Marcella Cucina - Hardcover

Hazan, Marcella

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060171030 ISBN 13: 9780060171032

Publisher: HarperCollins, 1997

Synopsis

Since the publication of her first book, " The Classic Italian Cookbook ," more than 20 years ago, Marcella Hazan has been hailed as the queen of Italian cooking in America. Marcella, whose name conjures up a splendid world of food for the devoted millions who love her books and attend her cooking classes, is back again with her finest book yet, " Marcella Cucina ." Filled with the passion and personality of its author, it is a book not only of fine food and its careful preparation but of personal reminiscences and penetrating commentary about the sensual pleasure of food and its place in our lives.

In vivid introductory essays and seductive headnotes, the narrative of an extraordinary culinary life unfolds. With each memory of a trip, a meal or a flavor, we are treated to the perspective of a great cook and teacher -- one who believes that the finest Italian cooking is found in the home. In " Marcella Cucina ," she focuses on regional cooking, turning her sharp eye to every area of Italy and offering a rich array of flavors and textures from cities and villages alike. Best of all, Marcella cooks at your side with easy-to-follow instructions and lavish full-color photographs that teach you her techniques -- from preparing homemade pasta to cleaning artichokes -- and allow you flawlessly to re-create her magic in your own kitchen.

About this title

Review:

Any new book by Marcella Hazan, the benign presiding goddess of Italian cooking, is sufficient reason for rejoicing, but in Marcella Cucina she has chosen to offer the reader not just a collection of recipes but something much more personal. The dozens of recipes are set against the background of her life in Italy and the USA, her cooking, her shopping (mouth-watering descriptions of the Rialto market in Venice), her travels, her teaching, her friends. As she explains, the book's title means 'Marcella Cooks': "That is precisely what this new work of mine is about: what I cook and how I cook. And a little bit about why I cook." The what and the how and the why are those of an incorruptible purist: nothing in her cooking and writing is unexamined. Careful and often very subtle accounts of how she arrived at particular combinations of ingredients and techniques show clearly the qualities that make her such a fine writer and teacher. The exquisite Poached Fresh Tuna Marinated in a Caper and Anchovy Sauce is a perfect example of this: it is essentially a refinement of Vitello Tonnato, with the veal abstracted and attention concentrated on the tuna itself. In the discussion of Risotto with Mushrooms and Almonds she explains how the addition of almonds to the cooked mushrooms restores the faint flavour of the nut they have when raw. Even the simplest recipes in this marvellously intelligent book- -and some of them are very simple indeed--are subjected to the same inspired scrutiny. Nobody with any interest in what makes good cooking of any kind good should miss it. --Robin Davidson

From the Back Cover:

Filled with the passion and personality of its author, it is a book not only of fine food and its careful preparation but of personal reminiscences and penetrating commentary about the sensual pleasure of food and its place in our lives. In vivid introductory essays and seductive headnotes, the narrative of an extraordinary culinary life unfolds. With each memory of a trip, a meal, or a flavor, we are treated to the perspective of a great cook and teacher - one who believes that the finest Italian cooking is found in the home. In Marcella Cucina she focuses on regional cooking, turning her sharp eye to every area of Italy and offering a rich array of flavors and textures from cities and villages alike. Best of all, Marcella cooks at your side with easy-to-follow instructions and lavish full-color photographs that teach you her techniques - from preparing homemade pasta to cleaning artichokes - and allow you flawlessly to re-create her magic in your own kitchen.

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0060171030
• ISBN 13: 9780060171032
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 480