Rosemary And Bitter Oranges

An account of growing up in the Tuscan seaside town of Livorno, after World War II. Patrizia Chen recounts how Emilia, the cook, shared her craft with her young charge, while Patrizia's grandmother managed a household still containing chamber pots, sacks of chestnut flour and coal-burning stoves.

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This rich combination of cookbook and memoir tells the story of a family and the secrets of its kitchen in post-World War II Tuscany. Suffused with the scents of simmering pots of cacciucco - a hearty, local seafood stew - and the vibrant coastal blossoms, Patrizia Chen's childhood was centred in the sun-drenched kitchen and adjoining herb garden of the family home in Livorno, on the Tuscan seacoast. There, in a world struggling to recover from the devastation of the Second World War, Emilia, the cook, shared her craft with her young charge, while Patrizia's grandmother, Nonna Valentina, managed a household still containing chamber pots, sacks of chestnut flour and coal-burning stoves. Eccentric characters, aromatic dishes, white Carrara marble terraces and a magical garden come alive in a warm and humorous narrative. Rosemary and Bitter Oranges will captivate readers with its simple, delicious food and the author's wit and abiding love for tradition.