CONTENTS
Introduction
Pantry
Instant
Weekday
Slow
Dinner
Party
Sweets
List of Recipes
Credits
Notes
Copyright
About the Publisher
‘These people really know how to live,’ I decide every time I visit Italy. Italians look as if they’re thoroughly enjoying life as stylish extras on the set of Roman Holiday. They don’t suck coffee from disposable sippy-cups on the bus; they lean against marble bars and drink tiny grown-up espressos. They don’t dash down takeaway burgers over computer keyboards; they unwrap paper parcels of spiced salami or creamy cheese in shaded parks. And, while much of the world hums with anxiety in rush-hour traffic, the Italians dress up for the daily passeggiata before zipping off on a shiny red Vespa to eat gelato with a glossy-haired Audrey Hepburn ... My imagination has run away with me, but Italians do seem to have made some great lifestyle choices – just don’t mention politics, please! Sitting down to eat well with family and friends takes high priority, yet no stress accompanies that expectation and there’s a refreshing lack of artifice about what is put on the table. This country is the home of the slow cooking movement, yet no Italian would waste time faffing around with already-perfect fresh ingredients (how they must sigh at our foams and deconstructions). The regional dishes are as old as the hills they come from, yet the freshness of the ingredients gives them modernity. Rich and poor, all are able to eat well in Italy. It’s this joy of life and respect for food that I resolve to take home with me every time I visit. Yes, the Italians really know how to live.
If you need to cheat (and, goodness knows, there are plenty of times when that way sanity lies) you can buy all these bits and pieces at a deli or supermarket. But, if there’s ever a lovely slow empty afternoon when you’re in the mood for pottering in the kitchen and stocking the fridge, here are some ideas to work with. They’ll give you the basic foundations for many Italian dishes and take the pressure off during the week. None of these are complicated, but all will lift any meal from basic to bellissimo. Home-made focaccia can make a meal out of anything – in the best possible way. And, while pasta with supermarket pesto isn’t a dish that generates much excitement, home-made pesto certainly does.
SOFFRITTO IN OLIVE OIL
Making soffritto in advance is a time-saving revelation. This finely chopped flavour base can be kept under a thin layer of olive oil in a jar in the fridge, or even frozen (without the oil). So if, like me, you’re often left with a couple of slightly less-than-crunchy celery stalks or carrots in the vegetable crisper, quickly dice, cook and keep.
Garlic, onion and celery make up the ‘holy trinity’ of much Mediterranean cooking and a finely diced soffritto is the base for just about any soup, stew, sauce or braise created on an Italian stove. I’m a bit of a rebel here: I tend to chop my ingredients a little less finely than the average Italian cook.
MAKES 1KG
4 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for storing
5 carrots, sliced
4 onions, sliced
5 celery sticks, sliced
6 garlic cloves, sliced
Heat the olive oil in a large deep-sided saucepan. Add the carrot, onion and celery and season generously with sea salt. Cook, stirring frequently, for 25–30 minutes, or until the vegetables soften and turn a light golden colour.
Add the garlic and continue to cook for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Spoon into sterilised jars and cover with a layer of olive oil. Alternatively, pack the soffritto into small plastic containers and freeze until ready to use.
ROASTED TOMATO PASSATA
Roasting is the best way to haul flavour from not–so–perfect tomatoes and give them some punch.
MAKES 750ML
1kg ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, sliced
2 tablespoons thyme leaves
½ teaspoon crushed chilli
½ teaspoon caster sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Spread the tomato on a baking tray, sprinkle over the garlic, thyme, chilli and sugar, and season with sea salt. Drizzle with oil and roast for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and tip into the bowl of a food processor. Whiz to a purée.
The passata can be used immediately, or kept chilled for up to 3 days and reheated before using.
NO-COOK TOMATO SAUCE
This sauce is perfect when you have decided to grow tomatoes and are feeling rather smug about your new-found green thumb (sorry to shatter your illusions, but even I can grow tomatoes). Stir it into pasta, perhaps with torn mozzarella or capers, spread on toasted crusty bread or spoon into bottling jars for friends.
MAKES 1 LITRE
½ teaspoon fennel seeds
1kg very ripe tomatoes
2 garlic cloves
4 tablespoons olive oil
Toast the fennel seeds in a frying pan over low heat, shaking the pan occasionally, until the fennel releases its aroma. Tip into a mortar and pestle and coarsely grind. Set aside.
Whiz all the ingredients together in a food processor or, if making the sauce by hand, grate