Italy is experiencing a surge of gastronomic nostalgia, a yearning to recreate and relive the delectable rustic meals of yesteryear, of brimming chalices of wine and sauce-laden pasta.
It is always important to know where we come from to have a more objective and informed vision of who we are..
There were no heroes or villains, just people struggling to survive. -Tom Jaine, Food writer, publisher, critic, and restaurateur Moyer-nocchi succeeds in conveying a world that needs to be remembered and appreciated in its complexity.
A brilliant reconstruction of the kitchens and cookery (and much else besides) of a previous generation.
It is an eloquent dissection of the nuances of the world\'s favorite cooking as well as a magical exercise in memory.
This book lays bare the multiple dimensions of Italian gastronomy: geography, politics, social background, education and economics.
A remarkable insight into the realities of Italian food.
Engrossing and engaging, Chewing the Fat gently debunks the myths of Italy\'s gastronomic nostalgia industry, revealing a culture of food that is surprisingly different from the image most people have of Italian cuisine.
The narratives are separated by astringent, yet entertaining essay briefs, illuminating various aspects of gastronomic History and daily life in fascist Italy.
Each woman contributes a recipe chosen specifically to reflect what food was like when she was growing up under Mussolini.
What follows are eighteen remarkable Oral narratives, each building upon the last to create a mosaic of Italian foodways, from the fascist era through to the post World War II boom, the Dolce Vita.
All of the interviewees had lived through the harrowing years called the Ventennio fascista, the twenty-year reign of Fascism in Italy, and were eager to have their final say.
Her travels spanned from the far north to the deep south, as well as Italy\'s former landholdings.
Determined to separate out the folklore from the fakelore and reveal the intriguing yet uncelebrated past of Italian foodways, food historian Karima Moyer-nocchi interviewed Italian ninetysomething women from various walks of life, from charcoal-makers to countesses.
As for standard, rustic fare, such meals bore little resemblance to what is now considered-even in Italy-traditional Italian food.
If there was a glorious yesteryear of Italian feasting, it was enjoyed only by society\'s elite.
A return to the simple abundance of Italy\'s past Ah, if only it were true.
Italy is experiencing a surge of gastronomic nostalgia, a yearning to recreate and relive the delectable rustic meals of yesteryear, of brimming chalices of wine and sauce-laden pasta
