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Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking: A Cookbook Hardcover – January 1, 2012

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From award-winning, bestselling “queen of Italian cooking” (Chicago Tribune), a culinary bible for anyone looking to master the art of Italian cooking.

Essentials of Italian Cooking is a culinary bible for anyone looking to master the art of Italian cooking, bringing together Marcella Hazan’s most beloved books, The Classic Italian Cook Book and More Classic Italian Cooking, in a single volume. Designed as a basic manual for cooks of all levels of expertise—from beginners to accomplished professionals—it offers both an accessible and comprehensive guide to techniques and ingredients and a collection of the most delicious recipes from the Italian repertoire. As home cooks who have used Marcella’s classic books for years (and whose copies are now splattered and worn) know, there is no one more gifted at teaching us just what we need to know about the taste and texture of a dish and how to achieve it, and there is no one more passionate and inspiring about authentic Italian food.

Print length

704 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Alfred A. Knopf
Publication date

January 1, 2012
Dimensions

7.1 x 1.8 x 9.5 inches
ISBN-10

039458404X
ISBN-13

978-0394584041
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Perhaps more than any other person, Marcella Hazan is responsible for bringing Italian cuisine into the homes of American cooks. We're not talking spaghetti and meatballs here--Hazan's cuisine consists of polenta, risotto, squid braised with tomatoes and white wine, sautéed swiss chard with olive oil and garlic.... Twenty years ago, when Hazan first exploded into the American consciousness with The Classic Italian Cook Book and More Classic Italian Cooking, such recipes were revolutionary. With time, however, these classic dishes have become much-beloved family favorites.

Now a new generation is ready to be introduced to Marcella Hazan's way with food, and in Essentials of Italian Cooking Hazan combines her two earlier works into one update and expanded volume. In addition to the delicious collection of recipes, this book serves as a basic manual for cooks of every skill level. Recipes have been revised to reduce fat content, and a whole new chapter full of fundamental information about herbs, spices, and cheeses used in Italian kitchens--as well as details on how to select specific ingredients--has been added. New chapters, new recipes--who could ask for more than Essentials of Italian Cooking?

From Publishers Weekly

In the language of cookbooks, the word "classic" is bandied about nearly as frequently as the terms "low-fat" and "no-cholesterol." In this case, however, the estimable Hazan ( More Classic Italian Cooking ) does indeed contribute a classic to the ever-increasing literature of Italian cuisine. A revision and update of her two previous "classic" Italian cookbooks (with more than 35 completely new recipes), this one includes recipes not "in pursuit of novelty, but of taste." As Hazan puts it, the book "is meant to be used as a kitchen handbook . . . for cooks of every level . . . who want an accessible and comprehensive guide to the products, the techniques, and the dishes that constitute imperishable Italian cooking." From marinated carrot sticks to sweet-and-sour tuna steaks, Trapani style, to tortellini with fish stuffing and polenta shortcake with raisins, dried figs and pine nuts, the outstanding recipes--many of them poetically simple--are too numerous to do justice to in few words. Included is a spirited discussion of squid and the essentials of preparing fresh pasta, gnocchi (potato dumplings), authentic risotto, frittate and polenta dishes. While writing from Venice, her home for much of the year, Hazan never fails to consider the availability of ingredients in the U.S., and never assumes that all readers understand complex methods or exotic terminology. This volume is the perfect gift for a new homemaker, a seasoned chef and all lovers of good food. Illustrated. 40,000 first printing; Home Style Book Club main selection, BOMC alternate.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Hazan's The Classic Italian Cookbook (1976) and More Italian Cooking (1978) are the standards in the field, and now, almost 20 years after the publication of the first title, they are available in a single volume, completely revised and updated. A few recipes have been cut, about 50 new ones added, and just about every recipe from the originals has been rewritten and, where deemed necessary, revised. Italian cooking, as opposed to the Italian American fare passed off in so many restaurants, has become all the rage here in the last several years; with the reappearance of Hazan's classics, it's strikingly apparent how far ahead of their time they were the first time around. The only disappointment is that the lengthy, thoughtful menu suggestions with each recipe have been dropped. An essential purchase. HomeStyle main selection; BOMC alternate.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

“If this were the only cookbook you owned, neither you nor those you cooked for would ever get bored.” —Nigella Lawson

From the Inside Flap

With more than 100 illustrations by Karin Kretschman.

About the Author

MARCELLA HAZAN was born in Cesenatico, a fishing village on the Adriatic in Emilia-Romagna, Italy’s foremost gastronomic region. After receiving her doctorates from the University of Ferrara in natural sciences and in biology, she lived and traveled throughout Italy. With the publication of The Classic Italian Cook Book and More Classic Italian Cooking (brought together in a single volume, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking), her reputation as America’s premier teacher of Italian cooking spread throughout the country. Hazan died in 2013.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Risi e Bisi—Rice and Peas
On April 25, while all of Italy celebrates the day the country was liberated from Fascist and German rule, Venice celebrates its own most precious day, the birthday of St. Mark, patron saint of the republic that lasted 1,000 years. The tradition used to be that in honor of the apostle, on April 25th, one had one’s first taste of the dish that for the remainder of the spring season became the favorite of the Venetian table, risi e bisi, rice and peas.

No alternative to fresh peas is suggested in the ingredients list, because the essential quality of this dish resides in the flavor that only good, fresh peas possess. To make peas taste even sweeter, many Italian families add the pods to the pot. If you follow the instructions below that describe how to prepare the pods for cooking, you will acquire a technique that will be useful in many other recipes that call for peas. The other vital component of the flavor of risi e bisi is homemade broth, for which no satisfactory substitute can be recommended.

Risi e bisi is not risotto with peas. It is a soup, albeit a very thick one. Some cooks make it thick enough to eat with a fork, but it is at its best when it is just runny enough to require a spoon.

For 4 servings

2 pounds fresh, young peas, weighed with the pods
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
2 tablespoons chopped onion
Salt
3 1/2 cups Basic Homemade Meat Broth
1 cup Italian rice
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

1. Shell the peas. Keep 1 cupful of the empty pods, selecting the crispest unblemished ones, and discard the rest.
2. Separate the two halves of each pod. Take a half pod, turning the glossy, inner, concave side that held the peas toward you. That side is lined by a tough, film-like membrane that you must pull off. Hold the pod with one hand, and with the other snap one end, pulling it down gently against the pod itself. You will find the thin membrane coming away without resistance. Because it is so thin, it is likely to break off before you have detached it entirely. Don’t fuss over it: Keep the skinned portion of the pod, snap the other end of the pod and try to remove the remaining section of membrane. Cut off and discard those parts of any pod that you have been unable to skin completely. It’s not necessary to end up with perfect whole pods since they will dissolve in the cooking anyway. Any skinned piece will serve the purpose, which is that of sweetening the soup. Add all the prepared pod pieces to the shelled peas, soak in cold water, drain, and set aside.
3. Put the butter and onion in a soup pot and turn on the heat to medium. Sauté the onion until it becomes colored a pale gold, then add the peas and the stripped-down pods, and a good pinch of salt to keep the peas green. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes, stirring to coat the peas well.
4. Add 3 cups of the broth, cover the pot, and adjust the heat so the broth bubbles at a slow, gentle boil for 10 minutes.
5. Add the rice and the remaining 1/2 cup of broth, stir, cover the pot again, and cook at a steady moderate boil until the rice is tender, but firm to the bite, about 20 minutes or so. Stir occasionally while the soup is cooking.
6. When the rice is done, stir in the parsley, then the grated Parmesan. Taste and correct for salt, then turn off the heat.

Orecchiette
Apulia, the region that extends over the entire heel and half the instep of the boot-shaped Italian peninsula, has a strong tradition of homemade pasta. Unlike the tortellini, tagliatelle, and lasagne of Emilia-Romagna, Apulian pasta is made with water instead of eggs, and the flour is mostly from their native hard-wheat variety, rather than from the soft wheat of the Emilian plain. Apulian dough is chewier, firmer, more rustic in texture. It is perfectly suited to the strongly accented sauces of the region.

The best-known shape of Apulian pasta is orecchiette, “little ears,” small disks of dough given their ear-like shape by a rotary pressure of the thumb. In the recipe that follows, hard-wheat flour is mixed with standard, unbleached flour to make a dough easier to work.

For 6 servings

1 cup semolina, the yellow flour from hard wheat, ground very fine
2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
Up to 1 cup lukewarm water

1. Combine the semolina, the all-purpose flour, and salt on your work counter, making a mound with a well in the center. Add a few tablespoons of water at a time, incorporating it with the flour until it has absorbed as much water as it can without becoming stiff and dry. The consistency must not be sticky, but it can be somewhat softer than egg pasta.
2. Scrape away any crumbs of flour from the work surface, wash and dry your hands, and knead the mass for about 8 minutes, until it is smooth and elastic.
3. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest about 15 minutes.
4. Pull off a ball about the size of a lemon from the kneaded mass, rewrapping the rest of the dough. Roll the ball into a sausage-like roll about 1/2 inch thick. Slice it into very thin disks, about 1/16 inch, if you are able. Place a disk in the cupped palm of one hand, and with a rotary pressure of the thumb of the other hand, make a hollow in the center, broadening the disk to a width of about 1 inch. The shape should resemble a shallow mushroom cap, slightly thicker at its edges than at its center. Repeat the procedure until you have used up all the dough.
5. If you are not using the orecchiette immediately, spread them out to dry on clean, dry cloth towels, turning them over from time to time. When they are fully dry, after about 24 hours, you can store them in a box in a kitchen cupboard for a month or more. They are cooked like any other pasta but will take longer than conventional fresh egg pasta.

Mantovana—Olive Oil Bread
If you follow the eastern-bound course of the Po river, Italy’s largest, as it slices much of northern Italy in two, with parts of Lombardy and the Veneto on its left bank, and Emilia-Romagna on its right, you will be traveling across some of the country’s best bread territory, once studded with flour mills powered by the river’s currents.

These handsome loaves, notable for their fine, crisp, tasty crust, and soft crumb are popular on both the Emilia and the Lombardy side, but take their name from the ancient ducal town of Mantua, in Lombardy.

2 mantovane loaves

2 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 cups lukewarm water
1/4 teaspoon sugar
About 5 cups unbleached flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
A baking stone
A baker’s peel (paddle), 16 by 14 inches, or a cookie sheet or large piece of stiff cardboard
Cornmeal
A pastry brush

1. Dissolve the yeast completely in a large bowl by stirring it into 1/4 cup lukewarm water with the 1/4 teaspoon sugar added. When dissolved, in 10 minutes or less, add 2 cups flour and 3/4 cup water, and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon.
2. If kneading by hand: Pour the contents of the bowl onto a lightly floured work surface, and knead steadily for about 10 minutes. Push forward against the dough, using the heel of your palm and keeping your fingers bent. Fold the mass in half, give it a quarter turn, press hard against it with the heel of your palm again, and repeat the operation. Make sure that you keep turning the ball of dough always in the same direction, either clockwise or counterclockwise as you prefer. Add a little more flour, if you find it necessary to make the dough workable, and dust your hands with flour if they stick to the dough. Knead until the dough is no longer sticky, but smooth and elastic. It should spring back when poked with a finger. Shape it into a ball.
If using the food processor: Pour 2 cups flour into the processor bowl, with the steel blade running add the dissolved yeast gradually, together with 3/4 cup water. When the dough comes together forming a lump on the blades, take it out and finish kneading it by hand for 1 or 2 minutes.
3. Choose an ample bowl, dust the inside lightly with flour, and put in the dough. Wring out a wet cloth towel, fold it in two, and cover the bowl with it. Place the bowl in a warm, draft-free place, and let it rest for about 3 hours, until it has doubled in bulk.
4. If kneading by hand: Pour the remaining 3 cups flour onto the work surface. Place the risen ball of dough over the flour, punching it down and opening it with your hands. Pour the remaining 1 cup lukewarm water over it, and add the salt and the olive oil. Knead steadily as described above.
If using the food processor: Pour the remaining flour into the processor’s bowl. Put in the risen dough, and the salt, and gradually add first the 1 cup lukewarm water, then the salt and the olive oil, while running the steel blades. Take out the dough when it forms a lump on the blades, and finish kneading it by hand for 1 or 2 minutes.
5. Return the kneaded dough to the floured bowl, cover it with a damp towel, and let it rest until it has doubled in bulk again, about 3 more hours.
6. Thirty or more minutes before you are ready to bake, put the baking stone in the oven and preheat oven to 450°.
7. When the dough has again risen to double its bulk, take the dough out of the bowl, and slap it down very hard several times, until it is stretched out lengthwise. Reach for the far end of the dough, fold it a short distance toward you, push it away with the heel of your palm, flexing your wrist, fold it, and push it away again, gradually rolling it up and bringing it close to you. It will have a tapered, roll-like shape. Pick up the dough, holding it by one of the tapered ends, lift it high above the counter, and slap it down hard again several times, stretching it out in a lengthwise direction. Reach for the far end, and repeat the kneading motion with the heel of your palm and your wrist, bringing it close to you once more. Work the dough in this manner for 8 minutes.
8. Divide the dough in half, shaping each half into a thick, cigar-shaped roll, quite plump at the middle and tapered at the ends. Sprinkle the peel (or the suggested alternatives) thinly with cornmeal, making sure the meal is well distributed over the surface. Place both shaped loaves on the peel, cover with a damp towel, and let them rest 30 to 40 minutes.
9. With a sharp knife or a razor blade, make a single lengthwise slash 1 inch deep along the top of each loaf. Brush the upper surface of the dough with a pastry brush dipped in water. Slide the loaves from the peel onto the preheated baking stone. Bake for 12 minutes, then turn the oven down to 375° and bake for 45 minutes more. When done, transfer the loaves to a cooling rack, and let the bread cool completely before cutting and serving it.

Ricotta and Coffee Cream
This intriguingly good combination of ricotta, rum, and coffee may be the easiest dessert I have ever learned to make. It can all be done in less than 3 seconds in the food processor or, for a firmer consistency, by beating the mixture with 2 forks held in one hand. Please note that the cream needs to set in the refrigerator overnight before serving.

For 6 servings

1 1/2 pounds fresh ricotta
2/3 cup granulated sugar
5 tablespoons dark rum
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons very strong espresso coffee
Garnish: 36 espresso coffee beans

1. Put the ricotta, sugar, rum, and coffee into the food processor and process to a creamy consistency.
2. Pour the mixture into 6 individual glass dessert coupes, and store in the refrigerator overnight.
3. Just before serving, arrange 6 fresh, crisp coffee beans in a circular or other pleasing pattern over the cream. Serve cold.
Note Do not refrigerate with the beans or they will become soggy.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Alfred A. Knopf; First Edition (January 1, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 704 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 039458404X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0394584041
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.67 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.1 x 1.8 x 9.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #34,913 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #21 in Pasta & Noodle Cooking
- #46 in Italian Cooking, Food & Wine
- #245 in Celebrity & TV Show Cookbooks

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Marcella Hazan

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Marcella Hazan, the acknowledged godmother of Italian cooking in America, is the author of The Classic Italian Cookbook, More Classic Italian Cooking, Marcella's Italian kitchen, and Essentials of Italian Cooking .She lives in Venice, Italy, and Longboat Key, Florida.

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Anonymous

From a foodie, Oh! What a goldmine.

Reviewed in the United States on October 14, 2009

Verified Purchase

I bought the book after reading the other reviews here at Amazon. I was searching for a book to teach the basics of traditional Italian cooking. What I got was a treasure chest packed with priceless information on "all things" classic Italian cooking. I skimmed through the book when I first got it. I'm in the process of reading it in depth now and have made a couple dishes from the recipes that looked interesting as I read though them. Pasta and bean soup made with home made pasta and cranberry beans. I had never heard of cranberry beans and was prepared to substitute red kidney beans as the recipe suggested but low and behold... Central Market had the real deal in the bulk section so I was able to prepare the dish with dried cranberry beans. I was really happy I found the cranberry beans because they are nothing like kidney beans. They're more like pintos only twice as big. I had never made home made pasta before but Ms. Hazan's instructions were detailed and exact. I was able to turn out a reasonable noodle and further, the experience taught me that I really do need a pasta machine. And, I just bought one here before writing this review.

I digress. Of the handful of dishes I've prepared from the book's recipes, I can say all were rich and flavorful, delicious. My favorite so far has to be the Bolognese meat sauce, which I served with baked rigatoni. Seriously, the Bolognese meat sauce may be the best thing I've ever eaten. Everything I've prepared to date is far superior fare than the typical olive oil drenched, garlic laced American Italian foods I'm used too. I was shocked to find out that Ms. Hazan cooks with butter and vegetable oil much more often than with olive oil. Watching Italian Americans cooking on typical TV cooking shows available here in the USA had me convinced that classic Italian cooking was all about olive oil and garlic. Not so. And, while pasta is up there in my top 10 favorite foods, the breadth and depth of Italian cooking is so much more than spaghetti, lasagna and calamari.

This book will not only provide you with great detailed recipes that generate truly great food, it will teach you skills needed to make classic Italian foods with traditional methods. The writing is clear and directions are easy to follow. Ms. Hazan breaks the most tedious processes down to clearly defined steps. The book is a pleasure to read. It is truly entertaining.

14 people found this helpful

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Just Peachy

One of the Best Italian Cookbooks

Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2024

Verified Purchase

This book is chock full of Italian recipes, both traditional and those with a newer twist. It's a great gift for the chef in your life!

2 people found this helpful

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Frankie & Johnny

Yes, it is that good!

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2024

Verified Purchase

The high reviews led me to buy this, Im not sure why I haven't had this cookbook for many years. Ive made about 5 recipes so far, and have been so happy with them. A lot of recipes are very simple, just make sure you use good quality ingredients (San Marzano tomatoes) And definitely make the bolognese!

6 people found this helpful

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R. Smith

Eye opening. A great book.

Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2020

Verified Purchase

This book is fabulous. I was never interested in italian cooking because so much of it here in the States is pizza and marinara. That's great stuff, but it's not the whole story about Italian cooking. In fact, it may be that pizza and tomato sauce are so good that the rest of Italian cuisine doesn't get the attention it deserves.

This book gives a much richer and varied and wonderful picture of Italian cooking, and does it in a way that respects the entire country of Italy, not just a select region or two.

There's a lot in this book and it's not something to quickly summarize, but here are a couple of key things I learned: 1) Really, really good italian cooking is often so simple that it's absurdly and humorously simple. It doesn't seem like it should work, but it does. Very easy. Few ingredients. Quick. It's a form of magic. 2) Parmesan cheese really is versatile and important. Other hard cheeses like romano and asiago are too. Indispensable. I'm happy with inexpensive domestic varieties, but some are definitely better than others. 3) A greater appreciation of the wide variety of pastas available. And the wonderful dishes that have no pasta in them. 4) Some of the best italian dishes have no tomato in them. 4) How to use things like basil to great effect. 5) Basic techniques. Some of the best lessons about cooking are in the basics of a cuisine.

I'm sure that seems elementary to people who grew up with italian cuisine, but it's all new to me. And it is very well revealed by Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.

11 people found this helpful

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Renee Mizrahi

Good classic cookbook

Reviewed in the United States on January 25, 2024

Verified Purchase

It’s a classic. There are a lot of recipes here, many of which I am not familiar with. The book is full of recipes but does not have all those good porn photos of today’s coffee table cookbooks. It’s no nonsense and you have to read, not look at photos.

4 people found this helpful

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Robert

Wonderfull book , terrible packing by amazon

Reviewed in Mexico on May 5, 2023

Verified Purchase

The book is Wonderfull, but my book had a lot of damage. For some reason amazon sends books in boxes or plastic bags without any kind of cushion. The book covers all the basics of traditional Italian cuisine really good, is text and some drawings, no pictures of the dishes, but is really good.

Cliente Amazon

Excelente

Reviewed in Brazil on July 24, 2021

Verified Purchase

Um clássico, ensina com detalhes sem frescura. Explica as origens dos pratos, como devem ser executados. Muito interessante para quem ama culinária, além da simples execução de receitas.

2 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Fantastic book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 17, 2023

Verified Purchase

On,y just arrived but it looks to be the absolute Business on Italian cookery. Good quality book, big and heavy, nice paper, clear print big enough to read easily . Nice line drawings, no unnecessary glossy photos of vegetables or markets. This book assumes you know a bit about cooking. I can’t wait to get stuck in! It’s going to be my go to cook book.

Yman

Doskonałe źródło wiedzy o tradycyjnej włoskiej kuchni

Reviewed in Poland on September 7, 2023

Verified Purchase

Nic dodać, nic ująć, bardzo fajnie opisana i napisana książka, z masą inspiracji i wiedzy o tradycyjnej włoskiej kuchni.

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AM A CUSTOMER

Thankyou Marcella for simple Italian dishes to learn.

Reviewed in India on January 18, 2022

Verified Purchase

I once made a risotto of sea food following instructions from the Arborio rice packet. The method for simple risotto by Marcella is the same. Though some rich ingredients used by me made the dish be appreciated by all though I felt it a bit sticky.

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Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking: A Cookbook Hardcover – January 1, 2012

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