Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen

I just spent the last two hours reading this cookbookfrom cover to cover. I would never imagine that one can "read" a cookbook,but Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen is so much more than justrecipes. It's a compilation of instructions, tips, photographs, and history. Idon't consider myself a gourmet cook, a cookbook aficionado, or even a fan ofcooking shows, but reading this book was like having a private lessonwith Lidia. Now I know why my husband loves to watch her show.

I was so inspired and motivated by both the colorfulphotographs and her equally colorful language that I started a pot ofvegetable broth (page 76) while I continued reading. What you need to knowabout Italian cooking is included in highlighted areas, such as how to peel andseed tomatoes, how to stuff an artichoke, how to make breadcrumbs, andmore. Each article and recipe is written the way Lidia speaks: simplelanguage sprinkled with wisdom and passion.

As you read Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, you canalmost see and smell the food. Some of the descriptions almost lean on theside of poetry: "Soup is a mellow, gentle food. Through simmering, all thecharacters become equally important--there is no sole protagonist."Besides the poetic flow of her words, I also enjoyedthe reverence Lydia associates with cooking and eating a good mealtogether as a sign of love and family, a tradition perhaps this book cansingle-handedly return to our culture.This book is a wonderful gift for a newlywed or those,like me, who just enjoy good food.