THE TUCCI COOKBOOK

    Thoroughly enjoyed Stanley Tucci in films, especially his terrific Big Night.  We have the video and have watched it umpteen times, discovering something new and enjoyable with each viewing.  It is the story of two brothers who gamble on one amazing dish to save their failing restaurant.  The food scenes literally make your mouth water.  If you haven’t seen it I heartily recommend it just as I do this cookbook.

    Early on Tucci relates a story, “Throughout my childhood, almost every night in the middle of dinner, my father would shake his head and ask, ‘What does the rest of the world eat?’  That’s how good my mother’s cooking has always been - to my dad, it was inconceivable that anyone could possibly eat as well as we did.  And I always agreed with him.”  After trying just a handful of the 200 delicious recipes in this book it’s obvious that the Tuccis ate very, very well.

    The book opens with an introduction to the Tucci family.  This section is filled not only with biographical data but warm recollections and smile-bringing anecdotes.  We clearly see Stanley Tucci’s devotion to and respect for his forebears.  Next are some pages devoted to wine by Tyler Coleman, which includes clear descriptions of how to pair wine with food along with other more than helpful notations.

    Now, for the feast!  Recipes are arranged as the meal is served beginning with appetizers and salads or cicchetti, a Venetian term for “little bites.”  Here we’re reminded that the appetizers along with a green salad and bread makes a meal in itself.  This has become a personal favorite supper for us, especially utilizing the White Bean Antipasto.

    Tucci overlooks nothing in ensuing chapters which offer soups, bread and pizza, pasta, rice and risotto, vegetables, meat, poultry, fish and, of course, deserts - dolci!

    Both useful and delightful The Tucci Cookbook is a gem among many.  As the old adage reminds us, “Most of the world eats to live, but Italians live to eat .”  Indeed!