The Italian Country Table: Home Cooking from Italy's Farmhouse Kitchens

This is my number one cookbook of all time. Every recipe is wonderful. I have probably cooked over 75% of the recipes over the years and it has never failed me. I can't recommend enough.

GOOD READ, GREAT RECIPES How I adore this cookbook. I have a lot of cookbooks, and I always reach for this one first. First of all, you can read it like a novel. LRK's stories are wonderful, and hearing the origins -- anthropological, agricultural, familial, anecdotal --is really fun for a literary foodie type (like me). THE SIMPLE-TO-COMPLEX CONTINUUM But my appreciation of this book goes way beyond its bedside appeal. It's my first, best resource in the kitchen, too. I've noticed a few of the other reviewers found the recipes a little complex, and I'd like to address that. It's true that some are multi-step and use a lot of dishes. It's true that, say, the Tyrolean Pot Roast (*drool*) might take a couple tries before it comes out letter-perfect. But let me balance that by saying that: SIMPLE (1) there are plenty of recipes so simple you'll find yourself using them every night. Like string beans with olive oil, salt and pepper (optional raw garlic halved and rubbed on the sides of the bowl). It's one of those foundational recipes accessible enough for a novice cook, and the technique may be applied to many vegetables. CLEAR (2) Even in Rossetto Kasper's more complicated recipes are not tricky because she explains them so well. It's really hard to take traditional recipes passed down through generations without measurements, cooking by feel, and in another language, no less -- and translate them into a coherent step-by-step set of instructions. That's exactly what Rossetto Kasper has done, though -- she takes recipes a la nonna (grandma recipes) and converts them into accessible text that any home cook can achieve if they really try. IDIOT-PROOF (SORT OF) (3) Most of Rosetto Kasper's recipes are really forgiving. She'll point out where you can make substitutions. For example, if you have run out of rosemary, but your basil plant is temptingly available in sun-drenched glory, chances are good that Rossetto Kasper will point out that you can switch them just fine, and that traditional Italian home cooks often do, according to the seasons, regional differences, and the whim of the cook. I've screwed up so many of her recipes the first time, and all my mistakes have been not just edible, but good. Good enough that I was more than interested in trying a second time, for even better result. Example: The Polenta Chocolate Cake. I defy anyone to make that cake not taste incredibly good -- you'd have to do something really drastic, like omit the chocolate or pour ketchup over it. The first time I made it, it was for a giant family dinner. I was stressed and goofed up the cooking time (probably three or four other things). My family moaned like they were having a giant collective foodgasm. It's just really that good. Sure, I made it correctly after that, but it's good to know if you don't always manage to color in the lines, all is not lost. AUTHENTICITY More thoughts: her authentic recipes are really authentic. I

This is so much more than just a cookbook; it is a fascinating look at all aspects of Italian "country" cooking. Lynn Rossetto Kasper's deep love for her Italian heritage seeps out of every page of this book, and you can't help but share her enthusiasm. She takes you through the basics of Italian cooking in a whole new light. For example, not only does she teach you how to make pasta, but she also unravels the mystery of how to pair pasta and sauce. Even better, she tells you which brands of dried pasta are best and exactly how to cook them. The section on tomato sauces is amazing. She doesn't just give you a few recipes - she explains the four basic varieties of tomato sauces and when to use each. Reading this book teaches you how to think about food like an Italian home cook. Once you can do that, you don't need a recipe to plan a meal, just the right ingredients and a love for great food.

A cookbook that reads like a novel and brings to the table recipes that would make anyone's grandmother proud. After making "Nonna's Lasagne" I immediately called my mother, who has been making lasagne for more years than she'll let me admit, to emphatically state that this was the best lasagne I'd ever made. The recipes are simple to follow but the end products are anything but simple to the taste, the dishes are exquisite! The cook-to-cook hints are extremely helpful and the stories that are layered through the book are delightful. If you love italian food you must own this book. Grazie molto Lynne.

Lynn's books combine history with recipes. You have the feeling you are sharing the Italian tradition, a link to great food. Anyone who enjoyed the extra food histories in her "The Splendid Table" must sample this great new Italian cookbook. Her researching is painstaking and exhaustive. I know because I first met her in 1984; I prepared a dinner for her that year, using a new recipe for butterflied leg of lamb on the grill, and only later did I discover it was her recipe from an issue of "Bon Appetit". That meal was a highlight of my amateur career, shared only with the pleasure of being a part of her pre-publication surprise party for submission of the manuscript of "The Splendid Table".Lynn's recipes live - - they talk to you. You experience them. This new volume is a must for lovers of good food and instructive cookbooks.Dan Davis

This is a book for people who love to eat - cooking is not really necessary for its enjoyment! Ms. Kasper is a wonderful writer who paints with words as beautifully as she cooks. Recipes are forthright - simple ingredients simply prepared. (For those who want a more complicated cuisine I'd recommend her first book ("The Splendid Table"). Here she tells tales and recites the folklore of the Italian countryside; she explains the heartland of the country and and the heart(s) of it's people. Since we can't all travel with Ms. Kasper as she makes her rounds, this is as close to heaven as we can get without a plane ticket! FIVE STARS!