Ciao Italia--Bringing Italy Home [Hardcover]

Mary Ann Esposito (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 4, 2001

With a loyal viewership in the millions, ten successful seasons on PBS, and five immensely popular cookbooks to her name, Mary Ann Esposito is America's favorite Italian cook. A former school teacher who studied with chefs across Italy before posing the idea for "Ciao Italia" to her local public television station, Esposito brings traditional Italian cooking to life with her down-to-earth approach, warm personality, and good humor.

Ciao Italia--Bringing Italy Home ties in with the show's eleventh season, which will air on more than 150 public television stations across the country. The series--and the book--will take fans on a culinary tour of Italy, region by region, with all-new recipes, personal reflections, and Mary Ann's unique warmth and style. Chapters cover the Veneto, Emilia Romagna, Tuscany, Campania, and Sicily; also featured--and never before published anywhere--are viewers' most-requested recipes, and specialties made by guest chefs on the program.

TV chefs come and go, but Mary Ann Esposito has established herself as a standard bearer who appeals to every segment of the American public--men and women, adults and children, seasoned cooks as well as novices. Join her "nella cucina" (in the kitchen) for her most exciting and ambitious cookbook yet--a mouth-watering tribute to her ancestral home, her loyal viewers, and the amazing gift of great Italian food.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Ciao Italia: Bringing Italy Home, the companion guide to Ciao Italia's 11th season on PBS, is a delightful cookbook that reads like a travel guide and a tribute to Italian cooks and their culture. Mary Ann Esposito has 10 seasons of cooking on public television and 5 cookbooks to her name, and she still manages to offer 130 new recipes presented in a culinary tour so captivating, you'll read this cover to cover.

The chapters are divided by region, and each begins with a mouthwatering tour followed by recipes that begin with stories--sometimes historical, sometimes personal, sometimes just delectable descriptions. From Tuscany you might make White Beans with Fettuccine and Sage because it sounds so delicious; from Sicily you'll make Swordfish with Spaghetti, Tomato Sauce, and Olives because the thought of enjoying it in a Sicilian seaside community near Palermo makes you sigh; and from Emilia Romagna you'll choose Beatrice's Fried Mushrooms because everything Beatrice makes is "exquisite." Packed with information, this is a perfect book for a novice cook who needs plenty of detail, but it's also a gem for the more experienced chef because so many of Esposito's recipes are region-specific, and therefore uncommon. Esposito shares a wealth of information about the Italian people, their culture and their cooking, and the result is that many of her recipes are interesting and unusual, such as Gorgonzola Cheese with Marmalade, Fried Sage Leaves, or Whipped Cod Venetian Style--all easy to master, impressive to serve, and absolutely divine. Esposito knows how to intrigue her television audience, and this luscious volume proves she can do it in print as well. --Leora Y. Bloom

From Publishers Weekly

In her newest cookbook, the host of the PBS series Ciao Italia continues to share the breadth and simplicity of authentic Italian cuisine made from fresh, seasonal ingredients, with a focus this time on regional specialties, highlighting the distinctive foods of Southern, Central and Northern Italy and their origins. (For example, according to Esposito, there are no olive trees in Venice, because the area lacks sunshine; therefore, Venetians substitute butter for olive oil in many of their recipes.) These 130 new recipes, which she is promoting concurrently on her TV show, are, for the most part, rustic and unpretentious: foods eaten by real families as part of their daily lives, such as the Venetian dishes Tortellini di Zucca con Rag— (Pumpkin-Stuffed Pasta with Meat Sauce) and Cappone Agrodolce (Capon with Sweet-and-Sour Sauce). Yet, at the same time, the recipes have an elegance and complexity of flavor that belie their origin. Scaloppine al Limone e Capperi (Veal Cutlets with Lemon and Caper Sauce) has flavors that are clean and clear; Tuscan Zuppa di Funghi (Mushroom Soup) is concentrated and rich; and Sicilian Biscottini di Vino (Little Wine Cookies) make an unusual and sumptuous accompaniment to a glass of red wine. Fans of her earlier books (Nella Cucina, etc.) and TV series will welcome Esposito's travel stories, family memories and tips, which infuse the recipes with a warm and personal touch. Similar in many ways to her earlier books, Esposito's new offering should appeal to Italian-Americans in search of the traditional foods and flavors of their ancestors.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press; 1st edition (May 4, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312280580
• ISBN-13: 978-0312280581
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,188,843 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mary Ann Esposito is the creator and host of public television's Ciao italia, a cooking show devoted to Italian food and culture. The show has been on the air for 20 years giving it the distinction of being the longest running cooking show ever. Ciao Italia is seen in all major markets across the U.S.

Mary Ann has written 11 cookbooks. Learn more about her at www.ciaoitalia.com and sample the more than 1000 recipes on her site.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious Food with a Bonus History Lesson!, October 23, 2001

By 

Sharon S. (Northern New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ciao Italia--Bringing Italy Home (Hardcover)

I not only cook from this wonderfully written book (with full sample menus [appetizers, salads, main courses, and desserts] categorized by region), but I also love to simply sit and read about the various regions of Italy and gain some insight via Mary Ann Esposito's story-telling. Not only a wonderful cookbook, but actually a joy to read!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable for the tour of Italian gastronomic regions, November 3, 2003

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ciao Italia--Bringing Italy Home (Hardcover)

Mrs. Esposito focuses on the regional cooking of Italy, with an emphasis on ingredients indigenous to each section. And the recipes are not the standard Chicken Cacciatore, Spaghetti Bolognese and lasagna. These are recipes garnered from individuals and they are authentic but unusual, like Rabbit in Balsamic Vinegar, Halibut with Mustard greens, plus plenty of breads like foccacia and sweets like pizzelle cookies. It's interesting reading, and definitely not your run-of-the-mill pasta and tomato cookbook.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ciao, Italia does it again!, April 23, 2001

By 

"sawhiting" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ciao Italia--Bringing Italy Home (Hardcover)

Mary Ann Esposito's new book has rounded out my collection of her cookbooks with a great new bunch of recipes. I'm already planning my next "trip to Italy" in my own kitchen with her cookbook by my side.