Historically blood sausages were made using the leftover or what we might call cheap cuts of pork. The pieces included the head, tongue, skins, other organs, and the snouts. Leaving nothing to waste the butchers of course also used the blood from the butchering process. From muzzle to tail, nothing was discarded, resulting in an extremely nutritional product.

We were invited by our local Frantoio (olive oil mill) to celebrate the new olive harvest. Alongside the tasting of the extra virgin olive oil, we enjoyed some traditional cured meats and red wine. As with most food and recipes In Italy, there are many regional varieties of blood sausage. My research indicates they are known as sanguinaccio.

The term for this particular type eaten in Tuscany is buristo. Vegetarians, if you have come this far, now is the time to turn back. Buristo is a sausage made with pork, pork fat, spices, and of course, pig's blood. Once combined, the product is stuffed and cooked in a pig's stomach, as in the photo above. This variey is served cold with a piece of crusty white bread. This is a typical cured meat to this part of Tuscany (Siena), usually found in the winter months. If you are traveling in other parts of Tuscany, you may find something called Biroldo. This is a regional variation of black pudding .

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