French cookery will always be the firstborn of Italian cuisine. Larousse Gastronomique, the world’s greatest culinary encyclopedia published almost a century ago — still the bible of French kitchens — concedes that the cooking of Italy should be considered “a veritable mother cuisine.” The child evolved by artistically blending ingredients to create something new, but the mother continued to preserve authentic, characteristic flavors of individual ingredients. For us, this knowledge puts Italian cuisine in a new light; we appreciate its heritage and simpler preparations infused with big, intense flavors.
Grain for flour, citrus fruit, honey, cheesemaking and vegetables such as broccoli, asparagus, kale, romaine and artichokes were cultivated in ancient times and remain important today. By 1290, cookbooks offered recipes for vermicelli (spaghetti), tortelli and tortelletti (types of ravioli and tortellini)! Why does this matter? Because five years later, Marco Polo returned to Venice knowing a direct route to the spices of the East – but not the art of pasta making. Forget that urban legend! Exploration in the New World brought tomatoes, corn for polenta, potatoes and red peppers to the cuisine, while trade routes brought spices, sugar, coffee, and ice cream. When we look at an Italian restaurant menu nowadays, the fascinating stories of where these ingredients come from and how they’re prepared come to mind, making us appreciate them even more.
