CLARENDON HOUSE PUBLICATIONS

'I read your fabulous "food" book, though it is much, much more than a "food" book. 

 

It's a triumph, a time capsule, a therapy session, a test in patience and love and respect, and a cooking lesson all rolled into one. 

 

It must be celebrated and heralded in high places for the great achievement that it is in these "unprecedented Covid times". 

 

Your Herculean effort to care for your mother while capturing the complexities behind recipes and relationships, is to be admired. 

 

I loved it. Thank you. ❤️ x' - Maria Fantasia

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I don't cook much at all, and cooking with my Mum wasn't our way of connecting.

I don't read cookbooks, and I never thought reading recipes would be a learning about Italian feminism.

So imagine how surprised I was wanting to devour this book in one sitting.

The colours of the food, the creativity and smarts of "la cucina povera", which defied such a label. 

The deft threading of 100 COVID-days with a Mum who increasingly needs care while the daughter increasingly needs to reconfigure her life, and the further daily stitching of family history and broader socio-political concerns, is enthralling.

Several times Pina worries about "going down the rabbit-hole". I didn't see it like that. Instead, each piece of vegetable, fruit, meat and fish, nuts and legumes, its origins and what it will become in the cooking, and the stories it evokes, found me breathing deeply, sometimes achingly, in anticipation of what I would discover on the next page, on the next day.

Pina, you have created a book of historical significance for your family, for COVID historians, and for the planet as we reflect upon the socio-cultural meanings of love, family, and food.

 

—Dr Maria Pallotta-Chiarolli AM, (Melbourne, Australia)

 

If you’re looking after, or have looked after an elderly parent and like to cook, then you will like this book. The author has woven her experiences with learning to cook in the “Cucina Povera” style of southern Italy, with her experiences of caring for an elderly parent.  For the most part the dishes are authentic and have been handed down from her mother. The “Cucina Povera” style of cooking is done with fresh seasonal ingredients and meat when available so everything is nutritious, with nothing going to waste.  You will find ways of making your own broth using fresh vegetables and bones instead of using stock cubes.  There are meat and non-meat recipes and the author has provided a no nonsense approach to putting a tasty meal on the table.  Some of the dishes can be frozen and reheated for those who don’t have much time during the working week while others are best made on the day.  Intertwined with all these cooking tips and tricks is dealing with an elderly parent.  Elderly parents do get lonely and do lean more on their closest child or children.  Like her Mamma’s recipe measurement rules (none, it’s all done by eye and experience), there are no rules for dealing with an elderly parent.  This book has reminded me of my late mother and has taught me some cooking tips I didn’t know. I recommend this book.

—George Kanakis, Italophile (Sydney, Australia)

 

Pina, what a glorious cookbook! Even the pdf files are stunning. I like the immediacy of the current virus-crisis with the timelessness of the cuisine. Puts it all in perspective. Only just pursued it briefly (thanks for the mention!) but already learned about stuffing eggplant which I have never done but now plan to. Hope all the best for this wonderful tribute to your mama. 

 

—Joe Dolce, singer/musician/poet (Melbourne, Australia)

 

This cookbook is so much more. I loved the history of the recipes, the photos, and the stories. Pina and her mother are delightful and the two of them cooking together makes a beautiful mother and daughter story and experience that comes from the heart. The recipes are easy to follow and fun to make. I wish I could buy it in print instead of downloading…. I would love to have it mixed in with my other great cookbooks on the shelf.

 

—Sarah Lippincott, cheesemonger & culinary school graduate (Waynesboro, Virginia, USA)