At this very moment at La Collina del Sole situated in the heart of the villa rentals in Tuscany area with luxury holiday villas in Lucca there is the most extraordinary bumper crop of Funghi Porcini about to happen, this area is well known not just for its recreation opportunities, stunning villas for rent in Tuscany and beautiful scenery in which you can have some incredible guided walks but also for its prolific production of Black Truffles and Funghi Porcini whcih you can pick. This is because Lucca villa rental is situated at the foothills of a large expanse of chestnut woods and the weather conditions this year have been perfect for the bumper Funghi Porcini crop in many years, you can experience the thrill of looking for, finding and cooking your own Funghi at La Collina del Sole when you rent a villa in TuscanyFrom mid September the small family owned food shops in the area of Lucca Villa Rental will burst out in baskets full of dried Funghi porcini, this is the easiest way keep them for a few months, Funghi Porcini are easily dried all you need is a good serrated knife to slice the Funghi in approximately 3-4mm thick slices several clean cloths and a good expanse of protected and clean ground in the sun, leave the cut slices well spread out so they do not touch each other in the open air for about 2-3 days and as long as it does not rain you should have a good supply of funghi to last you at least half a year, OR you can take your freshly picked funghi to the newly opened food cooperative that occupies the old railroad station in Fosciandora just by our favourite local restaurant Il Ponte and for a small fee they will dry your funghi in a special oven that has been bought just for that purpose. The other way we suggest of preserving Funghi Porcini is to wash them, and boil then in a large pan of boiling water with a generous splash of wine vinegar for a good 5 minutes, the vinegar will not only keep their fresh colour but also enhance their delicious taste, Drain them well and fill preserving jars with a few whole black peppercorns and Olive Oil which incidentally is VERY GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH! Olive Oil improves your mental capacity and helps protect against and alleviate Alzheimer’s, then place the dried Funghi porcini in the preserving jars and seal the lids. This method of preservation will keep your funghi good for months. Or you can cheat and buy funghi porcini already in olive oil jars at L’Aia di Piero, along with several Funghi Porcini delicacies like Lasagna and pasta parcels Both methods of preservation will enable you to enjoy the taste of your hand picked Funghi porcini for months to come drive to this fabulous Lucca villa rental and like one of the guests of La Collina del Sole pick several kilos as seen in the feedback page, enjoy a fabulous walk in the woods, guided walks are best as the guide will explain where the best spots are and what is edible and what is not, then cook and feast on Funghi Porcini till you can eat no more and bring the rest home to enhance sauces, soups, meat roasts and warm salads ! A no brainer ... visit La Collina del Sole and enjoy funghi hunting !