.

Fattoria La Vialla’s typical Tuscan sweets

Water, eggs, olive oil, flour and... fresh or dried fruit from the Fattoria’s fields. Simple recipes with a flavour that’s hard to come by elsewhere, thanks to the well-cultivated ingredients. They are tied to home, to our loved ones and above all, as always, to the land of La Vialla. Once upon a time, here in the Tuscan countryside, they didn’t eat dessert as we think of it today. Instead they had “a sweet”. Appetite, lack of ingredients and (lots of) imagination, broadened the meaning of the word sweet. Our grandparents’ “sweets” were bread with grapes, peaches in white wine, cooked grape must. For the children, sweet (and it wasn’t less so!) was simply the fruit picked from a tree. But if there was some sugar in the house – it was usually traded at the market and therefore not lacking – grandmothers, mothers and aunts would compete to see who made the best dough, mixed the softest batter or baked the crispiest tart; offering their loved ones delights made with the handed down (or new) recipes for what are today the most traditional Italian desserts and biscuits.
The simple recipe for these biscuits contains no animal fats (or low-quality vegetable fat) something that is very rare in sweet products, unless they’re made “at home” or by a, trustworthy, artisan baker. In the jams, instead of sugar, we use a typical (and healthier) ingredient: grape must.

Viallini biscuits – the original recipe

The “Viallini” biscuits used to be baked by Piera, over 40 years ago, in the same wood-burning oven that can be seen at La Vialla today. She used to add whatever she had available to her bread dough – a little sugar, a pinch of “uva passa” (= raisins), pine nuts, walnuts, sometimes even some spices – pinching it with 3 fingers to give the biscuits their unusual but attractive shape. She baked them in the oven, sprinkled them with some icing sugar and... voilà!

Cantucci – the original recipe

Cantuccini or Cantucci, the famous typical Tuscan almond biscuits (sometimes also known simply as “Biscotti”), can be found just about everywhere. La Vialla’s are exceptional, not just because they faithfully respect the original rustic recipe, but also thanks to their ingredients from organic and biodynamic agriculture, and because they’re baked in the Fattoria’s wood-burning ovens. The recipe for Cantucci is simple – made exclusively with flour, almonds, sugar and organic eggs, these biscuits contain no artificial ingredients or flavouring extracts which prejudice genuineness and nutritional quality. In our part of the world Cantucci are served with a glass of Vin Santo, and the typical Tuscan way of eating them is to “dunk” them in this amazing sweet wine (scandalizing any sommelier). But they are also delicious on their own, actually the special, “home baked” fragrance of these rustic biscuits can be appreciated even better.

Tuscan Stracci – the original recipe

Stracci (= rags) is the Tuscan-style name given to the most recent biscuits created in the Fattoria’s “sweet” workshop and wood-fired ovens. Thin, unevenly shaped, with a humble name and ingredients (just olive oil, red wine, flour and sugar: no butter, no yeast) with their genuine flavour and irresistible, crunchy consistency they have, however…. one defect: they are so moreish it’s impossible to stop eating them!

La Vialla’s Chocolate truffles

A soft mixture of chocolate spread, hazelnuts and finely chopped Stracci biscuits, coated with a thin layer of cocoa, go to make up this chocolate praline from La Vialla, which is “rustic” with a soft heart. Truffles take their name from a sweet, chocolatey speciality from Piedmont (land of hazelnut cream and of the best pralines in Italy) called so because the shape recalls the famous tuber. La Vialla’s Truffles come from a recipe born at the Fattoria and are a concentrate of goodness, with an intense taste of hazelnuts and chocolate. Their complex, persistent flavour is ready to melt in the mouth and give shivers of pleasure to the “poor wretch” tasting it, who will become even more “wretched” if in the meantime sipping a glass of Vin Santo!

La Fragolina

La Fragolina is a purée of fresh strawberries. A classic way of using it – at home and at the Fattoria – is in an aperitif, made with Mussantino or another sparkling wine: a few spoonfuls of this delight add colour, aroma and flavour to the various kinds of “bubbly”. But that’s not all, try tasting it with yoghurt, ice cream (“fior di latte”, vanilla, strawberry), whipped cream and other creamy desserts. A small amount (4%) of blackberries has been successfully added to the recipe, to boost the content of polyphenols and antioxidants, while maintaining the colour, fragrance and flavour.

La Vialla’s marmalade and extra jams

Jams and Marmalades are amongst the simplest and most enticing ways of preserving the taste and nutritional value of fresh fruit. At the Fattoria, the fruit (strawberries, figs and blackberries) is picked when it’s healthy and fully ripe, in lovely sunny weather, avoiding the hottest hours of the day, but also avoiding damp, rainy days.
The cooks at La Vialla prepare the organic jams in the kitchen workshop’s “pentoloni” (= big pans), which cook the ingredients in a vacuum and therefore at low temperature. They have the look and taste of good, rustic, home cooking. They contain generous quantities of fruit (well above the 44% required for “extra” jams) and are sweetened with grape must – they do not contain sugar.

• Strawberry Jam - excellent for making cheesecake with ricotta
• Orange Marmalade – delicious with mature cheeses or game dishes
• Fig Jam – for typical Tuscan “crostata” (= jam tart)
• Blackberry Jam – for breakfast with bread and butter (or oil), or used to make a delicious semifreddo with whipped cream

Viallella chocolate spread

(a cream of hazelnut and cocoa with extra virgin olive oil and honey)
Besides its delicate and (it must be said!) delicious taste, one of the strong points of Viallella are its outstanding ingredients: all organic and sugar-free, there’s extra virgin olive oil and there are lots of hazelnuts, 29%. The Romana D.O.P. hazelnut plays the leading role in this cream: harvested in the Italian region of Lazio in November, when perfectly ripe, they are dried, roasted for just a few minutes to save their aromas and then ground. In this way they become an aromatic, fragrant, golden paste.

To sweeten the Viallella, instead of sugar we have used the “sweetness” of agave (which has a much lower glycaemic index – GI – than sugar) together with a drop of honey, but very little of both. The oil used is sunflower and….. olive (a classic Viallino ingredient!) and, to finish off, a pinch of vanilla, a hint of sunflower lecithin (to amalgamate the ingredients) and a drop of milk. The result is a hazelnut-scented cream that’s just right for spreading, but also slightly runny so it can be “trickled” on fresh fruit (strawberries and pears are perfect for it!), yogurt, ricotta or ice cream. It can be used as a filling for tempting cakes and tarts, for hot crepes or, simply, on a nice slice of freshly-baked bread.