briciole

red beet pkhali / pkhali di barbabietole rosse

jump to Recipe [versione in italiano] ready to spoon some? (placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO) Our current Cook the Books Club selection is the novel The Kitchen Front by Jennifer Ryan1 which tells the story of four women in Kent, UK, during WWII. The food rations in effect at that time play a central role: they affected everyone and cooks in particular, tasked as they were to prepare nourishing and tasty meals with what the rations provided. (Vegetable gardens and foraging enriched the limited availability of ingredients.) The novel's title refers to a BBC program devised to provide ideas on... Read more →

avocado salad / insalata di avocado

jump to Recipe [versione in italiano] flavor and color bursting from the bowl (placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO) The novel Miss Cecily’s Recipes for Exceptional Ladies by Vicky Zimmerman1 is our current Cook the Books Club selection. I enjoyed the story of the friendship between Kate and Miss Cecily and the style in which it is told. It was a reading that satisfied well the need for something light during an intense period. When the story feels like it is sliding under a shadow of predictability, Zimmerman inserts a surprise to keep the reader's interest alive. This happens even beyond... Read more →

roasted tromboncino squash with tomatoes / zucchetta al forno con pomodori

jump to Recipe fresh ingredients, simply prepared make my ideal meal (placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO) The current Cook the Books Club selection is A Cook's Tour, Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines by the late Anthony Bourdain. Some editions of the book carry the subtitle In Search of the Perfect Meal, which feels more appropriate as it is a theme that recurs in the memoir. At times, Bourdain writes with deep sensitivity and shares insights in what he saw and experienced, like his observations of Vietnamese people or his homage to the many Mexican immigrants who work in restaurants in... Read more →

strawberry, fava bean, fennel and radish salad / insalata di fragole, fave, finocchio e ravanello

jump to Recipe Farm-fresh iceberg lettuce inspired this serving option (placemat by La FABBRICA del LINO) Our current Cook the Books Club selection is the memoir Taste by actor Stanley Tucci1. The book included a couple of interesting sections, one pertaining the history of the highly enjoyable movie Big Night (1996),2 in which Tucci played the younger brother, Secondo. I didn't know that he had written the screenplay. If you haven't seen it, I recommend it. The other section I enjoyed was where Felicity (now Tucci's wife) prepared roasted potatoes in a way that first surprised then alarmed the author, but... Read more →

red Napa cabbage and winter squash with applesauce / cavolo napa rosso e zucca con salsa di mele

jump to Recipe a personal take on the cabbage and apple pairing The current Cook the Books Club selection is Cinnamon and Gunpowder by Eli Brown: The year is 1819, and the renowned chef Owen Wedgwood has been kidnapped by the ruthless pirate Mad Hannah Mabbot. He will be spared, she tells him, as long as he puts exquisite food in front of her every Sunday without fail.1 There's the pirate ship's colorful cast of characters — Mr. Apples, the knitting thug; mysterious twins Feng and Bai; and Joshua, who can neither hear nor speak and becomes a sort of adopted... Read more →