Liguria

The cuisine of Italy’s smallest region, Liguria (aka the Italian Riviera) in many ways is the much touted Mediterranean diet, classic cucina povera, making good use of olive oil, fresh vegetables, pasta, seafood, a little cheese and wine. Famous dishes include cappon magro, focaccia, burrida, farinata and cima alla genovese. And of course Liguria also gave the world one of its favourite sauces: pesto.

The name comes from the ancient Ligures, the tribe who occupied the region from the early first millennium BC.