here are numerous walking routes and itineraries from Levanto to the Cinque Terre. In fact, there are over 70km of footpaths to explore which wind through olive groves, vineyards and ancient country hamlets forming the Levanto Valley. Add the pedestrian historical centre of Levanto town and the visitor can enjoy a more than relaxing car free break in south Liguria.

Salt was a valuable commodity in medieval times and we have written more about the control of the trade at the time here. Below we outline a part of the old salt road from Valle delle Meraviglie to the Balzi Rossi.

Panettone or Pandolce is the famous Italian Christmas cake which appears in all the shops from December 1st. It has a strange consistency on first taste, a mix between dry and moist and delicate and tough. However, one thing is for sure, its perfect with a glass of chilled prosecco.

The pandolce from Genoa is the real thing and differs from the other versions as it is more compact and has an abundance of dried sugared fruit or 'frutta candita'. This suggests that the recipe for the cake was brought to the port from the Middle East by traders or invaders.

There's no getting away from olives in Taggia as Delicious Italy found out when we visited the small town. In fact, the local variety is called the Taggiasca and the town's wealth is, in part, still based on this fine fruit.

Turn to our Liguria recipe section for a dish which features the humble anchovy. But these silver fish, which attract the eye in all the good market stall throughout the country, are especially revered in Liguria.

The traditional dishes of the Cinque Terre area are made from ingredients immediately to hand; typically olives, wild herbs, seafood, flour and cheese. But it is at Christmas time that the inhabitants of the zone really outdo themselves.

Focaccia is not pizza and is about 2000 years older. The name comes from the Latin 'focacia' meaning hearth or fireside so its easy to see what role it had in everyday life throughout the centuries.

So what's in a pesto? Well, if you buy a supermarket version of the condiment in a small glass tub then probably potatoes, sugar and lots of preservatives. Although tasty, its not a patch on the real thing. The magic ingredients are basil 'basilico', garlic 'aglio', pine nuts 'pinoli', extra virgin olive oil and cheese, either a pecorino or parmigiano, and that's it.

Many people write to us asking for wine recommendations and wines typical of one zone or another. The folks at Sanremo Promotion have listed four names for us from the Riviera dei Fiori and details of each can be found below.

The only symbol to rely when buying olive oil in Italy is the DOP mark. Any DOP olive oil is of the highest quality and guaranteed by the highest European standards And extra virgin DOP olive oil is the best there is.