Italian forefathers and mothers

Elizabeth David, Italian Food

Antonio Ceccuni

Another book not to forget is Lynne Rosetta Kasper 's SPLENDID TABLE which is both a cookbook and culinary history of the Emilia-Romagna region. Most educated Italians consider Bologna to be the country's gastronomic capital.

Note that any book about Italian cuisine written in the last 30-40 years in any language will have the Artusi book, Talisman, and Silver Spoon (and probably Gossetti della Salda) listed in the bibliography. The overwhelming influence of these cookbooks to Italian food writing is indisputable.

In addition to all the teachers and writers mentioned so far, here are a few who helped introduce, familiarize and chronicle Italian food in English speaking Western countries. These are mostly post WW2, when people had more exposure to foreign cuisines and long distance travel became more available to the middle classes.
Thomas Jefferson, both at the White House and Monticello
Waverly Root, Food of Italy...wide ranging intro to Americans
Elizabeth David, Italian Cooking...ditto for Britains
Anna del Conte, Italian Pantry,
Jack Denton Scott, Complete Book of Pasta (there is more than spaghetti and macaroni?)
Maria Pace, Little Italy Cookbook (recipes that were made both at home and in Italian immigrant restaurants)
Esther Aresty, The Delectable Past (culling of anecdotes & recipes from historical cookbooks. Here, useful for Apicius & ancient Roman cooking).
Angelo Pellegrino, Unpredjudice Palate (Tuscan immigrant to USA, whose day job was as university professor)
The Gallo brothers (reviled as they were), for restoring vineyards and the place of wine at table
Robert Mondavi and his family, ditto

I've thought about this a little more. If there's one Italian recipe that I associate with one author more than any other, it would be Artusi's crostini di fegatini di pollo (chicken liver crostini). Sure, there probably as many recipes as there are cooks who make this, however, I like the Artusi version. Admittedly, I do not follow the recipe word for word, but my version is very, very close.

I've had these crostini many times in many bars/caffès/etc. in Florence and the Artusi version is authentic, the benchmark recipe because of its legacy 125 year old status.

Emiko Davies has posted her own glammed up version of crostini here at Food52, but I prefer the plain rusticity of the Artusi version.

Here's the Artusi version both in the original Italian (not paraphrased) and English translation versions:

http://www.italymagazine.com/featured-story/italy-celebrates-gastronome-pellegrino-artusi

As for the Gossetti della Salda book, it is a unique and massive cookbook (2161 recipes + 13 base recipes).

There are two indexes. The first has a primary grouping by region, then by course, and finally concluding with lists of typical regional wines (DOC, DOS, and other notable non-denominazione wines).

The second index ("Indice analitico") is by course: antipasti, pizza, etc. The dishes are alphabetically listed along with region, recipe number, and page number.

Cookbooks that highlight regional cuisine are pretty rare. Another one is Diana Kennedy's "The Essential Cuisines of Mexico" but her book is grouped by course so you might find tacos from the Yucatan Peninsula next to tacos from Nayarit.

The Gossetti della Salda book is brilliant because each chapter is regional starting with Piemonte & Val d'Aosta working all the way down the Italian "boot" to Sicily, and ending up in Sardegna. Because of this grouping, just perusing the recipes (or the first index) feels like a culinary roadtrip down the Italian peninsula. This is really why I consider this the most enjoyable cookbook on my shelves to peruse.

Each regional chapter has a hand-drawn map of Italy and the featured region prominently highlighted. As mentioned before, within each regional chapter, the recipes are grouped by course and many of the dishes are attributed to a single town ("specialità di Grosseto").

Many of the recipes have notes and/or variants that suggest ingredient substitutions or how another nearby family or town would prepare the dish. Sometimes she calls out a similar dish in a different region (Tuscany's "pan molle"/"panzanella" is similar to Lazio's "panzanella" that has the same name.)

The notes sometimes include observations on how modern versions of the dish are prepared or how seasonality of a certain ingredient will require the cook to change the procedure. From time to time, you'll find a note -- particularly in desserts -- that the dish in question is made on a specific day (like the town's specific saint's feast).

The fact that she mentions modern interpretations means that many of these recipes are legacy: probably late nineteenth century,

The book itself has a unique aesthetic: cream-color paper and ink drawings, often more thematic (like a lamb for a recipe that uses lamb) than illustrative. The effect is timeless.

I love Your Guardian Chef's children's cookbook suggestion! I learned to bake as a kid (something I no longer do as I lost my sweet tooth as a young adult) but yes, children should learn to become comfortable in the kitchen. I do remember going to a cooking class as a pre-schooler or kindergartener though.

Guiliano Bugialli was one that got me more serious about it; he seems to have been largely forgotten, but I liked (if not always imitated) his uncompromising attitude toward materials and techniques.

Ali,

I suggest you contact some Italian chefs. Professional cooks often are influenced by different cookbook authors (often other professional chefs) than your typical home cook.

Carol Field is the archivist for Italian baking, both savory and sweet

i'm half italian, but did not grow up with the extended family but mom lived with italian grandmother for several years and learned some cooking from her and she passed several recipes down. i've read a lot of cookbooks and recipes on italian food, loved to watch mario batali, eaten italian food in italy and in little italys/north beach. my family is southern italian in origin and a more northern italian neighbor introduced me to polenta and grilled bread, sweetbreads, pasta in both tripe, fava beans and many other dishes. most of my cooking as a has a mediterranean bent although i am really enjoying learning asian cooking from youtube.

Oretta Zanini de Vita is an elderly Roman lady who Italian cooks make pilgrimages to visit, including Mario Batali, a great teacher in his own right. Some of the de Vita books can still be found, translated by my friend Maureen Fant.

My all-time favorite teacher and exponent of Italian cooking is/was Anna Teresa Callen. If you've not explored her recipes, you have a big treat coming. Also I've been lucky to study with Giuliano Bugialli and Lorenza De' Medici.

Pellegrino Artusi
Ada Boni