C.J. Braden • 5 Minute Read
Why We Love Italian Food
All over the United States and indeed the world, the one type of cuisine that regularly tops the list of “food everyone loves”, is Italian cooking and it never loses its appeal.
Crostoli Cookies
My Italian grandmother taught me quite a bit about Italian cooking. I fell head over heels with the food and culture at a very young age as we danced around a bowl of Crostoli dough, while singing a song to ensure the cookies would turn out perfectly.
She also taught me a super easy, 30 minute Broccoli Shells e Olia d’Oliva recipe. Get it by clicking this link.
Italian Antipasto
So just why do we love Italian food so much? Let’s journey together from Tuscany to Naples to find out.
Italian Pasta
It’s More Than Food
Just mention the words “pizza” or “Fettucini” and one can almost instantly hear Andrea Bocelli or Luciano Pavarotti start singing in the background.
Whether it’s designer shoes, sports cars, or food, the Italians seem to have a lot of life figured out. Italians have an unmatched lust for life, the eternal quest of la dolce vita and this permeates into their cuisine.
Pink Cannoli
After all, when the rest of the world went into a global lockdown, they stood on the balconies and sung opera together and to and for each other to keep their spirits up while the country was battered by the Coronavirus.
Biscotti and Coffee
Probably the first and most important factor that makes Italian cooking so deliciously appealing is the demand it places on using fresh ingredients. The quality of the products that one uses in Italian cooking holds a direct influence on the quality of the outcome, and this is probably down to the widespread availability of locally farmed produce all over Italy and what gives each region its distinctive flavor as what is abundantly available in each region is what ultimate features on the dinner table.
There are all in all, 20 different regions in Italy and each has a signature plate.
Penne Pasta Dish
SIMPLE, UNCOMPLICATED, AND ELEGANT
As da Vinci once said, “simplicity is the ultimate sophistication” and nowhere is this more true than in Italian cooking. The emphasis in Italian cooking is togetherness and family, not pretentious and bourgeois affectations, the endless waxing of high-brow society.
That’s not to say that Italians don’t take their food seriously, in fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find a nation that could compete with them, but Italians know that the real honesty in food, is in its sharing and preparation, not in gloating.
Italian seasonings
Italians are obsessed with the freshest possible ingredients that are prepared with minimal fuss and processing and this means that their food is healthier than many other types of European cuisine (here’s looking at you, England) and this is another factor that makes plates of steaming pasta so tempting.
As a note, pasta in and of itself is not necessarily a fattening dish, but the key is to make your own pasta (it’s easier than you think).
Italian Cannoli
TASTING ITALY
If you’re just starting out learning how to cook Italian food or if you want to rediscover your love of Italian food, then you have to try this three cheese recipe for Manicotti shells - try it now! And of course, there are plenty more where that came from.
Try your hand at homemade authentic Italian pizza (put that pineapple away…), invite your friends and family over, and indulge in some fine Italian wines to complete the pairing, and if you’ve had any doubt at all this will bring you around pretty quick.
Italian Pizza
C.J. Braden is a regular contributor for Carolyn’s Blooming Creations. She has been featured in numerous media publications such as InStyle Magazine, on HGTV, on Bustle.com, and more. She is the author of the books Georgia McMasters in Amethyst Lake Cemetery, How To Be Yourself: 3 Little Ways to Get Back To You Being You, and the illustrator for the children’s book Bridging Connections. She is a former classroom teacher that now dedicates her life to educating others on how to live their most healthy, creative and happy life. Learn more about her visiting our About Us page.
This is a sponsored article. All opinions and ideas expressed in this post, however, are based on my personal point of view.