Tasting Italy

The experts at America's Test Kitchen and National Geographic bring Italy's magnificent cuisine, culture, and landscapes--and 100 authentic regional recipes--right to your kitchen.

Featuring 100 innovative, kitchen-tested recipes, 300 gorgeous color photographs, and 30 maps, this illustrated guide takes you on a captivating journey through the rich history of Italian cuisine, region by region. Rich excerpts feature the origins of celebrated cheeses, the nuances of different wine growing regions, the best farmer's markets in Venice, and more. Intriguing prose illuminates key ingredients, from olive oil and how it's made to the various pasta shapes of Northern Italy. In every region, the food experts at America's Test Kitchen bring it all home, with foolproof recipes for standout dishes as well as hidden gems: Piedmontese braised beef in lustrous red wine sauce, crispy-custardy chickpea flour farinata pancakes from Genoa (achieved without the specialty pan and wood-burning oven), and hand-formed rustic malloreddus pasta of Sardinia that is a breeze to make.

AMERICA'S TEST KITCHEN: The recipes in this book have been tested, written, and edited by the test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists at America's Test Kitchen, a 15,000-square-foot kitchen located in Boston's Seaport District. It is the home of Cook's Illustrated magazine and Cook's Country magazine, the public television shows America's Test Kitchen and Cook's Country from America's Test Kitchen, and the online America's Test Kitchen Cooking School.

JULIA DELLA CROCE is one of America's foremost authorities on Italian food. She is the author of more than 13 cooking and travel books. She has also conducted cultural and culinary tours to Italy. Her work has appeared in many publications including the New York Times, Food & Wine, and the Washington Post. She has been broadcast on countless radio and national television shows, including on the Food Network. She lives in New York City.

EUGENIA BONE is a nationally known food journalist and author. She has written for Saveur, Food & Wine, Gourmet, Martha Stewart Living, the New York Times, and the Wall Street Journal. She is the author of five books. Her work has been anthologized in Best Food Writing, Saveur, Cooks, and The Food & Wine Cookbook. Bone has lectured widely and judged food and wine competitions, and she frequently appears on national television and radio. She lives in New York City.