Review – Two Greedy Italians

I was very excited to receive my copy of the Two Greedy Italians* through the post last Wednesday morning in exchange for a review.  The book cover jacket picture truly reveals the strong and long standing friendship between Carluccio and Contaldo, two worldwide famous Italian chefs, who have been cooking up a storm in the UK for the last 30 years since leaving Italy separately and eventually meeting and working together for a while in Britain.

The book contains 208 pages and over 100 recipes, most of them with colour pictures.  I love the naturalistic and homely feel of the photography and the simple but striking recipes.  In this book the two chefs showcase the genuine regional Italian cuisine and reflect on Italy of the past and the present. Rediscovering their native country and reminiscing on their friendship.

The recipes are easy to follow and the ingredients used are widely available in the shops. The book is divided in six parts: Antipasti (Starters), Primi (First Courses),  Secondi (Main Courses),  Contorni (Vegetables),  Frutta E Dolci (Fruit and Deserts), Merende (Snacks).  I cooked a fabulous lunch for a friend reproducing eight recipes from the book. Everything was perfect! All recipes worked out really well from execution to seasoning to presentation. This book really shows that less is more and you don’t need to be an expert cook to serve good wholesome food.

Recipes I cooked : Stuffed Quail’s Eggs,  Garlic Soup, Salt Cod Salad, Baked Stuffed Aubergine, Sweet & Sour Baby Onions,  Baked Fennel, Lemon Granita and  the grand finale: the seductive and velvety Chocolate and Amaretto Pudding.  I can’t wait to try the freshly made past dishes now that my good friend Pedro gave me a pasta machine for my birthday.

The TV series that accompany the book ‘Two Greedy Italians’ will be shown on BBC 2 on Wednesdays 8pm from the 4th May.  The book is available to buy on Amazon.
* Thanks to Quadrille Publishing for sending  and for opportunity to review this lovely book.