La Libreria: Cookbooks
While websites are wonderful for some things, there are times when what you really want is a book:
- It's chilly, and you want to curl up in front of the fire with a glass of good wine….
- You've got friends coming to dinner and you want to serve up an authentic Tuscan meal….
- You need to know all about a particular topic….
With the help of the folks at
Amazon.com, the world's leading on-line bookstore, we
have put together a selection of our favorite books, books we turn to when we
need information, inspiration, or simply relaxation.
How it works: Read the descriptions (some have links that lead to more detailed information), and, if you decide you'd like to buy a book, click on the link that says, "I'd like to see the order form." This will lead you to Amazon.com's order form for the book. Fill in the order, send it off, and Amazon will bill you and send you the book. We do get a commission on some of the books ordered through our website, so we ask that if you would like several of the books we have listed, you order them all through our pages. Thank you so much!
And good reading!
- The Art of Eating Well: Before Bugialli, before Marcella Hazan, before Ada Boni, there was Pellegrino Artusi, whose book, La Scienza in Cucina e l'Arte di Mangiar Bene, established Italian cooking as we know it. Our WebWeaver has translated this classic, and it has been released by Random House. Find out about it, and sample the recipes! No need, I'd Like to See the Order Form Now.
- Il Cucchaio D'Argento, or The Silver Spoon. Immediately after the War, Editoriale Domus assembled a supeb collection of recipes and published one of the best comprehensive cookbooks I've seen. They've updated it several times since then, and now Phaidon has published an English translation that's just as good as the original. You'll find something for every occasion and every ingredient here. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- The Food of Italy, by Waverly Root. This isn't exactly a cookbook, but it did win the James Beard Award in 1990. Mr. Root takes a leisurely, mouth-watering tour of the peninsula. If you're interested in Italian food, this is a book you should definitely read. I'd Like to See the Order Form.
- Treasures of the Italian Table: Italy's Celebrated Foods and the Artisans who Make Them, by Burton Anderson. Mr. Anderson fell in love with Italian food and wine as a correspondent for the International Harold Tribune, and stayed on to write about them. We are fortunate he did; his is one of the most knowledgeable and interesting voices on the subject. I'd Like to See the Order Form.
- The Cooking of Parma, by Richard Camillo Sidoli. A fascinating exploration of one of Italy's most sophisticated cuisines, one that deftly combines the light and the hearty, the sweet and the savory, the simple and the elegant. With interesting asides and notes on ingredients and procedures, and pretty illustrations. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Italian Jewish Cooking, by Mira Sacerdoti. Few people associate Italy with Judaism, probably because of the Church, but Jews have been here since long before Saint Peter, and the country boasted rich Jewish culinary traditions until the madness of the War overwhelmed all. Mira Sacerdoti was lucky enough to survive, and has assembled a warm collection of recipes and stories for her children that she has been kind enough to share. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- The Food of Southern Italy, by Carlo Middione. Many people associate South Italian Cooking with heavy, hearty pasta dishes, garlic, and cannoli. They do form part of the picture, but just a small part. Mr. Middione has done an admirable job of assembling the rest, in a fascinating book that adresses much more than just food. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Eat Dangerously!, By Benjamin Lewis and Rodrigo Velloso. This isn't a book for the faint of heart -- The authors have had it up to here with healthy living and make no bones about it. This doesn't mean they've migrated to bar stools to suck down brews and pack on the pounds. Quite the contrary, they've assembled a delightfully sensuous (or perhaps libidinous would be more accurate) collection of recipes, many fit for two. Soft cover, 120 pages. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Cooking with Grace, by Grace Pilato. Grace was born in Sicily and then moved to the US, where she married and settled down, working in ceramics and teaching how to cook in Central Pennsylvania. As one might expect, her lessons drew heavily from her Sicilian heritage, and her experiences as a teacher have had a profound influence on her book. Put simply, she doesn't take things for granted, but rather explains clearly, leaving nothing to chance. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Naples at Table, by Arthur Schwartz. Arthur has been visiting Naples since 1969 and has come to understand the cooking of Naples and Campania like few non-Neapolitans, with lively curiosity and an eye for detail that leads him to notice and remark on things a native Neapolitan might take for granted. A fascinating book. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Cucina Ebraica, Flavors of the Italian Jewish Kitchen, by Joyce Goldstein. Joyce first came to Italy to study other things many years ago, but soon turned her attention to food, and is by now one of the world's foremost experts on Italian Jewish cooking. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- A Passion for Piedmont, by Matt Kramer. His book is subtitled Italy's most Glorious Regional Table; while one could argue the word "most," Piemontese cooking is extraordinarily refined, and Mr. Kramer does a fine job of exploring its ins and outs. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Cooking Up an Italian Life, Simple Pleasures of Italy in Recipes and Stories, by Sharon Sanders. Sharon met her (American) husband in Italy, and upon returning to the US became a food writer. Not that she lost contact with Italy; quite the contrary, and hers is a delightful collection of creative modern Italian recipes. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Preserving Our Italian Heritage A fine collection of favorite recipes from Italian American households, assembled by the Sons of Italy. And the proceeds go to charity! Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- La Terra Fortunata, by Fred Plotkin. A superb cookbook dedicated to the cooking of Friuli Venezia Giulia, the crossroads of Europe in many ways and a region with many marvels that are well worth discovering. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- The Magic of Fire, by William Rubel. Hearth cooking is a lost art that is well worth recovering, and it's a lot easier than one might think. It's also a fine way to warm the house! Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Mediterranean Street Food, by Anissa Helou. The Italian peninsula, which would just about cross the Mediterranean if it weren't at an angle, is only about a thousand miles long. One can see Corsica from Tuscany on a very clear day; Sicily is less than a hundred miles from Africa, the southeastern part of the Italian Peninsula is not far from the Greek islands, and they in turn are not that far from Turkey or the Middle East. Considering that the Mediterranean peoples are also all seafaring, it should come as no surprise that one can find closely related dishes throughout the regio... Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Italian Comfort Food: Intensive Eating From Fresco I confess I have never been to the Scotto restaurant, which is, I think, somewhere in Manhattan, but if it's anything like the book it's one of those colorful, lively places where almost anything can happen... Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Cooking the Roman Way, by David Downie. Rome, in the summer, means (for me) eating outside; restaurants that are located where it is possible put a row of tables out on the street for their patrons, and if you take a walk through the Centro Storico you will find many families that have done the same, enjoying their meal in the evening breeze or talking as they finish their wine. David Downie knows a lot about this sort of food; his Roman mother met his American father during the War and married him, and though the family subsequently moved to the US she continued to cook as she had at home, and he has spent quite a bit of time prowling Rome's markets and eateries...Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- The Cornbread Book, A Love Story with Recipes: Jeremy Jackson takes a warm look at somehting clasically American, providing much to enjoy, including some decidedly Italian aspects. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- Into the Sauce! 100% Authentic South Italian recipes from the Buca di Beppo: The Buca di Beppo is an American restaurant chain specialized in South Italian cuisine, and their book is interesting, with athentic recipes and lavish illustrations. In other words, good to cook by and a good gift too. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- The Flavors of Southern Italy Erica De Mane is a very fine New York chef and food writer who has traveled all over the South in search of her roots, both culinary and personal, and has a beautiful understanding of the spirit of the cuisine, which she deftly brings into the present. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.
- The Whole Beast: Nose to Tail Eating Fergus Henderson does amazing things with the so-called lesser cuts of meat, and his book opens exciting culinary horizons. Read a longer review and sample a recipe. No thanks, I'd like to see the Order Form.