Recipes from an Italian Summer [Hardcover]

Editors of Phaidon Press (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 7, 2010

It?s summertime in Italy and the living is easy. The days are longer and more relaxed. Italians flock to the coast to enjoy the tranquility of the sea or retreat to the countryside to unwind in the brilliant, bright sunshine. And most all, they eat.

Recipes from an Italian Summer captures the essence of the Italian summer featuring over 400 easy-to-make seasonal recipes, organized by how we like to eat with individual chapters for Picnics, Salads, Barbecues, Light Lunches and Suppers, Summer Entertaining, Desserts, and Ice Cream and Drinks. The recipes are perfect ways to make the most of tasty summer produce such as tomatoes, fresh herbs, peas, beans, fresh fruit, and berries. A must-have for anyone who enjoyed The Silver Spoon, Phaidon?s bestselling Italian cookbook.

Recipes from an Italian Summer not only brings the taste of the Italian summer to your table, it also transports you to Italy. Alongside 100 beautiful photographs of the mouthwatering dishes by Andy Sewell are more than 30 stunning images of the Italian countryside from award-winning photographer Joel Meyerowitz. Travel through the pages to the idyllic vacation regions of Campania, Tuscany, Sicility, and Sardinia and you experience the bold flavors of their regional cuisines.

Piadina

Preparation time: 45 minutes (including rising)
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Serves 12

5 ¿ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
2 teaspoons baking powder (optional)
¿ cup lard
olive oil, for brushing
12 slices prosciutto
salt

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and 2 pinches of salt into a large bowl. Add the lard and as much warm water as necessary to mix to a springy dough. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise for 30 minutes.

Divide the dough into 12 pieces and roll them out into thin rounds on a lightly floured counter. Brush a skillet with oil, add the round in batches, and cook on both sides for a few minutes, until lightly browned. Top each piadina with a slice of prosciutto and fold in half to serve.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Most cuisines have delicious ways of using summer's bounty, but Italian food, as the editors of this pretty and expansive recipe collection assert, is ideally eaten in the warmest season. The authors of the bestselling compendium of Italian cookery The Silver Spoon have returned with a collection of warm weather dishes that emphasize simple flavors and minimal ingredients. In addition to recipes, the book covers the vacation regions of Italy, the hundreds of food festivals held every summer around the country, and a calendar of seasonal ingredients. Chapters reflect the way people tend to eat in summer: Picnics; Salads; Barbecues; Light Lunches; and Suppers. The provisions are both appealing and richly varied: rustic vegetable pies or potatoes in aluminum foil with assorted fillings are certain to dress up anyone's summer repertoire. Dishes like mozzarella caprese and peaches with zabaglione will seem familiar to readers while others, such as casatiello, a bread ring stuffed with salami and cheese, or lettuce with skate and walnuts, have a hint of the exotic. As with its predecessor, the editors keep the directions short and sweet, and a certain degree of kitchen familiarity is assumed. Interspersed throughout are beautifully evocative photos that might tempt some readers to put down the spoon and head for the airport." (Publisher's Weekly )

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Phaidon Press (April 7, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0714857734
• ISBN-13: 978-0714857732
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 7.4 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #412,162 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 39 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars "Newly Collected"? May 9, 2010

By Anne

There is a big sticker on my copy proclaiming: Quintessential summer recipes from Italy; Newly Collected by the Silver Spoon kitchen. I was skeptical and I randomly selected a recipe...sure enough, the identical recipe was in the Silver Spoon cookbook. Another recipe was randomly selected...yet again, word for word it is included in the Silver Spoon. So what does "newly collected" mean? Newly collected for those who do not already own the Silver Spoon cookbook?

In the book's favor, it is laid out well and is understandably a reduced version of Silver Spoon and thus easier to handle in the kitchen. Most of the recipes are written fairly well, but certainly not all. It is very common for the ingredients to be vague: tomatoes, potatoes, olives, apples, etc. are listed but what kind and weight you may ask? "Two zucchini" makes me want to know variety AND size.

I think that an inexperienced cook may be baffled by the vague directions and the often unclear ingredients list. On the other hand, if you are comfortable with Elizabeth David's also vague recipes you will not have a problem with these. David's books are at the very top of my most used and valued cookbooks and her Summer Cooking and Italian should be considered if you are tempted by this book.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars No library should be without this! August 14, 2010

By Midwest Book Review

Recipes from An Italian Summer offers a range of dishes designed to make the most of fresh ingredients using summer produce, and provides seasonal Italian recipes that focus on the peak summer growing season. It's organized by how we eat during the summer and thus offers chapters on Picnics, salads, Light Lunches and more. No library should be without this!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars The Italian collection July 29, 2010

By wogan TOP 50 REVIEWER

These are Italian recipes collected from the Silver Spoon kitchen. Most have been published elsewhere, but for those who specifically want Italian here they are.
Explanations of Italian cooking and attitudes are well done, especially Ferragosto; the vacation for the whole month of August and the food consumed then. Most recipes are one to a page and in clear type. Also the majority of recipes have a picture of the finished product. There are, in addition, pleasing pictures of Italy's scenery. The photos give you the flavor and colouring of Italy and its' food.

The grill recipes will lend a different aspect to your summer cooking, especially that of vegetables, the instructions are well done. There are also many simple good fruit recipes, again for keeping cool in the hot summer. Included are picnics, salads, barbecues, light lunches and suppers, summer entertaining, desserts and ice cream and drinks. Especially not to be missed is the Avocado and shrimp salad.

This is not really a beginners cookbook, but would be a welcome addition to cookbook collectors and those who enjoy Italian cooking that is not the usual spaghetti or lasagna.