PRESERVING ITALY: CANNING, CURING, INFUSING, AND BOTTLING ITALIAN FLAVORS AND TRADITIONS

It all started when I set out to recreate my maternal grandmother’s Amarene Sotto Spirito (sour cherries preserved in alcohol). She never wrote down the recipe, but between my mom, my collection of old Italian cookbooks, and other sources in Italy, I came up with a version of this boozy, syrupy preserve ~ the best after-dinner treat ever ~ that would have made my nonna proud. The experience left me wondering how many other traditional recipes for sweet and savory preserves ~ preserves in oil, preserves in vinegar, salt- or sugar-cured preserves, and so on, were in danger of falling into obscurity. My interest quickly turned into a passion project and this book was born.

In it you’ll find recipes for classics such as Giardiniera (mixed vegetable pickle), Peperoni Sott’Olio (roasted peppers preserved in oil), Pickled Eggplant, Tomato Passata, and Tomato Sauce. But the book goes far beyond, exploring a wide variety of preserving techniques: brine-cured and salt-cured olives; home-cured pancetta and homemade sausages; seasoned salts and seasoned vinegars; confections such as Panforte and Torrone; and liqueurs including Limocello, Nocino, and Crema al Caffè.

And of course, my nonna’s Amarene Sotto Spirito.