Italian Recipes For Dummies

Amy Riolo

• Publisher: For Dummies
• Year: 2022
• Print ISBN: 9781119862703
• eBook ISBN: 9781119863175
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Culinary Arts

Your roadmap to cooking like an Italian your very own home

For those of us not lucky enough to have our very own Italian grandmother or have attended culinary school in Italy, Italian Recipes For Dummies is stepping in to fill the gap. Award-winning chef and author Amy Riolo delivers a step-by-step guide to creating authentic Italian dishes, starting from the basics and progressing to more advanced techniques and recipes.

You'll discover how to shop for, plan, and cook authentic Italian meals properly. You'll also find guidance on how to incorporate the cultural, nutritional, and historical influences that shape classic Italian cuisine.

This book includes:

• Individual chapters on staples of the Italian pantry: wine, cheese, and olive oil
• More than 150 authentic Italian recipes with step-by-step instructions
• Access to a Facebook Page hosted by the author that provides extended resources and up-to-date information on mastering Italian cooking

The perfect book for amateur chefs, Italy aficionados, homemakers, and anyone else looking for culinary inspiration, Italian Recipes For Dummies is also an indispensable guide for people seeking healthier ways of shopping, cooking, and eating without giving up amazing flavors and rich foods.

Part 1

Introducing the Art of Italian Cooking

IN THIS PART …

• Understand authentic Italian cuisine, its history, and culture.
• Discover the importance of mastering time-honored traditions.
• Enjoy cooking seasonally.
• Build an Italian pantry and learn to cook from it.
• Learn the art of la bella figura — how to make a good impression with food.
• Recreate Italian base recipes that are the backbone of the kitchen.
• Embrace Italian-style Sunday and holiday meals.
• Master everything from traditional, typical meals to light dinners at home and meals on the go.
• Become fluent in Italian culinary terms.

Chapter 1

Cooking the Italian Way: That’s Amore!

IN THIS CHAPTER

Understanding authentic Italian cuisine

Discovering the role of culture in the Italian kitchen

Knowing how ancient strategies work in the modern kitchen

Enjoying the seasons at the table

Understanding the importance of the pantry

Putting this book to use and making genuine Italian food

Love is the common denominator that binds the cuisine of each Italian region together to create a national treasure. Before discussing individual recipes and techniques, one must conjure up a sense of amore in order to be a great Italian cook. A deep sense of love for oneself, for those you’re cooking for, for the recipes and the regions themselves, and for the producers of the ingredients – let them inspire you to place a premium on cooking and eating well in the first place. Keeping those topics close to your heart and mind will inspire you to cook Italian food well.

Even if you’ve never cooked Italian food before, there’s no need to be intimidated. Despite Italy’s long, rich, and varied culinary history, the tips and techniques in this book prove how simple, accessible, straightforward, mouthwatering, and healthful Italian food can be.

Appreciating How History and Geography Shaped Italian Cuisine

Italians take cuisine very seriously while enjoying it to the fullest. In addition to mere fuel for the body, food is viewed as a source of daily pleasure and culinary medicine that should be savored. Along with fashion, music, art, architecture, design, and other artisan crafts, authentic cooking and food products are important parts of the culture that are a source of pride for Italians. Italians believe that the more informed we are on where our food comes from (both in the historical and geographical sense), the more we will appreciate it and enjoy it. In addition, understanding the history behind a dish helps to preserve its place in history by creating a place for it on the culinary landscape that won’t soon be forgotten. Taking the time to learn about Italian history and the unique features of its geography gives you the knowledge needed to serve the proper dishes at the right time of day and during the right season. It also enables you to pair foods together more easily and get the most out of seasonal produce. In short, knowledge of Italian history and geography helps to give you the mindset that an Italian naturally brings to the kitchen.

What Italians consider to be their cuisine varies greatly from how others around the world describe it. True Italian cuisine is recognized as the regional foods and recipes that make up the traditional classics that have been enjoyed for decades, centuries, and even millennia. There are a few ubiquitous and world-renowned creations that Italians claim as their collective own, such as pizza, pasta, risotto, gelato, and panettone. In the modern world, those recipes are carefully guarded, protected, and considered to be part of the culinary patrimony of the nation. These edible ambassadors make Italians proud when they are successfully recreated around the globe.

If you scratch a bit deeper beyond the surface, however, you will note that each of those dishes is linked to a particular place, such as the pizza of Naples, or they come from a larger category, such as pasta, which has different regional variations. Italians describe their own food by region, town, or city. Ragù Bolognese (from Bologna), Torta Caprese (from Capri), Carciofi all Romana (from Rome), and so on. As a result, to truly understand Italian cuisine, you must learn about Italy’s regions, culture, and history.

Food in every Italian region is the most highly celebrated aspect of the culture. Appreciated for being a daily source of pleasure, joy, and health, Italian food is a way of life. Chapter 2 discusses how time-honored traditions in agriculture and in cooking have woven their way into the tapestry of Italian daily life. By reading that chapter, you get a better sense of the role that food plays, beyond fuel, in an Italian’s life. By learning about highlights in Italian culinary history, you quickly can identify how the cuisines of various regions have both common denominators and unique qualities.

Regardless of which Italian region you spend time in, you’ll be able to taste the layers of history that it has experienced. From ancient indigenous inhabitants, to foreign rulers, and fancy courts, many factors have contributed to make Italian cuisine a microcosm of the influences that have shaped the course of Mediterranean history. The mere notion of food as culture itself has, for centuries, enhanced Italian cuisine and enabled it to become the most popular cuisine in both the world and the United States today.

Many newcomers to “real” Italian cuisine from abroad are surprised to learn that some of their favorites — which may have been Italian-American dishes or just improperly prepared recipes — are actually not part of a true Italian repertoire. Others still are surprised to learn just how simple, straightforward, mouthwatering, and healthful Italian food can be.

In the United States, only on...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Part 1: Introducing the Art of Italian Cooking
• Part 2: Appetizers and First Courses
• Part 3: Main Courses, Side Dishes, and Salads
• Part 4: Breakfast and Other Sweet Treats, Baked Goods, and Desserts
• Part 5: The Part of Tens
• Appendix: Metric Conversion Guide
• Index
• About the Author
• Supplemental Images
• Connect with Dummies
• End User License Agreement