Jamie returns to Italy with his ultimate guide to Italian cooking. In this colourful cookbook, you can find Jamie recreating the magic of Italian cooking with a collection of well-tested and accessible best-ever recipes inspired by the wonderful nonnas he encountered while travelling the length and breadth of the country. Expect a range of recipes from midweek meal ideas to slower dishes, all with clear nutritional information and Jamie's signature flair.
The only cuisine that deserves to be called Italian cooking, writes Hazan by way of introduction to this celebrated 1992 title, is la cucina di casa: “there are no high or low roads in Italian cuisine. All roads lead to the home.” And it is how she then proceeds to unpick the fundamentals – to map out the way home, if you will – that sets the book apart. Starting with the triumvirate of Italian technique – battuto, soffritto and insaporire, which build flavour from the bottom up – she goes on to list the contents of the Italian pantry, before taking you through the various stages on a menu. Her chapter on soups, for example, opens with the idea that “A vegetable soup can tell you where you are in Italy, almost as precisely as a map.” Through eloquent prose and piercing insight, Hazan manages to unlock her country’s soul.
The Chiappa sisters grew up in Wales in the heart of a close-knit Italian community where food was always at the centre of family and social gatherings. Whether searching for porcini in the hills near their parents' home, making pasta with the whole family, or sharing food at the annual Welsh-Italian summer picnic, they have been immersed in the Italian way of cooking all their lives. Here they share their cherished family recipes, including all the pasta dishes featured in their Channel 4 series.

Perhaps one of the simplest dishes in the book, but the one I revisit the most, is the whipped sheep's milk ricotta. You can make this in your sleep. Just whip up the ricotta with some good whole milk and it becomes ethereally fluffy. Accented with sea salt, fresh herbs, and olive oil, it's ready to be slathered all over crusty bread. I serve this at just about every party I have. Another favorite is this cauliflower with brown butter, pear, sage, and hazelnuts. It has to be one of the best ways to eat cauliflower. "—Erin Zimmer, National Managing Editor
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