Happy Saint Lucy's Day to all those who celebrate December 13th, including our very own Lucia of Turinepi!!
Besides Scandinavia and St Lucia, St Lucia's is a festive day in many parts of Italy where she brings the Christmas presents, leaving Santa just some small packages to fill up his stockings.
Originally from Syracuse, Sicily, during the Roman times, Lucia was persecuted and martyrized because she wouldn't renounce her faith. Her relics traveled to many places and because her name means light, her story finally merged with the Winter Solstice and this is how she make it up to Northern Europe where she's represented wearing a crown of candles and bringing light in the 'longest dark day of the year'.
If you can read Italian, enjoy our short story here.
.jpg) |
| Fiat 500 where the T stands for Torino |
In Turin, we don't have any traditional foods for St Lucy's Day so we thought about some stocking stuffers from our city that will make everyone happy!
Most of our recommendations are edible but not all of them will fit a regular Christmas or Befana stocking, thus making them suitable to be gifted separately.
Flavored Piedmont Tajarin
Tajarin is one of our staple regional 4 first courses or primi piatti. With their 40 egg yolks they are the epitome of our royal culinary tradition, dating back to the dawn of time.
Usually sold, served and eaten fresh, it is also sold dry so it can easily travel overseas. You can find it in its plain version, or with Barolo wine DOCG, with our Piedmont white truffles or our porcini mushrooms.
Naturally a regal dish, with just 3 minutes of boiling time and melted butter, it will turn every table into our average Turin feast!
Jars
Here in Turin and Piedmont you can choose among many delicious jars of local products, like:
Zabajone aka the Turin eggnog was invented in Turin in the late 16th century by St Pasquale de Baylon - patron saint of chefs and cooks
One of Turin and Piedmont winter hot drinks, it can be savored warm in a cup, just like eggnog or denser on a panettone or cake slice. Italians usually have it as dessert or mid-afternoon snack.
This is a seasonal product available only when temps drop: mid-November to the end of February.
You can also easily make it at home with our very own Piedmont Moscato D'Asti DOCG one of our most famous bubbly wines in the world - recipe here.
In short: heaven in a jar as white truffles are the diamonds of the table and our Piedmont produced robiola cheeses are all from very tiny local productions and made with the milk of goats who are protected and can't be exploited.
In Piedmont, we highly value the nutritional content of all our regionally produced foods and deeply care for the whole production process. As author Barbara Boyle says: "farm animals in Piedmont live a very happy life" this is how we get our extra lean beef too.
- Porcini mushrooms
Porcini mushrooms are the kings of our royal Piedmont cuisine and we enjoy them in many fashions and in many dishes from pasta to risotto, meats and even fish. Naturally, if you have to travel, you'll want them preserved in oil and one of these huge jars will definitely make for a great present to any foodie!
Rich in garlic, our Piedmont 'hot bath' or bagna cauda is an anchovy-based and butter dip where you dunk your crudités into. You serve it warm in a common heated container - like fondue, placed at the center of your table where everyone will easily dunk their carrot or celery stick or artichoke leaf.
Yes, you can also use it as a spread and you will definitely need to pair it with a nice Piedmont wine that deserves its own nice wooden box under the Christmas tree.
Gianduiotti box
Nobody can resist a royally wrapped-in-gold rich chocolate and this is why since the 1800s - when hazelnuts were first blended with cocoa powder to elegantly defy the Napoleonic blockade - our Piedmont staple chocolates look like precious gold nuggets.
All around Piedmont and especially in Turin, our Holiday packages must include a chocolate box! Nowadays, the foil color can change to reveal the % of cocoa powder and the kind of blend.
You can also find sealed boxes with an assortment of locally made pralines, only gianduiotti, only cremino chocolates or for a truly Turin flavor: a blend of these last two.
You can find some at our TRN Turin Airport too.
Candies
Candies are probably the easiest thing to travel with because they are small and you only have to worry about keeping them below 22C / 71.6F. They don't break and can be purchased in tiny boxes, collectible tins of different sizes - small ones too, perfect for a stocking; or even lose at any herbal shop.
In Turin we have a long standing candy-making tradition and a love for essential oils, natural colors and ingredients. Gummy, slow melting, mint - licorice - violet, sugar based, or hard candies will elate even the Grinch!
Anything by Leone will do, including their chocolate spread tube!
Some are available at TRN Turin Airport too.
A Charm from Turin
 |
| artisan charms from Turin with Mole Antonelliana, Fiat 500, our Turin's bull |
Everyone will love a tiny silver or gold, artisan made charm from Turin with our city symbol building: Mole Antonelliana hosting the National Cinema Museum, a tiny version of our ever iconic Fiat 500 and our Turin bull or il toro: where the Torino's name got its origin, a precious souvenir of our bull fountains, and il Torino FC known as 'il Toro' the historical soccer team of Turin (currently we have to city teams, being Juventus FC or Juve, the other one)!
These charms can be worn as a pendant or on a bracelet, as a cellphone / bag / keyring charm or kept in your Native American-like medicine bag too!
In the picture above you can also see a dome shaped charm: it is the Superga Basilica where the Savoy princes and princesses are buried and also the name of the hill where this Basilica was built on and where il Grande Torino or the youngest and strongest Torino FC team crashed in 1949.
A Renaissance Cologne since 1510!!
Turin is studded with MANY royal pharmacies, they all have their own production of spirits, skincare and OTC drugs. The oldest one is Farmacia della Consolata officially registered in 1640 but already active since 1510 when they started producing this magic cologne!
Valentina shared the story of their top 2 out of 280 (!!) historical products still made following the recipes registered in the 1800s and adapted to our days' taste and needs:
Whether acting as Saint Lucy, Santa or la Befana, you can be sure you'll always find that unique something 🎁 here in Turin for all your Holiday shopping and special occasions 🎊
From our family to yours we wish you a very Happy Holiday Season and hope to see you right here in Turin 👑or online in 2026 🎇
 |
| Turin's Royal Palace and its 'little Christmas wood' in the King's square |
E-mail Lucia: turinepi@gmail.com
Amici, Turin will amaze you 💃
