As a country girl, Florence feels to me like a grand, living painting. The view from Piazzale Michelangelo takes my breath away in every season and at all hours. Whenever I stroll through the city centre I find myself compelled to capture the Duomo, whether with a camera or a mental snapshot — both feel the same. I love that instant when I tilt my head to look up, then higher still, trying to embrace every detail. I wait for that moment, hold my breath for a second, and then release it with a little sigh, as if it were the first time.
But beyond the city’s grand monuments, what I cherish most are the narrow back alleys you only discover with friends who live there, the private glimpse of a garden beyond a wall (I admit I’m a little influenced by Notting Hill), and the tiny shops and artisan workshops that seem to belong to another era.
In one of those workshops I learned to make schiacciata alla fiorentina, the sweet flatbread traditionally enjoyed during Carnival. Carnival is not my favourite season — I always think of it as the last hurdle before spring — yet the sweets are a compelling reason to celebrate. Last year I sampled typical treats from Siena and the Valdelsa, such as cenci and frittelle, and this year, inspired by our theme for Italian Table Talk — Carnival — I decided to give the holiday another chance and explore Florence’s iconic schiacciata alla fiorentina, also known as stiacciata unta, the greased flatbread.
I visited Andrea Bianchini, a respected chocolatier and pastry chef in Florence, on a bright winter day that felt nearly like spring to learn the traditional recipe. Tuscany’s culinary map is highly local: some specialties never leave their city of origin. Schiacciata alla fiorentina is one of those Florentine treats that didn’t reach my Valdelsa hometown, so until last week I had neither baked nor tasted it — a little experiment for the sake of curiosity.
Despite its name, which evokes the savoury schiacciata common in Italian bakeries, schiacciata alla fiorentina is a sweet, fragrant cake scented with orange and vanilla. During Carnival it fills the windows of bakeries, pasticcerias and cafés across Florence. There is even a competition to name the best schiacciata, and many locals point to Pasticceria Giorgio as a benchmark. Traditionally dusted with icing sugar and marked with the Florentine lily, modern versions are often filled with whipped cream, chocolate or custard.
Originally, schiacciata was simply bread dough enriched with lard — a natural ingredient since Carnival coincided with the pig slaughtering season. Over time, sugar, vanilla and oranges were added, transforming it into a celebratory cake. Oranges contribute both zest and juice to the dough and were once considered luxuries, so their addition made the schiacciata decadently special. Carnival itself was the last chance for indulgence before Lent — a moment when excess was culturally permitted.
Andrea explained that in older times bergamots, rather than common oranges, were often used in Florentine pastries; these citrus fruits were abundant locally and even appear in historical artworks. The cake’s rectangular shape is also traditional. Local lore credits the nuns of Santa Verdiana in Florence for popularising the rectangular form, since they baked in rectangular trays to serve detainees.
Not long ago, grandmothers made schiacciata from leftover bread dough and baked it in the wood-fired oven. Oranges, treated then like rare delicacies, elevated the simple dough into something extraordinary — much as vanilla feels precious to us today. When a single tangerine or orange was a treasured holiday gift, imagine how special a cake infused with citrus would have tasted.
– – 2018 updated recipe for schiacciata alla fiorentina – –
This version balances the traditional method — using fresh brewer’s yeast, lard and multiple rises — with a more accessible home-style approach that uses olive oil or butter and a single rising. The result is a fragrant, soft, orange-vanilla cake that stays true to Florentine flavour and tradition.
Schiacciata alla fiorentina
Ingredients
For the schiacciata fiorentina
- 400 g plain flour
- 50 g warm water
- 12 g fresh brewer’s yeast
- 1 egg
- 3 egg yolks
- 100 g sugar
- 45 g extra virgin olive oil
- 45 g butter
- 2 oranges, zest and juice
- 1/2 vanilla pod, seeds
- 1 pinch salt
- Icing sugar
For the chantilly
- 500 ml whole milk
- 1/2 vanilla pod
- 2 eggs
- 4 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons corn starch
- 250 ml whipping cream
Instructions
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Dissolve the fresh brewer’s yeast in 50 g of warm water, then mix it with 100 g of flour. Shape into a ball and let it rise, covered, in a warm place for about two hours.
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Emulsify the olive oil with softened butter, orange zest and vanilla seeds. Transfer to a bowl, then add the egg, egg yolks, sugar, orange juice and a pinch of salt. Whisk until smooth.
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When the starter dough has doubled, add the oil-butter-egg mixture and begin kneading, gradually incorporating the remaining flour until you obtain a smooth, elastic dough.
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Transfer the dough to a 30 x 22 cm rectangular pan and smooth the surface to a thickness of about 2 cm.
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Let it rise, loosely covered, in a warm place for approximately 3 hours.
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When doubled, bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for about 30 minutes. It should turn hazel brown, feel soft, and a toothpick inserted in the centre should come out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
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While the schiacciata cools, prepare the chantilly: heat the milk with the vanilla pod until it reaches a gentle boil, then remove from heat and set aside.
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In a bowl whisk the eggs with sugar and corn starch until smooth. Pour the hot milk into the eggs in a thin stream, stirring constantly to avoid cooking the eggs.
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Return the mixture to the stove and cook over low heat, whisking, until the custard thickens. Remove from heat as soon as it begins to bubble. Transfer to a bowl, cover with cling film and let cool completely. To speed cooling, place the bowl in a larger bowl filled with iced water.
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Whip the cream to soft peaks and gently fold it into the cold custard.
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Slice the schiacciata in half horizontally, spread the chantilly between the layers, reassemble, and dust with icing sugar. Traditionally the Florentine lily is reproduced on the surface with cocoa powder. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving.
Link love
To keep up with all the Italian Table Talk posts, here are the contributors and their social accounts:
- Emiko — blog: Emikodavies.com; Twitter: @emikodavies; Pinterest: emikodavies
- Valeria — blog: Life Love Food; Twitter: @valerianecchio; Facebook page and Pinterest available under her name
- Jasmine — blog: Labna.it; Twitter: @labna; Facebook page and Pinterest available under her name
- Juls — Twitter: @Julskitchen; Facebook: JulsKitchen; Pinterest: julskitchen
Follow the conversation on Twitter with the hashtag #ITabletalk. Tell us which sweets are typical for Carnival where you live and how you experience this festive — and sometimes chaotic — time of year!