The Cooking of Italy

January 1, 2012

Gr 4-8-These titles provide visual feasts of mouth-watering dishes. Locricchio believes that cooking is an art and enthusiastically highlights traditional recipes from the featured countries. He focuses on organic foods and points out that while the dishes are "healthful," they aren't necessarily light or low calorie. He gives some helpful tips for starting in the kitchen and a region-by-region overview of the ethnic foods. The recipes are moderately difficult and require adult assistance. The layout and organization are superior to the 2002 editions, with more eye-catching colors, illustrations, and photos. The content, however, is almost identical, with two additional recipes per book. Some of the new dishes include "Rice and Peas with Smoked Ham" (Italy), "Lemon-Flavored Zucchini" (Greece), and "Cheese Puffs" (France). Replace your well-worn first editions with these tasty updated versions.-Samantha Larsen Hastings, Riverton Library, UT

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