{"product_id":"istria-recipes-and-stories-from-the-hidden-heart-of-italy-slovenia-and-croatia","title":"Istria: Recipes and stories from the hidden heart of Italy, Slovenia and Croatia","description":"Product Description\n\n‘Istria is testament to the idea that recipes are so much more than instructions, that they are accumulated layers of stories and histories, both personal and collective, brought to life every time a dish is made. An exquisite book.’ ― Rachel Roddy\nIstria is the heart-shaped promontory at the northern crux of the Adriatic Sea, where rows of vines and olives grow in fields of red earth. Here, the cuisine records a history of changing borders ― a blend of the countries (Italy, the Republic of Venice, Austria, Hungary and now Slovenia and Croatia) that have shared Istria’s hills and coasts and valleys.\nThis book is a record of traditions, of these cultures and of Paola’s family: recipes from her childhood, the region’s past, and family and friends who still live beside the Adriatic coast. Among recipes for semolina dumplings, beef and pork goulash and apricot strudel are memories of the region and stories of the recipes’ authors: the Italian-Istrians who remained in the region after the 1940s, and those who left for new countries.\n\nReview\n\n‘At this time of year, the cookbooks come out fast and hard, and I must confess that having to choose just one to feature here from the huge pile that is published each Thursday gives me more than a slight twinge of anxiety. (Indeed, I have to give up the hope of hitting publication dates altogether.) I don’t have any particular rule for which get picked and which must languish unfairly in the shadows: essentially, I work - as I always do - by instinct; the book that fills me with particular excitement as I read it, leading me insistently, impatiently into the kitchen, is the book I inevitably go for. Call it the post-it count, if you will!\n\nAnd Istria is just that book.’\n\n‘Post-it notes mark those recipes I am especially drawn to, although, frankly, I could have put a post-it note on every single page.’\n\nNigella Lawson\n\nFrom the Back Cover\n\nExplore the culture and history of Istria - a land shared by Italy, Croatia and Slovenia - through the kitchens and recipes of its inhabitants.\n\nIstria is the heart-shaped promontory at the northern crux of the Adriatic Sea, where rows of vines and olives grow in fields of red earth. Here, the cuisine records a history of changing borders - a blend of the countries (Italy, the Republic of Venice, Austria and Hungary) that have shared Istria's hills and coasts and valleys.\n\nThis book is a record of traditions, of these cultures and of Paola's family: recipes from her childhood, the region's past, and her family and friends who still live beside the Adriatic coast. Among recipes for semolina dumplings, beef and pork goulash and apricot strudel are memories of the region and the stories of the recipes' authors: the Italian-Istrians who remained in the region after the 1940s, and those who left for new countries.\n\nIstria is full of recipes inspired by home kitchens and memories of what grew in the owner's gardens: hearty grain soups and seafood, crepes piled high and biscuits flavored with cinnamon. Istrian cuisine is a rich blend of Venice and Vienna, Hungary and the Balkans - food doesn't have borders, and certainly not in this book's recipes.\n\nAbout the Author\n\nPaola Bacchia was born to Italian migrant parents and into their food culture. Her award-winning blog, Italy On My Mind, explores the connection between family memories and food through stories, photos and recipes. She returns to Italy every year to expand her knowledge of Italian food and traditions. Previously, she published Italian Street Food and Adriatico with Smith Street Books.","brand":"smeikalbooks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":40344776736853,"sku":"9781922417183N","price":28.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2481\/5790\/products\/41e68d07-1158-4c79-b905-c1cc2d635aa9.jpg?v=1664196678","url":"https:\/\/smeikalbooks.co.uk\/en-us\/products\/istria-recipes-and-stories-from-the-hidden-heart-of-italy-slovenia-and-croatia","provider":"smeikalbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}