Picnic menu in Liguria: a slow spring among Ligurian flavours
Flower Riviera, Genoa and surroundings, Portofino and the Tigullio, The Cinque Terre
The picnic menu: spring in Liguria amidst typical villages and flavours, from Cervo to Brugnato
Some say that spring is the time for change, and in Liguria this is the time to slow down, observe nature being reborn and choose authentic experiences among Ligurian villages, sea and hinterland. Spring in Liguria thus becomes an opportunity to discover what to do and what to eat, amidst local traditions, typical Ligurian cuisine and moments to be shared in the open air.
The traveller’s picnic menu recounts just that, through typical Ligurian dishes and stages to be experienced at leisure: from marò di fave to the Torta Pasqualina, from focaccette to traditional specialities, to the desserts that symbolise the season. A journey through authentic flavours and different areas, perfect for those looking for ideas on what to see and taste in Liguria during spring.
Accompanying each stage are the local Ligurian wines, fresh and mineral, ideal for enhancing the flavours of the area, from the Vermentino to the Pigato and the whites of the Cinque Terre. Because spring in Liguria is also this: an experience to be lived without any rush, amidst scents, landscapes and flavours that remain.
Marò di fave
Cervo: fava bean pestun, symbol of Ligurian springtime
Cervo is the point at which things stop being a race and become a pause: perched above the sea, amidst silent alleys and glimpses full of light, it smells of flowers and of spring just beginning. Here time gets longer, you breathe slowly and everything invites you to slow down. Just climb up to the Chiesa dei Corallini for an open view of the sea or lose yourself in the alleys of the village, among glimpses and details that tell of its authentic soul. At the dining table too. Marò di fave, or pestun, arrives with no rush, with its simplicity that tastes of things well done and of history: fresh fava beans, garlic, pecorino cheese and oil, essential ingredients that tell of a rustic, seasonal cuisine. It is green, delicate, alive, just like this season. In spring, it becomes the perfect flavour to be savoured carefree, perhaps on a slice of bread or a bruschetta as an appetiser, sitting in the sun, while the sea stays ahead and, for once, there is nothing to chase.
Genoa
Genoa in spring: between carruggi, tradition and Pasqualina pie
Genoa is where tradition meets its most authentic dimension, made up of ancient gestures and habits that endure over time. Between the old city centre and the carruggi, the atmosphere is that of a city that lets itself be discovered slowly, amid narrow alleys, shops and stories that seem to surface at every corner, including the ones linked to Fabrizio De André, who found inspiration here. In this interweaving of life and memory, food becomes a cultural narrative, something that goes beyond the recipe and is linked to the everyday life of the past. The Torta Pasqualina was created in this context, as a preparation for great occasions, designed to accompany days in the open air and the first outings of the season. It is not just a savoury pie, but a small gastronomic heritage that encapsulates the seasonality and identity of Liguria. The thin pastry envelops a soft and delicate filling, where chard is combined with the creaminess of prescinsöa and whole eggs, a symbol of rebirth. It is the kind of dish that fits perfectly into this rhythm, to be enjoyed after a stroll through the palaces of Strada Nuova and Palazzo Spinola or along the Porto Antico, as Genoa continues to tell its story, between tradition and everyday life.
Focaccette di Megli
Megli: spring that tastes like scones
Megli is the stage where spring becomes more colourful and opens up to sharing, the simple and spontaneous kind. Above Recco, immersed in olive groves and overlooking the gulf, this small hamlet has a cosy, almost suspended atmosphere, where it takes little to feel you are in the right place at the right time, and spring can really be felt, in the air, in the scents, in the way people come together. The focaccette di Megli, warm and filled with stracchino cheese, tell of a cuisine made for being together, to be enjoyed without any formality, perhaps outdoors, while chatting and enjoying a view that lingers in the eyes. They are the convivial flavour of the season, while all around the table is enriched with other traditional Ligurian dishes, the ones that are always recommended here, such as decorated corzetti , i pansotti with herbs, trofie and picagge verdi, in a variety that tells of a seasonal cuisine, simple but deeply linked to the territory. It is a stage that changes the rhythm of the journey, making it less ritualistic, more free, where spring is extended and becomes something to experience together, lightly.
Sestri Levante, Baia del silenzio
Sestri Levante: the main dish in a Ligurian picnic
Sestri Levante is where spring returns to the sea, but with a rhythm that combines elegance and tradition, between Baia del Silenzio and the streets of the centre where the light reflects on the water, the colours become more vivid and the atmosphere invites you to stay a while longer. Here comes the main course, the one that really brings it all together: Ligurian-style lamb, cooked with aromatic herbs, olives and flavours that tell of a cuisine that is familiar but rich in character, linked to celebrations and shared moments. Alongside it, however, Ligurian tradition also offers other typical Ligurian flavours, such as Ligurian style rabbit, prepared with olives, pine nuts and herbs, or stoccafisso accomodato, a historical dish of the home kitchen that combines sea and land in intense, enveloping flavours. It is a stage that completes the journey, where spring reaches its peak, among light, sea and taste, and each dish becomes part of a larger story, made up of family, territory and gestures that are repeated over time.
Brugnato
Brugnato: the sweet finale of the trip to Liguria
Brugnato is the final stop on the traveller's picnic menu in Liguria, the one where spring gently closes with a return to its origins, amid the quiet streets of an ancient village in the Val di Vara where traditions are still carefully preserved. Here, time seems to slow down even more, as we admire the blossoming flowers, and food once again takes on a symbolic value, linked to the gestures and rituals of yesteryear. Cavagnetto is the cake that represents all this, a small basket with a handle enclosing a whole egg, which has always been prepared on special occasions and in local traditions, to be shared with the family. Next to it, a canestrello di Brugnato tells another story, more linked to peasant life, with its doughnut shape, golden colour and scent of honey and aniseed, created to make bread taken to the fields richer and tastier. They are simple but meaningful sweets that end the journey by bringing everything back to its essence, conjuring up memory, territory and that familiar feeling that remains even when the journey ends.
Taggia Lenten biscuits
Taggia fennel biscuits
The origin of fennel biscuits from Taggia, is as old as the history of the olive village. These rustic biscuits, also known as Bescheutti da Quaexima were first made in 1580 following the severe famine that hit the city the previous year. It was the confraternities of the Whites and Reds who prepared the delicious sweet speciality, which was then distributed to the village's needy families during the spring festivities. The tradition has survived to the present day, with members of the confraternity distributing the biscuits, which taste of wild fennel, to the Tabiesi in the springtime. The biscuits are baked all year round in Taggia bakeries with flour, water, sugar, extra virgin Taggiasca olive oil, yeast, salt, honey, and fennel seeds.
