These little pastry pillows which originated in Naples are a true mouthful of delight were first made to celebrate the feast of Saint Joseph. Whether they are filled with a ricotta cream, or custard, or left unfilled and tossed in sugar or drizzled with honey they are truly...
I love using tomatoes as they always provide such a vibrancy to a dish. This pasta freddo uses both heirloom and cherry tomatoes, which when combined with the creamy baked ricotta, the bright green of the peppery rocket, the parsley and the white of the pasta is a visual...
As you all know, traditional fare at Christmas throughout Italy is the famous panettone, the vanilla flavoured sugarloaf baked with raisins and other dried fruits. Although various legends have tried unconvincingly to explain its origin, panettone unquestionably originated in Milan. Founded by the Insubi Celts around 600BC, Mediolano, as...
Looking at Palazzo Loredan, San Marco, the second column in from the left has a graffiti depiction of a man with a long pipe. It is inspired by the remarkable legend of a local fisherman called Biagio. A firm favourite with one and all, this old man used to...
This is a soup which is just such a delicious bowl of ‘more please’. The meatballs made of pork and fennel sausage meat are just perfect here with the cannellini beans, tomatoes, chilli and of course, the cavolo nero. The herb combination really binds the key flavours together and...
On the upper floor of Trinità Dei Monti convent, Rome, you can visit a cloister where you will see some extraordinary and rare anamorphic frescoes, the result of the residents’ research on perspective. The basic principle of anamorphic perspective is to project the line of vision in order to...
Printed by Aldus Manutius in Venice in 1499, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili is perhaps the most complex roman-a-clef ever published. Illustrated with around 170 exquisite woodcuts, it is also considered one of the finest examples of early printing. The book, written in a mixture of Italian, Latin, Greek, Hebrew,...
In the Piazza della Minerva, Rome, you will find Bernini’s famous but curious elephant-obelisk. What is much less well-known however, is the symbolism behind the obelisk, which may answer the question as to why Bernini created such an unusual sculpture. Bernini’s design for the base of the obelisk,...
Other than a little bit of soaking and needing to chill this cake preferably overnight, this is dead simple to make and absolutely delicious. Served with a glass of your favourite sherry, well it has been described as “just wicked”. I like to serve this at the end of...
In the Treasury, Castello Sforzesco, Milan you will find an absolute visual delight. Walking west from the courtyard of Las Rocchetta, you come to Torre Castellana, on the ground floor of which is a superb fresco of Argus that has survived unseen for 500 years, but nowadays is open to...
Welcome to my love affair with the food, wine, history and culture of the Mediterranean, past and present. Here you will find not only recipes, drinks and fabulous products, but the history of the food and culture of the Mediterranean.
My purpose is to get you to explore and experience new tastes and along the way to immerse yourself in the wonderful history of this diverse and wonderful region – from Venice to Istanbul, Rome to Dubrovnik, Athens to Crete and all places in between and in the surrounds. Be prepared to be surprised, delighted and enthralled as you take this trip with me.
