The Classic Pasta Cookbook

If you like pasta this book is a must have. I am Italian, and learned to cook because I appreciate good food, and I like to eat! Eating is essential to life, why not eat the best foods, you only live once! I learned from watching my mother and grandmother cook and I can tell you the recipes in this book are the real thing; after all my mother bought this book for me. In my opinion(and my mother's) Marcella Hazan wrote the bible of Italian cookbooks with "Essentials of Italian Cooking"(also a must have), and this book is written by her son, so it is natural that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. I have used this book countless times over the years, it is my reference for any pasta dish. It is easy to understand and follow, and after a while you will realize all these dishes are easy to prepare. Great illustrations on how to make fresh pasta and excellent sauce suggestions for different types of pastas. Lots of pictures so it makes it easy to understand what the dish is meant to look like, and what the ingredients should look like...I may have had a head start being of the Italian culture, but this book should make it easy for anyone to understand. Italian cooking is not centered around spaghetti and stewed tomatoes over tons of burned garlic, Italian cooking is colorful, diverse and subtle. This book will give you some insight into true Italian pastas, and the importance of fresh ingredients. Buy it, read it and eat in good health Per Cent' Ani!

Whether you're a beginner or an experienced cook, this book will add to your culinary accomplishments. It has sections on pasta types, making your own pasta (and different variations thereof) and some incredible - and incredibly simple - recipes. The Basilico e Pomodora has become a staple in our house. These recipes are so simple, and so delicious, that my cupboard will never see a jar of pre-made sauce again.

I had a roommate who had this book and two years ago, we moved away and she took the greatest sauce recipes with her. The bolognese in this book is the kind you eat half of before you get to serving your guests. The recipes are simple but classic, using ingredients that are fresh and flavorful yet affordable and easy to find at any grocery store. What's more, the author has some wonderful stories about how he learned to cook and educates the reader on all there is to know about pasta dishes without being condescending. Now that I am getting this book, I will keep it forever.

I've had this cookbook for several years, and it is stained and dogeared from all the use I've given it. "Classic Pasta" possesses everything I look for in a cookbook: both classic and creative recipes, manageable ingredients and techniques, informal but professional tone (with nice anecdotes by the author), and great pictures. The pasta dishes actually end up looking like the cookbook's pictures! I'm a pasta lover, and I turn to this book at least once a week. If you only want to show off your culinary skills, don't buy this book. If you want easy, affordable, delicious, and inspiring, you really should have this cookbook in your collection. Mangia!

This is a fabulous cookbook. I'm an adequate cook, but whenever I make one of these recipes people rave about it. It's unbelievable. And the recipes are simple and easy to follow. You can't beat recipes that allow you to cook a fresh sauce in the amount of time it takes to boil water and cook the pasta.