Customer Reviews

VERDURA: Vegetables Italian Style

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The nice thing about Verdura is that it has everything-- Antipasti, Salads, Grilled Breads/Sandwiches, Soups, Pasta, Rice/Polenta, Main Dishes, Sides, and Desserts--featuring vegetables cooked the Italian way.

Other than the Chinese, I think the Italians have the best feel for how to bring out what's wonderful in a vegetable. I love the cauliflower with lemon dressing in particular, and the squash recipes as well.

The pizza basic recipe is really great. We made it last night and it came out so well. (We did use a pizza stone, which really makes a difference.) Next time we will try the Arugula version of the pizza. Arugula is a pungent green, looking a bit like dandelion leaves and it not only tastes great, it is really good for you.

I have not only read, but constantly use this book. We have an extensive garden and I was originally attracted to it while looking for more ways to prepare all those veggies. This book has delicious and elegant recipes that are easy to prepare. Unlike many cookbooks that reach beyond the ordinary, it does not require 30 or 40 ingredients per recipe. The recipes are either light and refreshing or hearty enough to serve as a meal, as we frequently do with the risottos (try the spinach risotto recipe!). While I have purchased many other cookbooks only to abandon them as the glow wore off, this book is a solid performer. I highly recommend it.

Simple, elegant, excellant and exquisite with charming illustrations: The recipes in this book are healthy for the body and mind. I find these recipes easy to follow, and I use them almost everyday now. It is fulfilling to be able to cook this way. My diet has changed considerably after I found these recipes, and the effect has been very positive on my health. I am deriving more nutrition from my meals, and am using more natural foods than I ever did before. There are a wide variety of recipes to mix and match. This book is a must buy for anyone who wants to eat healthy. Provides a refreshingly new perspective on healthy eating!

There's some of everything in this cookbook but if you're vegetarian or vegan be prepared to alter the recipes here and there. There's a recipe for chicken broth and another for beef broth and they're used in a bunch of the recipes -not a big deal - I just substitite a nice vegetable broth and all is well. Anchovies are used here and there too. For the vegan - you'll need to do your own substititues where cheeses are called for and there are a few egg recipes.

Anyway, that said, there are lots of great recipes in here. Here's a quick view of the table of contents and a few of my favorites:

- Antipasti (vegetables, fruits, cheeses, marinated vegetables, hot antipasti) - Artichokes Griti Style is really tasty - it has olive oil and parm. cheese; also some really easy recipes for things like raw vegetables with olive oil, marinated eggplant, spicy carrots, etc

- Salads (leafy, little, and salads as main courses) -lots of nice, mostly simple salads. I made the one called Warm Cannellini Bean and Herb Salad and served it at our Christmas dinner alongside raviolis etc and it was a hit

- Grilled bread and sandwiches - haven't tried any of these but they look tasty

- Soups for every season (minnestrone soup with rice was excellent - I did it in the slow cooker - yum! There's also an escarole soup similar to what my grandmother used to make - it was good but not as good as hers :)

- Pasta Sauces (excellent, fresh ideas straight from the garden. pasta with 10 herbs was great. I haven't tried it yet but there's a recipe that uses tomoatoes and avocados that sounds really good. These sauces are pretty much all things you can whip up fast, no cooking for hours on the stove - its focus is fresh and almost raw - really good - and good for you :)

- Rice and Polenta dishes (I haven't tried any of the polenta dishes - had some bad experiences with that so far)

- A sampler of Main Dishes (many interesting recipes here like zucchini stuffed wit mushrooms, gnocchi, ftittatas.)

- Side vegetables (I love side dishes and there are some good ones in here that I've tried and were great. The ones I've tried are: artichokes w. sundried tomatoes, artichokes braised with thyme, broccoli w. garlic and red chili pepper, etc. There are some tasty sounding bean dishes that I haven't tried yet but plan to)

Overall great cookbook - I've tried a sampling of recipes and they've all been good, just need to modify ever so slightly to make them vegetarian.

I'd buy it again!

This was purchased as a bridal shower gift for our future grandniece who is a vegetarian of sorts. The grandnephew likes Italian cooking and this is providing them with a wealth of recipes which will satisfy them both. The report I get is that the soups are excellent. In looking through the book, I found that I would like a copy myself in spite of my 50 feet of cookbooks.

I received this book as a gift from my father because I kept checking it out from the library. This past weekend I used the Risotto with Swiss Chard and Winter Herbs as a stuffing for winter squash and Rapini with Garlic Bread Crumbs as the main course for a fund-raising dinner for 60 at my daughter's high school. The diners absolutely raved about it! The recipes are simple and straightforward and sooooooooooo good. It's one of my favorite cookbooks.

After having the eggplant torta from this book at a friends house, I immediately went home and ordered the book. I'm working my way through it slowly since I'm not a consistent maker of dinner, but I have used several recipes repeatedly for home and entertaining. The praise has been universal. Having experimented with lots of recipes, it is such a thrill to make something that people rave about and tastes as good as it "sounded." The pasta with fennel (a fresh sauce perfect for summer) is gourmet in quality and my husband raves! The ricotta torta is another delicious treat. You have to have time to slice and dice, of course, but when the results are this good, I don't mind. I highly recommend this book for amateur cooks like myself who will suprise themselves and increase their confidence through the splendid results!

The nice thing about Verdura is that it has everything-- Antipasti, Salads, Grilled Breads/Sandwiches, Soups, Pasta, Rice/Polenta, Main Dishes, Sides, and Desserts--featuring vegetables cooked the Italian way.

Other than the Chinese, I think the Italians have the best feel for how to bring out what's wonderful in a vegetable. I love the cauliflower with lemon dressing in particular, and the squash recipes as well.

The pizza basic recipe is really great. We made it last night and it came out so well. (We did use a pizza stone, which really makes a difference.) Next time we will try the Arugula version of the pizza. Arugula is a pungent green, looking a bit like dandelion leaves and it not only tastes great, it is really good for you.

The best book on vegetable cooking I have ever owned, am on to my third copy.All dishes are easy and delicious, her relaxed
approach to food is one we should all embrace.

Verdura is a great book which we have had for years now. Viana has a delightful cooking style which really focuses on the essense of vegitables... particularly fresh, in-season produce. Her recipes such as tomato and peach salad, or cucumber and orange opened our eyes to new combinations. One of our favorites.