Italian food reflects culture. In Italy cooking is the product of geography, history, and religion. Italy may have been unified politically, but gastronomic unification never followed and for this reason Italy offers such diversity from region to region. What we often somewhat crudely call ‘Italian cooking’ is really a patchwork of local and regional cuisines, all fiercely claiming to be the best in the country.
Italian food reflects culture. In Italy cooking is the product of geography, history, and religion. Italy may have been unified politically, but gastronomic unification never followed and for this reason Italy offers such diversity from region to region. What we often somewhat crudely call ‘Italian cooking’ is really a patchwork of local and regional cuisines, all fiercely claiming to be the best in the country.
Ursula Ferrigno’s own family come from the south of Italy and just south of Naples, on the Southern side of the Sorrentine Peninsula is the Amalfi Coast. It is widely considered to be one of Italy’s most magical locations: breath-taking (literally) winding cliff-top roads, pastel-coloured houses tumbling down towards the sea, flower-framed terraces and trees heavy with the world’s most coveted lemons at every turn.
Join Ursula Ferrigno and discover the delicious food the region has to offer. Vegetable dishes take centre stage and with the sea only a few kilometres from the sea, both meat and fish are eaten and often combined in exciting ways. In this seductive book you’ll find 75 recipes to enjoy, from simple antipasti and ministre (soups) to pane (bread) and pizza, risotto, pollame and carne (fish and meat), and the all-important contorni (vegetable), alongside essays on the food culture and traditions of the area and beautiful scenic photography.
About the Author: Ursula Ferrigno is an acclaimed and experienced food writer and chef. She trained at the Auguste Escoffier School of the Culinary Arts and has taught at leading cookery schools in both the UK and Italy, including the celebrated Leith’s School of Food and Wine, Divertimenti and La Cucina Caldesi in Ireland.
She toured the United States, running classes in all Sur la Table stores, is consultant chef to the popular Caffè Nero restaurant chain and has made many appearances on BBC television. The author of more than 18 cookery books (including A Gourmet Guide to Oil & Vinegar and Cucina Siciliana for Ryland Peters & Small), Ursula has also written for many publications, including Olive, BBC Good Food, The Observer and Taste Italia.
