Rental Villa in Emilia Romagna

Last June we spent 2 days in Emilia Romagna near Castelvetro di Modena in an Agriturismo. We saw all the Ferrari sights in Maranello and Modena, but really loved the area overall, especially the food and natural beauty. We want to go back this year and stay longer and explore more of the Emilia region and food, but we felt if we are going to stay 1 week it would be better to rent a villa or home.

So I started looking for villas, however I am finding it challenging as Emilia is such a big region and I don't know what the best parts to stay are for both the scenery and the food. I am hoping maybe some people that know this area well or live there can give their advice.

So far I have found 3 villas that look nice, but they are all far from Maranello and the area we stayed last time. One is very close to the Lombardy boarder and Piacenza. The other 2 are closer to the coast and Cesena. One near Santa Sofia. Would any of these be a good area to stay, or would we be better staying more central closer to Maranello and Modena?

How about for food since that is a big focus for us since we really loved the food near Maranello. Does the food style vary much in the different areas of Emilia? Would we find better restaurants or traditional Emilia food in the area of Piacenza or Cesena?

Also if anyone has rented a villa or home in this area in the past that they can recommend, I'd like to hear your thoughts.