In Nonna's kitchen

Anna Teresa Callen

Ms. Field, who has written many memorable cookbooks, has produced In Nonna's Kitchen, which is a true journey of discovery. In it, she sought out the cooking of le nonne, the grandmothers, from the far-away regions of Valtellina in Lombardy to sunny Sicily. Through the amusing and often touching stories gleaned from these nonne, we learn of customes, of course, but more importantly we see vividly how varied Italian cooking is and how silly it is to localize it as "northern" or "southern."

Bill Ott

As much about Italian family and culture as it is about cooking, this captiviating survey of "la cucina della nonna" (the cuisine of the grandmothers traverses Italy's countryside and finds not only terrific things to eat but also stories — stories passed along from grandmothers to grandchildren that reveal the fabric of daily life across generations. Mixing inventive variations on traditional Italian recipes with profiles of the grandmothers who created and adapted them, Field gives each dish a special cultural texture: we see what made this comfort food comfortable, and we bemoan the gradual loss of a culinary tradition, as the nonnas of tomorrow turn to microwaves and prepared food. Still, such dishes as passatelli (country soup with bread crumbs and parmigiano or torta de verdura (mashed potato and spinach tart seem capable of reestablishing a vanishing traditon with a single bite.

Christopher Kimball

The worth of In Nonna's Kitchen was obvious from the very beginning. Cookbook introductions are usually drowsy bits of prose, but this one made me sit up and read every word...Of course, an introduction does not make a book, much less a cookbook, but it is indicative of both the affection that Ms. Field has for her cooks and her total immersion in the topic...All of this, of course, is merely context for what any good cookbook must give us — the gift of well-constructed recipes that not only bring the voices and customs from one people to another, but that translate admirably in a modern kitchen. On this score, In Nonna's Kitchen succeeds as well...After spending much time with the nonnas of Carol Field's acquaintance, I felt as I had come to know them and agree with the comment of one Italian immigrant at the end of the introduction: "The stones in the street will cry when we are gone." —Cook's Illustrated

International Cookbook Revue

In Nonna's Kitchen is a beautifully-written collection of anecdotes, folk wisdom, priceless secrets, and recipes from the kitchens of matriarchs throughout the peninsula.

International Cookbook Revue

In Nonna's Kitchen is a beautifully-written collection of anecdotes, folk wisdom, priceless secrets, and recipes from the kitchens of matriarchs throughout the peninsula.

Richard Flaste

The sense of travel's enrichment is ... powerful in Carol Field's book In Nonna's Kitchen, which also demonstrates an appealing inclination to eliminate fuss while producing a host of satisfying dishes. Ms. Field watches, for example, as Lina Vitali, in a tight Italian kitchen, prepares the simple gnocchi that have comforted generations of her family. She learns from Nella Galletti how to make the same bean and pasta soup Mrs. Galletti prepared for herself and her husband on the days when they worked in the fields. This is filling, heartwarming home cooking...the food is a triumph. —The New York Times Book Review,

Woman's Day

Almost as much fun to read as to cook from, this is a collection of folk wisdom, anecdotes and wonderful recipes gleaned by the author from nonnas (grandmothers in small towns throughout Italy. It's a treasury of comfort food — the kind of very flavorful dishes people remember and want to eat over and over again. The ingredients are simple, and the recipes uncomplicated, but the results are something special.