Italy?s economy relies on a successful tourism industry, but here Mario Matassa looks at what visitors find most infuriating? such as unreliable transport, busy streets and high hotel prices… Il turista felice Nonostante i tempi duri, quasi 31 milioni di turisti internazionali hanno visitato l?Italia nel 2011, con un incremento del 16,6% rispetto al 2010. […]
This simple ingredient has always been important for the Italian cook, so we embarked on a mission to discover the best Italian passata possible with these seven candidates. At the end of summer, when tomatoes are at their ripest and most tempting, growers all over Italy will be harvesting and cooking them into passata to […]
Anna Del Conte brings Italy to your kitchen and brightens up your cookery skills in her new book, Italian Kitchen… Italian Kitchen by Anna Del Conte, Square Peg, ?20 (hardback) This is one of those recipe books where you start marking your favourite pages, only to discover that ultimately you have littered the whole book […]
Blogger and teacher Amy Jones moved to Puglia two years ago and has found that teaching abroad and the slow pace of southern Italian life ? along with the fantastic food ? suits her down to the ground? What was your first experience of Italy? My first experience of Italy was actually a short trip […]
Angie McNee is living the dream ? after? relocating to Rome she was inspired by the use of seasonal ingredients and started her own dessert chocolate company, Squisitezza? When did you first fall for Italy? I was offered a job in Rome in 1994. I had only anticipated a brief six month stay, but by […]
If you would like to add authentic Italian cooking to your food repetoire then look no further than Salumi, where you can learn how best to dry cure your own meat… Salumi: The Craft of Italian Dry Curing by Michael Ruhlman and Brian Polcyn, WW Norton, ?25 (hardback) From the authors of Charcuterie comes this […]
Alastair Sawday’s handy little guide will help you find the best places to stay in Italy… Special Places to Stay: Italy Alastair Sawday Publishing, ?15.99 (paperback) Just as we would always prefer the recommendation of a close friend, so do we entrust the experts at Alastair Sawday to give us the best places to stay. […]
We?ve got some superb Italian Christmas gift ideas to prepare you for the festive season? Tuscan, tasty, and oh-so-pretty, we love this adorable trio of stackable specialities from Trattoria La Vialla. New to their range for Christmas 2012, this gift pack contains 250ml bottles of extra-virgin olive oil, Tuscan wine vinegar and balsamic vinegar of […]
Italy?s independent businesses are at the heart of its culture, and the lack of chain stores is part of its charm. Mario Matassa embarks on a restaurant venture of his own and joins the ranks of family-owned businesses? Diversit? L?Italia ? un paese legato alla piccole imprese a conduzione familiare e sto per entrare nelle […]
From a religious calling comes the voice from Assisi as Friar Alessandro lands himself a major record deal… We at Italia! are rather excited about Friar Alessandro ? the first friar in the history of music to land a major record deal. The tenor, who hails from Assisi in Umbria, has been signed to Decca […]