Galileo at the table

At the table of a 17th-century Tuscan scholar, the meal revolves around saltless bread (pane sciocco) and olive oil. It begins with a minestra (soup or broth), followed by the arrosto (roast for feast days), and ends with frutta: fresh fruit, cheeses, sweet preserves, and a glass of Tuscan wine. No French-style starter/main/dessert: here everything centers on bread, oil, and wine.

The green oil from the Florentine contado perfumes everything from soup to roast; Trebbiano, the white wine that Galileo favored, is used for drinking, cooking, and preserving. It is the gustatory thread of all Tuscany in his time.