Once Carnival ends, in Florence as in the Catholic world, the kitchen changes and the transition is far from symbolic.

The days of cenci (known in other regions as chiacchiere or bugie), fritters, and sweet schiacciata (the Florentine schiacciata) mark the last indulgence before Lent, a season traditionally considered a time of “purification,” including at the table.

From Ash Wednesday onward, a specific period begins to be observed in the kitchen and at the table: less meat, fewer animal fats, and a simpler way of eating.

Not deprivation, but moderation.

Abstinence from meat becomes the main rule and is compensated with fish, legumes, and vegetables.

Florentine “lean” cuisine

Lent does not invent new dishes; it brings humble and traditional ones to the forefront.

Bread soups, legumes, wild greens, salt cod, and preserved fish return to the table. Many dishes were born precisely as “lean” preparations, meaning without meat, such as fagioli all’uccelletto (beans with tomato sauce), also codified by Artusi. Stale bread became an essential ingredient in soups (with ribollita as their queen) or in acquacotta, because as always, but especially during this period, nothing was meant to be wasted. And in these weeks the garden offers excellent vegetables: chicory, cabbages, and bitter greens, perfect foods to restore balance after excess.

Desserts… not too sweet

In Florence, desserts do not disappear, they simply change.

Pastry shops offer quaresimali fiorentini, dry biscuits made without butter or fats, created in the nineteenth century in convents to respect the rules of the season.

Pan di ramerino, a sweet olive oil bread with pine nuts, raisins, and rosemary, is also traditionally prepared during Lent, even if “only” on Holy Thursday before Easter.

In short, more than a period of renunciation, Florentine Lent is a pause: the kitchen returns to being everyday, seasonal, essential.

Bread, legumes, wild greens, humble fish become the natural way of eating while waiting for the explosion of spring.

And perhaps that is the true meaning: after Carnival, we stop celebrating food and return to savoring it in its simplest flavors. We return to understanding it.