Il Cucchiaio D'Argento, or: The Silver Spoon

Like most food writers, I tend to collect cookbooks, and whenever I visit a new city or town, I drop by the best bookstore to see what they have, asking specifically for local cookbooks that of the kind that aren't distributed nationally. Among the books on display there is invariably "Il Cucchiao D'Argento" but I never looked at it, because it is a compendium, and I already have a number of those.

In retrospect this was a mistake; though the publisher, Editoriale Domus, primarily deals with architecture, following the Fascist collapse in 1943 they asked the publisher of Ada Boni's "Talismano Della Felicità," who was in the Allied-controlled half of Italy, if they could print and distribute the book in the other half. Casa Editrice Colombo said yes, so they did, and after the War tried to buy the rights of the book to distribute it nationwide. They were unable to reach an agreement on the price of "Il Talismano," however, and thus decided to bring out a cookbook of their own.

The first edition of "Il Cucchiaio D'Argento" came out in 1950, proving a terrific success. Well deserved, too; the editors collected recipes from throughout Italy, talking to both chefs and home cooks, and did a beautiful job of organizing and presenting them. In particular, they were much more precise when it came to measurements and cooking times than many other Italian cooking editors, and as a result the recipes are easier to follow. Since then they have updated the book several times, most recently in 1997, adding new recipes and adjusting some of the older ones to suit more modern tastes -- in other words, reducing fat and making them lighter and easier to digest. Some, but not all, because they feel that it's important to maintain traditions, and they note that a home cook can modify a recipe to suit his or her tastes.

So what will you find? Just about everything; the book comprises 2000-odd recipes, arranged by course (antipasti, sauces, soups, pasta, frittatas, vegetables, main course dishes, and so on) and ingredient, so if you want to make a specific dish, say a hearty soup or zuppa, or have a particular ingredient, for example beef heart or sturgeon, you need merely leaf through the book until you find the proper section, where the ingredient or dish is introduced, and there are a number of recipes to choose from.

And then, if you want some advice in putting it all together, there are also sample meals by leading Italian chefs, including Gualtiero Marchesi, Fulvio Pierangiolini, and Gianfranco Vissani, and menu suggestions arranged by month. In short, Il Cucchiaio D'Argento is one of those books you will find yourself turning to time and again, both for enjoyment and inspiration.

"But it's in Italian," you say.

Not only; Phaidon has done a beautiful job of translating "Il Cucchiaio D'Argento" into English. The whole thing; and well; if you set the Italian and English editions next to each other and flip page by page, you'll find everything from the original in the new, and nicely translated -- not a literal translation, which can be awkward and confusing, but rather a translation that captures the flavor and meaning of the original. And they've done more, explaining things that an Italian might not need explained, suggesting substitutes for Italian ingredients that are difficult to find elsewhere, and fleshing out the quantities of the Italian ingredient lists, which, though complete by Italian standards, still call for q.b. (quanto basta, or enough, say, of lemon juice or grated Parmigiano) more than English language cooks are comfortable with.

A sample recipe, from the translation:

Puglian Minestrone, Minestrone alla Pugliese

Serves 4-6

900 g/2 lb turnip tops
2 onions, chopped
5 tablespoons olive oil
Pinch of chilli powder
150 g/5 oz. Tortiglioni pasta
25 g/1 oz. Pecorino cheese, freshly grated
salt and pepper

(In the Italian edition the recipe simply calls for olive oil, chili powder, and pecorino, without saying how much.)

If possible choose turnip tops in flower since they are tastier. Cook in salted, boiling water for about 10 minutes, then separate the stems from the flowers. Chop the stems and put them in a saucepan with the onions, 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, the chilli powder, and a pinch of pepper. Cook over a low heat, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, then pour in 1.5 litres/2 1/2 pints hot water and simmer 1 3/4 hours. Stir in the pasta, then stir in the turnip flowers and cook until the pasta is al dente. Remove the pan from the heat, stir in the pecorino, and leave to stand for a few minutes. Season with a little more pepper and chilli powder, stir in the remaining oil, ladle into a soup tureen, and serve.

Quite tasty, and if you want a different minestrone, on the same 2-page spread you'll find Borsch (Minestrone alla Russa), Tuscan Minestrone, Farro and Bean Minestrone, and Winter Minestrone (made with potatoes, carrots, turnips, cabbage, and more). As I said, you're sure to find something that whets your fancy, and that can either be made from or adapted to the ingredients you have on hand.

The volume is lavishly illustrated with many photos of the dishes, and also includes both a glossary of cooking terms and charts of meat cuts and such, and this brings up one of my two objections: The charts give general Italian names for the cuts and their British equivalents; since the book will be quite welcome in English speaking households the world over, non-British meat cuts might have been nice too. My other objection is that the Italian edition gives wine pairing suggestions for many of the dishes, for example Trentino Lagrein Roscato DOC, Parrino Rosato DOC, or Castel del Monte Rosato DOC for the above mentioned Minestrone Pugliese. The English edition omits the wine suggestions, and though it is true that many of wines suggested in the Italian edition are difficult to find outside Italy, it's also true that even a suggestion for something not readily available where one is, e.g a specific rosato, white, or red, will help point one in the right direction.

Minor quibbles or improvements for the second edition, depending upon how you look at it, and in the meantime if you have a friend who likes cookbooks, "The Silver Spoon" will make a perfect gift that will be treasured for many years to come. For that matter, you may want to buy two copies, because you could well decide to keep the first.

Practical things:
The Silver Spoon
ISBN 0 7148 4467 5 (UK Edition)
About 2000 recipes in 1260 pages, including indexes; lavishly illustrated with beautiful color photographs and line drawings
Published by:
Phaidon Press Ltd, 2005
London
http://www.phaidon.com

Looks Good! I'd like to see the Order Form.