This rich combination of cookbook and memoir tells the story of a family and the secrets of its kitchen in post-World War II Tuscany.
Suffused with the scents of simmering pots of cacciucco - a hearty, local seafood stew - and the vibrant coastal blossoms, Patrizia Chen’s childhood was centred in the sun-drenched kitchen and adjoining herb garden of the family home in Livorno, on the Tuscan seacoast. There, in a world struggling to recover from the devastation of the Second World War, Emilia, the cook, shared her craft with her young charge, while Patrizia’s grandmother, Nonna Valentina, managed a household still containing chamber pots, sacks of chestnut flour and coal-burning stoves. Eccentric characters, aromatic dishes, white Carrara marble terraces and a magical garden come alive in a warm and humorous narrative.
Rosemary and Bitter Oranges will captivate readers with its simple, delicious food and the author’s wit and abiding love for tradition.
- 'A beguiling memoir of growing up in a Tuscan city...A richly textured past intimately evoked' KIRKUS REVIEWS
- ‘Sparkling prose interspersed with her cherished and delectable recipes.’ GOOD BOOK GUIDE
- 'Chen's childhood in post-war Livorno seems to rise up out of a dream… Every page is drenched with sensous and unexpected detail, and the food is a good as Chen's stories…A delightful book.' NEW YORK TIMES
Paperback:
£7.99
Published 03/07/2003
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