The Italian Cookbook

Food is created by following a set of rules…and sometimes you might have to break these rules in order to build a truly unique dish. In the Italian tradition, the ingredients play a crucial role in the construction of a recipe. My Italian grandmother wanted to make sure her five children had the information they needed to continue enjoying traditional Italian food. She created her own cookbook, including Italian recipes that were passed down in her family, along with recipes from friends and other trusted sources. Once she compiled all of the recipes to be included, she decided to hand write each of the five books. In a recent phone conversation, my grandmother (who we call Ahma) told me she handwrote the cookbooks because she wanted to make sure they had a “human touch”. Before she embarked on the journey of hand writing five books, she tested at least twenty different pens to see how well they lasted on paper. As an experienced cook, she knew that cookbooks are very subject to battle scars. Whether it be water, tomato sauce stains, or even a chocolate smudge here and there, she wanted to make sure the ink she chose was durable to these kinds of war markings.

Some notable recipes included in the Celano family cook book are Veal Picotta, Shrimp Scampi, Baked Artichoke Hearts, Spaghetti with Clam Sauce, Braciole (rolled up, stuffed, & sliced beef) and the most famous in our family, Crumb Cake. (The Crumb Cake is a recipe remembered by heart by all of the Celano children) My mother grew up enjoying all of these dishes, and what better way to keep enjoying them then a handwritten cookbook from the matriarch herself. Ahma made sure to leave a few blank pages as well, so the children could add new recipes that they discovered or created themselves. Finally, my grandmother composed an original poem that she wrote at the beginning of each of the cookbooks. It reads: