Three hundred and seventy recipes, one for each day of the year, conceived as a journey through the countryside, through traditional territories where ancient knowledge of poor but genuine cuisine is handed down that has built a historical gastronomic identity near the hearths, but also for the stove of families who jealously guard the recipes of their grandmothers and obviously for the taverns which are the deputy custodians of this ancient heritage. The result of this idea was Ricette d'Italia, which is arriving in bookstores these days from Slow Food Editore, a volume that contains a vast repertoire of recipes representative of Italy's rich heritage of cultural biodiversity. In addition to the great classics, i.e. the iconic dishes of our cuisine that have crossed the borders of the regions to which they belong to end up on tables throughout the country, Recipes of Italy includes niche specialties, from lesser-known but equally important areas and traditions and representative of the territory in which they come to life.
The innumerable pastas, fresh or dried, seasoned with the most varied sauces, are accompanied by soups and soups, often forgotten but important allies of our health, and still traditional focaccias and savory pies and meat and fish main courses. Finally, desserts cannot be missing, from those linked to great anniversaries to daily preparations.
A real mosaic, created thanks to the collaboration of cooks of the taverns reviewed in the Guide, authentic repositories of the culture of Italian food and the secrets of the territory. It is in fact from their kitchens that the recipes collected in this volume come, as well as those of grandmothers, aunts, friends, habitués of domestic stoves who have shared their knowledge, skills and family preparations, handed down over time and jealously guarded.
The recipes, which obviously also include those of vegetarian cuisine, are explained in detail through clear and simple steps and are accompanied by comments accompanying the procedure which explain the origin of the dish or suggest possible variations.
For versatile navigation of such a full-bodied repertoire, the indexes proposed at the end come in handy: a first index lists the recipes according to the classic order by courses, a second divides them by region, and finally a third guides the reader to the perfect courses to prepare in every season, depending on the availability of the first fruits and the rituality of the anniversaries and holidays for which the special dishes are prepared.
A recipe book that stands as a mirror of that country "of a hundred cities and a thousand bell towers", but above all "of a hundred kitchens and a thousand recipes", as stated by Massimo Montanari and Alberto Capatti, authors of the book The Italian kitchen. History of a culture. Because Ricette d'Italia is also a story of culture, in fact it tells the complexity of a cuisine that is the result of a national history steeped in foreign dominations, cultural exchanges, traffic and migratory flows, but also of a geographical conformation and an extremely varied landscape that translates into as many natural resources, ingredients, techniques and knowledge.
