Nick Stellino's Passione: Pasta, Pizza, and Panini [Hardcover]

Nick Stellino (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2, 2000

Nick Stellino revels in his love of good food and infuses each new book with the kind of zest for living that has become the hallmark of his television shows and personal appearances. This all-new collection is no exception, with more than one hundred recipes celebrating the quintessential Italian comfort foods that have such enduring and universal appeal.

Yet this is more than just a sampling of Italian classics. Nick's recipes for pizza, pasta, and panini are imaginative and contemporary interpretations. He enlivens traditional pizzas-baked, fried, or stuffed-with unusual ingredients and makes pasta from scratch as simple as 1-2-3. And in Nick's hands, easy-to-make sandwiches and breads, for which Italy is famous, become works of art.

Nick Stellino's Passione speaks as much to the heart as it does to the taste buds. It draws on the rich culinary history of Nick's native Italy, shares the secrets of Italian home cooks, and features unique touches that could only come from this charismatic personality.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Joining such luminaries as Wolfgang Puck, Alice Waters and Evan Kleiman, Stellino (Nick Stellino's Family Kitchen, etc.) adds to the robust subcategory of Italian cookbooks featuring pizza and pasta with this thoroughly engaging collection of traditional and new recipes. An updated Pasta with Mortadella Sauce is all the more appealing because Italian mortadella is at last available in this country. He offers two dozen dishes utilizing fresh pasta dough, including Shrimp-Filled Half-Moons and a richly ravishing Tortellini with Smoked Salmon and Creamed Tomato-Caper Sauce. For the fresh pasta itself, he presents a trio of recipes for small, medium and large batches. A charming boyhood story of his father's improvisational bread gnocchi precedes his own adaptation of Bread Gnocchi with Tomato Sauce. Among the rice dishes is the sublime blending of tastes in Risotto with Fennel, Pancetta and Parmesan. Stellino's pizzas are enticements with flair: Baked Pizza Rolls with Sausage and Ricotta are cigar-shaped temptations and Stuffed Pizza with Radicchio, Prosciutto and Camembert is perfect for a special occasion. Panini are as varied as Lamb Meatball Sandwiches with Minted Tomato Sauce and Hamburgers Italiano made with pepperoni, hot Italian sausage, ground lamb and ground veal. Long a favorite TV chef, Stellino will widen his audience with this book and with his latest PBS series, which began in September. (Nov.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Nick Stellino, the author of several cookbooks, has gained a loyal following as the host of the public television series Cucina Amore(tm) and the ninety-minute special Nick Stellino's Dinner Party. He has appeared on many local and national radio and television shows, including The Oprah Winfrey Show. Stellino currently produces a new series for public television.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult (November 2, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399146571
• ISBN-13: 978-0399146572
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.9 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #680,762 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Baking > Pizza

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!, October 15, 2005

By 

Joanne "Gotta Eat, Gotta Cook" (Long Island, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nick Stellino's Passione: Pasta, Pizza, and Panini (Hardcover)

I own all of Nick Stellino's books but had used this one least b/c of my fear of pasta, pizza, and panini--in other words, the ever-dreaded carbos! But it's fall now, and I was ready to throw my fear of carbo-loading to the wind...first stop, PIZZA. Today was my 'maiden voyage,' (and I had hoped it wouldn't end up like that of the Titanic!). I couldn't believe what smooth sailing it was. Nick gives alternate kneading methods, by hand or mixer--I chose the easy way out! I made enough dough for four 12" pizzas. (I got carried away with myself b/c it took no time or effort at all). Didn't have mozzerella to make pizza, so Nick conveniently had flatbread recipes--and that was where I began. With some fresh rosemary, garlic, a hint of red pepper, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and olive oil, it was so simple and came out of the oven looking like...well, bread! Like it was supposed to...not a 'wannabe,' but the real thing. I impressed myself, I must say. I'll make it for a dinner I'm planning to give next weekend. Dough is easily refrigerated or frozen to use whenever. Another pleasant surprise--Nick tells you how to make pizza sauce, no need to buy it--using canned, jarred, or homemade as a base, then adding a few extra ingredients, blending in processor, done. That's another item crossed off my pizza grocery list. It was like he was leading me by the hand. I am so glad I had this book in my kitchen library. I'm getting ready to dive into pasta, and I know I'll be using this book again.