Taste of Naples - (Big City Food Biographies) by Marlena Spieler (Paperback)

About the Book

Naples is an international and deeply traditional city, especially in its foodstyle and cuisine. Its mysteries reveal themselves the more you learn about it. Marlena Spieler takes readers on a vivid tour of this vibrant culinary culture with recipes and history, as well as an exploration of the dishes of holidays and celebrations.

Book Synopsis

Naples is an international and deeply traditional city, especially in its foodstyle and cuisine. Its mysteries reveal themselves the more you learn about it. Marlena Spieler takes readers on a vivid tour of this vibrant culinary culture with recipes and history, as well as an exploration of the dishes of holidays and celebrations.

Review Quotes

A love letter to the history, traditions and culinaria of one of the richest and most complex regions of Italy.

Food writer Spieler passionately extols the food and culinary traditions of Naples. With its looming volcano of Vesuvius, overcrowding, and history of organized crime, the gritty city of Naples is often ignored in favor of touristy Tuscany and Rome. Yet Naples gave the world pizza, marinara sauce, and zeppole, Spieler writes, and she begins with an early history of the city, from the Greeks in the seventh century BCE (who named the city Neapolis, or new city) to Italyrsquo;s unification in 1860 under Giuseppe Garibaldi (many of his soldiers from the north had never tasted pasta). Spieler includes chapters on pasta and pizza, festivals and celebrations, the fruit and vegetables that flourish in volcanic soil, and ldquo;how to eat like a Neapolitan.rdquo; The heart of the book, though, is the cityrsquo;s deeply embedded food culture, which Spieler explains is deeply intertwined with the penny-frugal but taste-rich habits of the poor: there are pages on the abundant San Marzano plum tomato (ldquo;fragrant, fleshy... and bright skin that peels off easilyrdquo;) and also plenty about pasta, such as linguine alle vongole, ldquo;one of the most iconic dishes.rdquo; Her enthusiasm and knowledge will likely inspire travelers to Italy to add a stop on their trip.

I trust Marlena completely when it comes to anything to do with delicious, smile inducing foods and food cultures. But when it comes to Campagna, to Naples, to all the vibrant goodness of Southern Italy, shersquo;s my go-to gal. I know itrsquo;s best to saddle up (preferably on a water buffalo) and get ready for the gastronomic ride of my life. This book ought to come with bread, to sop up the extra goodness sloshing over the sides.

Naples and its region in all its vivacitagrave; and deliciousness come to life in Marlena Spielerrsquo;s fascinating, perceptive, and utterly charming tribute to Campania, a place, a spectacle, a state of mind she has embraced with tenderness and clarity. The result is a warm, learned, and engaging guide to local history, habits, customs, lore, food, and psyche, the most comprehensive by far written in English. Not only is the author a lively storyteller with, it seems, a Neapolitan soul, but also a masterful cook with a virtual native understanding of how to reproduce genuine Italian cooking for the English-speaking reader. This is a loving, knowledgable and rare sort of food book, marvelous to read and a joy to cook from.

Part travel guide, part cook#39;s memoir, this charming little book delivers a true taste of a quirky, elusive city.

Traipsing through the foodways of Naples with the legendary Marlena Spieler is pure joy. Is there anyone more enthusiastic, more willing to immerse herself in the mystery and magic of such a place? In her writing I can smell the pizza in the wood oven, hear the sauce bubbling like a riot, and taste the melons that have, as she says, #39;made a pact with the sun#39;. Her writing is as juicy as they are, and as satisfying.

About the Author

Marlena Spieler broadcasts and writes internationally on her favorite subject: food -- its histories and mysteries, the cooking, eating, and sharing of it. With over 70 cookbook titles (including contributions) to her credit, Marlena conjures up flavors and dishes from the Mediterranean to Mexico, California to France to eastern Europe and Asia, with and single subjects such as chili peppers, olive oil, mushrooms, to a book on classic Jewish food from all over the world. The Classic Barbecue and Grill Cookbook was a #1 best-seller in the UK. Marlena has been shortlisted numerous times for various awards including the prestigious James Beard (two books and one newspaper column), the Guild of Food Writers Awards (UK, best radio food broadcaster of the year, twice), and the Association of Food Journalists (USA: Best Column in Newspaper of Over 400,000 circulation -- twice) for radio presenting, food writing and books. One of her books, Feeding Friends, won the International Cookbook Award in Perigueux, France in 2000, her Jewish Heritage Cooking was honored in the Loire Valley in 2003 by a Special Jury Award at World Gourmand Book Awards, and she was presented with the Gourmand Family Award in 2016 in Yantai, China.