Roma in Cucina

The Italian publisher Sime Books has done something wonderful with their …in Cucina series, offering regional cookbooks not shaped by considerations of whether unadventurous Americans will eat dishes that contain things they may never before have eaten.

While some volumes in this series draw heavily on the food of restaurants, the Roman entry focuses more on earthy home fare, appropriate in a city known for a nose-to-tail appreciation of the animals it consumes.

Many well-known Roman standards are here, such as artichokes in the Jewish-style and pasta carbonara, but so are less familiar delights as broccoli and skate soup, sausages tossed with turnip greens, and baked doughnuts flavored with red wine and anise. The recipes are terse and assume good kitchen skills. Wine pairings are suggested for each dish.

One bonus: the photography of both food and the environment from which is springs is absolutely beautiful. As in all these volumes, the text is in both Italian and English. 

Color photographs throughout. Hardcover.