Frommer's Food Lover's Companion to Italy (Frommer's Food Lover's Companion)

Rating:
Summary: A great introduction to regional Italian cuisines
Review: There is no such thing as "Italian cooking" and I think Frommer's Food Lover's Companion to Italy is a great introductory tool to learn about the different foods of each region of Italy. My mother's family came from central Italy and I grew up eating great dishes like homemade pasta, risotto, gnocchis, and polenta. However, my knowledge of the cuisines of other regions was limited and I found this little book to be of great value in showing how each region differs from the others.

This is not a cookbook, but I've found it to be enlightening in helping me discover what other types of Italian cooking I'd appreciate. I've bought cookbooks on Liguria, Piedmont, and Emilia-Romagna based to a very great extent on what I read in this book. There's a lot of relevant information on the foods of each region, as well as some discussion on regional specialties like risotto in Piedmont, polenta in the Veneto, and farrinata in Liguria.

This is one of two books that I keep at work to browse through while eating lunch. The other is Judy Ridgway's "The Olive Oil Companion". Quite often I thumb through the Frommer book to see variations of my favorite foods and think about dinners that lie ahead. If anything, this little book has enhanced my love of Italian foods.