The Basic Art of Italian Cooking

by Maria Liberati

By Celebrity Chef Maria Liberati, this bestselling book is the first in the series, recipes, menus and charming stories from her life in a town in the mountains of Italy,recommended by many well known chefs

204 pages, Paperback

First published October 26, 2006

About the author

Former international model turned celebrity chef and bestselling author. Maria is the auhor of the best selling book The Basic Art of Italian Cooking -a book of memoirs of life in a small mountain town in Italy and recipes from her life there. The next book in the series -The Basic Art of Italian Cooking- Holidays and Special Occasions will be relesed in mid 2009.
Maria completed her culinary training in Italy and combines that with her educational background in nutrition. Maria is also a professional speaker and spokesperson for many large companies. Her speaking presentations are programs on topics that range from:Eating to save the planet!
to How to achieve success usign the principles of DaVinci.
"

Reviews

[Joan Campo · Rating 5 out of 5]

My family came from Italy, unfortunately I have never been but hope to someday. This book has recieps by the chef but also short stories which relate to her life and travels in different parts of Italy. So I am learning about places that I many never have heard about and hope to be able to visit.

My husband and I have been trying some of the recipes and we like them because they are very easy to follow and understand and also good enough to impress our friends with.

So I learned about different places in Italy taht I had never heard about and foods that are related and authentic Italian recipes. And some of the stories are touching as well.

[Liquidlasagna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Publishers Weekly

This strange little cookbook was written by a "former international supermodel" who credits her portrait artist in her acknowledgments and her make-up artist in her "credits." In fact, the entire volume has the ramshackle feeling of a vanity project; it's both oddly personal and poorly organized (a gnocchi recipe is hidden in a chapter called "Memories of Avezzano," while pasta sauce is found in "At My Grandfather's Vineyard").

Further, the author introduces each chapter with detailed paragraphs about a nerve-wracking train trip, say, or her hair stylist's love life.

However, the recipes themselves are appealing, for the most part: a Granita Al Caffe, an icy-sweet summer dessert, couldn't be easier to prepare, and Linguine Alle Vongole is straightforward and tasty.

Still, one can't help but wish for more careful instructions; a risotto recipe directs cooks to "add the rice with just enough broth to moisten it," then wait for the broth to "disappear."

Also, the measurements in different recipes are inconsistent, sometimes in grams and sometimes in pounds or cups.

Perhaps this irregularity suggests a nice mix of Italian and American styles, but it does the home cook no favors.

[Mary Kuhns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have never been to Italy, but after reading the short stories that accompany the recipes in the book, I felt like I had gone there and back in an afternoon. It was like a heartwarming short trip to Italy in a book. The recipes are easy to cook but authentic and from places the author speaks about so after reading I tried a recipe. Definitely an enjoyable read and a way t ospean an afternoon