Pinzimonio Toscano con Olio Novello
Tuscany — Florence and Chianti wine-growing region, October-November seasonal
The Tuscan practice of eating raw seasonal vegetables dipped in olio novello (new-season olive oil, freshly pressed in October-November) with salt. Pinzimonio is not a recipe but a technique — a seasonal celebration of the olive harvest when the oil is at its most vivid, peppery, and bitter. Raw vegetables (fennel, celery, carrot, radish, endive, artichoke) are cut into batons and individual portions of new oil are provided at each place setting with salt and black pepper. The quality of the oil is the only criterion; without olio novello, pinzimonio loses its entire purpose.