Date: Fri 10-Oct-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

Italian-cookbooks

Full Text:

(rev Italian cookbooks for Enjoy)

Italian Cookbooks: As Classic As Their Fare

(with book covers, recipes)

BY KAAREN VALENTA

Italy is a country noted for its beautiful landscapes, exquisite art, friendly

people, rustic wine and, of course, wonderful food. So it is no wonder that

Italian cookbooks continue to be among the most popular of the hundreds of

cookbooks that are published each year.

A generation ago, most of us were content with Americanized fare such as

long-simmered tomato sauces, spaghetti and meatballs and lasagna. Then

cookbooks began to open our eyes to fresh pasta, balsamic vinegar, extra

virgin olive oil, pesto, radicchio and real Parmesan cheese.

Writers like Marcella Hazan, who wrote her first book, The Classic Italian

Cookbook , more than 20 years ago, was among those who have changed the way we

enjoy Italian food.

After a hiatus of a decade, Mrs Hazan has just published her fifth - and, she

says, her absolute last - cookbook, Marcella Cucina (HarperCollins Publishers,

October 1997, $35/hardcover). She and her husband Victor also have decided to

end the master cooking classes at their home in Venice next year and leave

their palazzo for a new home on the Gulf coast of Florida.

The full flavor of the Hazans' life in Venice, however, will endure for

readers of this book, in recipes, text and illustrations. The book opens with

a visit to the market in which Mrs Hazan emphasizes the fundamental principle

of all her teaching and writing: great Italian meals (in fact, all good

cooking), begin in the marketplace with the selection of the freshest and

tastiest ingredients available.

The recipes in this book come from all over Italy, from Sardinia to The

Marches, from Sicily to Friuli, from Apulia to the Piedmont. They come from

different eras in her life, from celebrated chefs, from gala dinners at famous

wineries and even chance meals at unknown trattorias.

The recipes are presented in ten chapters: appetizers, soups, pasta, risotta

and polenta, fish, poultry and rabbit, meats, vegetables, salads and desserts.

Each is presented with headnotes, instructions, and in many instances with

beautiful photographs.

Baked Tomatoes Stuffed

With Salmon, Garlic, Capers

1 Tbs capers, preferably packed in salt

1 lb salmon

3« Tbs extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbs chopped Italian flat-leafed parsley

1 tsp very finely chopped garlic

2 Tbs fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs

Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Two lg ripe, firm tomatoes, about ‹ lb each

Drain the capers if packed in vinegar; soak, rinse and drain if packed in

salt; then chop them fine.

Turn the oven on to 400§ F.

Remove the salmon's skin, remove any loose membranes and carefully pick out

all the bones. Cut the fish into very fine dice and put it in a bowl together

with 2« tablespoons of the olive oil, the chopped parsley, garlic, capers, 1

tablespoon of bread crumbs, salt and several grindings of black pepper. Toss

thoroughly.

Wash the tomatoes, cut them in half horizontally, scoop out all the seeds and

the centers to make a cup-like hollow.

Pat the inside of the tomatoes with paper towels to soak up excess juice, then

stuff them with the salmon mixture, pressing it down lightly as you do so.

There should be enough to form a mound. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining

bread crumbs and drizzle with the remaining olive oil, holding back a few

drops to smear the bottom of the baking pan.

Place the tomatoes on the baking pan and bake in the upper level of the

preheated oven for 35 minutes or until the salmon stuffing has formed a light

golden crust. Serve not piping hot, but lukewarm. They are also good later, at

room temperature, but not reheated.

Makes 4 individual appetizer servings.

Carol Field is another author with five Italian cookbooks to her credit. She

published her sixth this year: In Nonna's Kitchen: Recipes and Traditions From

Italy's Grandmothers (HarperCollins Publishers, May 1997, $30/hardcover).

In this book, Ms Field introduces us to la cucina della nonna - the foods and

the recipes of Italian grandmothers.

In Nonna's Kitchen has 180 time-honored recipes for soups, antipasti, pasta,

contorni (vegetable dishes), breads and main courses. The recipes are based on

simple ingredients from a time when seasonality ruled life and tradition and

culinary folklore were clear and unchanging.

Readers meet such venerable women as Emma Grassi Bensi from Tuscany, who has

been making her recipe for pizza alla napoletana since World War II, and Iva

Spagnoli from Liguria, who makes pesto with basil from her garden and pine

nuts or walnuts from her tree to create trennete col pesto (Trenette with

Pesto, Potatoes and Green Beans).

Visiting the homes of nearly 50 matriarchs throughout the Italian peninsula,

Carol Field has chronicled the recipes - some nearly lost to time - as well as

the stories, history and wisdom that have made traditional Italian cooking an

intense celebration of life.

Bread Soup With Arugula and Potatoes

About 5 (1« lbs) yellow-fleshed potatoes such as Yellow Finn or Yukon Gold

6 cups water

About 5 cups (8-12 oz) torn arugula leaves, with lg stems removed

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

About Ô tsp red pepper flakes

‹ to 1 tsp sea salt

About 3 slices of stale country-style bread, sliced

4 to 6 Tbs extra virgin olive oil

Peel the potatoes, cut them in wide slices, and cook in 6 cups of boiling

salted water for about 10 minutes. Add the arugula and garlic cloves and

continue cooking until the potatoes are tender, about 5 to 10 minutes more.

Add the red pepper flakes, salt, and the bread; let stand off the heat until

the bread is soft.

Drizzle olive oil over the top. Taste for seasoning. Serve warm or at room

temperature.

Makes 4 servings.

David Ruggerio is a three-time three-star chef in New York City. While his

restaurants are French, his roots are strictly Italian. His new book, Little

Italy Cookbook (Artisan, October 1997, $29.95/hardcover), is a spirited book

as much about memories and heritage as recipes.

The book opens with a chapter devoted to the cooking of Mr Ruggerio's nonna -

his grandmother Mary Lazzarino, now 80. Here he shares his favorite memories

of childhood: Potato Frittata, Proscuitto Bread, and Bracciole and Parmesan

Mashed Potatoes. Comfort food of the highest order.

A chapter named after Mulberry Street in lower Manhattan evokes the

neighborhood's many restaurants, cafes and grocery stores. The section offers

such classic dishes as Mozzarella in Carrozza, Caponata, Paste e Fabiole and

Pizza Margarherita. Holiday cooking for Christmas and Easter is highlighted in

La Festa.

Seafood recipes hark back to the cooking in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. And for

desserts, he offers a variety of favorites from the simple Almond Biscotti and

Zabaglione to Amaretto-Chocolate Cheesecake and Pan Forte Sienna.

The book, which is the companion volume to the public television series

"Little Italy with David Ruggerio," is not about Italian cooking, the author

tells us in the preface. "It is a book about Italian-American cooking. Many of

the foods or the dishes in the book didn't even exist back in Italy, but every

one bears the stamp of the Italian immigrant experience. This is the food I

call Italian Soul Food."

Peaches In Red Wine, Tuscan-Style

2 lbs ripe peaches

2 cups good red wine, preferably from Tuscany

« cup sugar

1 vanilla bean, split

¬ cup whole roasted almonds, shelled

1 Tbs julienned fresh mint

Plunge the peaches into a generous amount of boiling water for 1 minute.

Remove and refresh in ice water for about 1 minute. Carefully remove the skins

by hand. Slice the peaches in half and remove the pits.

In a saucepan, heat the wine, sugar and vanilla bean. Bring to a boil and

simmer for 3 minutes.

Place the peaches and almonds in a bowl. Pour the hot wine over the top. Allow

to stand and return to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Sprinkle with the

mint and serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Note: This dish should always be served at room temperature, so allow plenty

of time for it to cool. It goes particularly well with Italian crescent

cookies.