"Spring in Sicily" by Lauraine Jacobs for "Cook the Books"

http://www.laurainejacobs.co.nz

• Foodie Reviewer Lauraine Jacobs
  More reviews by this foodie >
• Date of review: 12/03/2010
• Category: Books/Magazines
• Price:RRP $65.00

Spring in Sicily by Manuela Darling-Gansser

I have been to Sicily; an amazing trip with Faith Willinger, the famed food writer who resides in Florence. I loved every mouthful of the culinary adventure she led us on eighteen months ago, and when I picked up this new book, I was immediately transported back. The markets, the food, the colour, the history and the scenery of Sicily were unbelievably fascinating.

In this book, the author Manuela Darling- Gansser, an inveterate traveller and food lover and writer, who now resides in Sydney, and photographer Simon Griffiths have captured the magic that is Sicily. It’s part travel, part history but the book’s real strength is the collection of truly authentic recipes from an island where food is fresh, rich and traditional.

Sicilian cuisine has been influenced by a diverse range of dynasties as the island sits in the central Mediterranean, at the crossroads of shipping routes. Almost every major culture that successively attempted to rule the region has seen Sicily as the key to strategic domination. This has brought about a rich array of dishes with Moorish, Roman, Greek and many more influences.

As I would expect there are wonderful vegetable recipes, (as Sicily is the garden for much of Italy), briny seafood dishes, and an outstanding collection of sweet recipes for Sicily’s confectionery, chocolate, gelato, ices and baking are unsurpassed in the Mediterranean. The writing is great, and the recipes are well set out, easy to follow and most importantly very authentic. And the photography is gorgeous, whether it is a mouth-wateringly close recipe shot, an inspirational scenic shot of some corner of this island, or a shot that captures the people that live there.

It is a book to savour, a book to inspire and a book to dream about. I thoroughly recommend Spring in Sicily, as it’s one of the most gorgeous books I have purchased in a while.

http://www.cookthebooks.co.nz