Italy Anywhere: Recipes and Ruminations on Cooking and Creating Northern Italian Food [Hardcover]

Lori De Mori (Author), Antonio Tommasi (Author), Jean-Louis de Mori (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 21, 2000

Bring Italy and its earthy grace into your home with this evocative and hands-on guide to food

In Italy Anywhere an extraordinary trio of friends fuses the sensuousness of Under the Tuscan Sun with the culinary flavor of Marcella Hazan's Marcella Cucina. Lori De Mori, a well-known food writer; her husband, Jean-Louis; and his partner, Antonio Tommasi, owners of a Los Angeles string of ultra-chic homestyle Italian restaurants, unlock the secrets of a seductive cuisine and a fantasy lifestyle of sunny simplicity.

Italy Anywhere is its authors' own story of cooking, entertaining, eating, and collaborating in business and in life. They share their time-tested culinary secrets and entertaining pleasures in more than 30 food essays on subjects like "Why We Invite,""Learning to Cook,"and "Dinner for One."Over 175 recipes and variations--from Pumpkin Gnocchi with Butter and Sage to Whole Wheat Walnut Cookies--initiate readers into the true Italian art of cooking and living. Anyone who has ever dreamed of living in Italy will be entranced by this culinary armchair experience.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Food writer Lori De Mori teams with restaurateurs Jean-Louis De Mori and Antonio Tommasi, creators of Locanda Veneta and five other acclaimed Los Angeles establishments, to show readers how to bring the Italian passion for life and good food into their own lives. The essence of a place, they maintain, comes not from what it looks like but from its spirit; in Italy Anywhere they combine recipes with vignettes and advice from the old country to help readers re-create that culinary spirit wherever they happen to be. As a rule, their dishes are simple to prepare, relying on the freshness and quality of the ingredients, rather than fancy culinary tricks, and emphasizing the minimalism so integral to Italian cooking. Food doesn't have to be complicated to be satisfying and delicious.

Chapters cover every course of the Italian meal, from stuzzichini (the appetite-awakening finger foods served before a meal begins) through dessert, including in between antipasti, pastas, risottos, soups, and dishes of fish, meat, poultry, and vegetables. Rigatoni with Chicken and Radicchio, Spaghettata with Balsamic Vinegar, and Veal Stew with Soft Polenta exemplify the most comforting of comfort foods, while Braised Monkfish with Olives and Lemon Peel, Homemade Chicken Raviolini with Chanterelles, and Grilled Tuna with Puréed Sweet Yellow Peppers bring the most sophisticated Italian flavors home. Summer Peaches in Prosecco with Mint is a refreshingly light dessert; for those seeking the elegantly rich, Vanilla Cream Custard with Caramel Sauce fits the bill.

Lori De Mori's talent as a food writer--her articles have appeared in Bon Appétit, Food & Wine, and Saveur--is evident both in the helpful notes that accompany each recipe (how to fry squid, for instance) and in the delightful essays that pepper the book on such topics as Venice's Rialto fish market, chef watching, and the perfect tomato sauce. As the authors say, "the most Italian thing you can do to your home and your kitchen ... is to infuse it with food that warms both the belly and the soul." These enticing recipes are sure to make readers live like Italians all over the world. --Robin Donovan

From Publishers Weekly

Frequently offering short narratives about such things as searching for wild mushrooms in Italy or her mother-in-law's kitchen mastery, De Mori brings an infectious enthusiasm to the notion of cooking with the senses. Written with the help of her husband and Tommasi, chef/founders of L.A.'s popular Locanda Veneta and five other restaurants, this debut book assembles 175 recipes that prove Italy is a state of mind and that its food is characterized by grace, generosity and simplicity. The dishes are mostly cook-friendly and familiar. Focaccia is topped with saut?ed onions or a slather of tomato paste. Fried Zucchini and Zucchini Blossoms takes advantage of summer's bounty, as does Green Beans and Plum Tomatoes. An easy Meat Rag? uses ground beef and ground pork and takes only about an hour and a half to cook. One of the most demanding dishes is Pasta Souffl? with Mixed Mushrooms, but even this timballo can be assembled a day in advance. Favorites from the restaurants include Locanda Veneta Linguine with Rock Shrimp, Asparagus and Tomato, Flattened Chicken Marinated in Herbs, Mustard and Vinegar, and Ossobuco with Polenta Fritters. Not forgotten are varieties of risotti and gnocchi. Desserts are as simple as Summer Peaches in Prosecco with Mint and as rich as Vanilla Cream Custard with Caramel Sauce. De Mori makes an appealing advocate for what is still the most popular ethnic cuisine in the U.S. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 338 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult (September 21, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670885398
• ISBN-13: 978-0670885398
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,922,922 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Explicit, delicious, one of my favorite cookbooks!, November 3, 2001

By 

Bonnie MacBird (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Italy Anywhere: Recipes and Ruminations on Cooking and Creating Northern Italian Food (Hardcover)

One day my husband brought this cookbook home as a gift and it literally changed the way I cook. I began with two recipes, one "un buon spaghetatta" and the other a white bean soup. The recipes are so explicit that even a novice cook will have success, yet they are written in a friendly, smart style that neither condescends nor leaves anything out. If you have ever traveled to Italy, you will recognize the results as so authentically Italian tasting that you will be astounded. I now think differently about many things (garlic - less is more) and balsamic vinegar (used to add a subtle punch to pasta dishes!)... and I love the flavors and textures this book has brought to our meals. I couldn't recommend it more highly, and it's a fun read as well.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More Than Just Another Cookbook, June 7, 2001

By 

Deb Mele - See all my reviews

This review is from: Italy Anywhere: Recipes and Ruminations on Cooking and Creating Northern Italian Food (Hardcover)

Although this is indeed a cookbook, it is really much more than that. The authors have shared their love of Italian food, both through recipes used in their many Los Angeles restaurants, as well as the many stories and culinary tidbits interspersed throughout the book. This book expresses the belief that dining Italian style is much more than extraordinary food, but is in fact more about the combination of grace, generosity, and simplicity with which the food is offered. It shares the importance of taking time to savor meals with family and friends, enjoying simply prepared foods made with the freshest seasonal ingredients. It is their belief, that you can live an Italian culinary life anywhere, by following these simple principles.

The book begins with a brief overview on the absolute essentials for an Italian kitchen, including olive oil, parmesan cheese and wine. The following chapters are broken up into the usual chapters found in an Italian cookbook, with everything from Antipasti to Desserts. The Antipasti chapter contains an extensive selection of recipes including recipes for olives, bruschetta, focaccia, vegetable tapenades, and many more. There is also a very nice selection of assorted salads to be used as an appetizer or a light lunch. I particularly enjoyed the Fresh Mushroom, Arugula, and Parmesan Cheese salad, which is a wonderful start to any meal.

The First Course, or Primi chapter is divided into Dried Pasta, Fresh Pasta, Risotto, Soups, Gnocchi and Polenta. Almost all of these recipes are easy to prepare with easy to find ingredients. Also included are recipes for basic broths, simple sauces, and instructions for making fresh pasta.

The Main Course or Secondi chapter is complete with seafood and many assorted meat selections. The Venetian-Style Mussels and Potatoes was delicious, and very easy to prepare. I have also made the recipe for Pan-Roasted Chicken with Sweet Peppers, Olives And Capers a number of times, and it is quickly becoming a family favorite in my house. Compared to earlier chapters, I found the Contorni, or Vegetable Side Dish chapter to be a bit too brief, but the recipes shared here do cover all the basics.

The book concludes with the chapter on Dolci or Desserts, sharing a few tasty recipes, mostly fruit based, as well as a few recipes for traditional cookies. An explanation is given on the Italian outlook about desserts, compared to other cultures. Whereas many in America look at luscious desserts as the highlight of their meal, Italians usually consider fresh seasonal fruit to be the perfect complement to end a fine meal. Although I did enjoy reading this book, as well as trying many of the recipes, I would have preferred this book if it had contained some photographs of some of the tasty recipes. Apart from that, this book is a good choice for anyone who wants to understand what Italian cuisine is all about. One learns from this book that eating Italian style is as much about lifestyle as it is the basic food. 

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!, October 24, 2005

By 

D. Appelhanz (Brighton, CO) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Italy Anywhere: Recipes and Ruminations on Cooking and Creating Northern Italian Food (Hardcover)

The week I received this cookbook, I tried five of the recipes. Every one of them was delicious -- especially the Crabmeat Ravioli with Saffron Sauce, one of my favorites from Locanda Veneta. (If only the Tiramisu recipe would have been included!!!)