Book tip of the week: 200 x Italy

The XXL cooking and baking school
© EMF / Klara&Ida
© EMF / Klara&Ida
13. April 2025

 | Editorial team

“200 x Italy – The XXL Cooking and Baking School” is a real feast for all lovers of Italian cuisine. This set of two comprehensive cookery and baking books takes us on a culinary journey across Italy – from the Alps to Sicily. With over 200 authentic recipes and numerous background stories, it invites you to experience the diversity and tradition of Italian cuisine directly in your own kitchen.

We are particularly impressed by the range of recipes, which really doesn’t leave any area out. From classic antipasti to hearty main courses such as risotto alla milanese or arancini to sweet temptations such as torta della nonna and amaretti, there is something for every taste. The clear instructions make cooking easy even for beginners, while experienced amateur cooks will be inspired by the variety of dishes to try something new.

The lovingly designed reports, anecdotes and atmospheric photographs are a highlight of the book. They manage to perfectly capture the charm and joie de vivre of Italy and convey a feeling of dolce vita that goes beyond the mere preparation of the recipes. The stories about traditional festivals and regional specialties make the book more than just a collection of recipes – it is a declaration of love to Italian cuisine and culture.

Info:
Edition Michael Fischer / EMF Verlag
ISBN 978-3-7459-2288-2
640 pages

Our conclusion

“200 x Italy - The XXL Cooking and Baking School” is an inspiring collection of recipes and stories that celebrates Mediterranean flavors and the joy of cooking. It is an indispensable work for anyone who wants to discover and enjoy Italian cuisine in all its diversity. Perfect as a gift - or for your own kitchen to bring a piece of Italy into your home. Buon appetito!

A la table, s'il vous plaît! A la table, s'il vous plaît! A la table, s'il vous plaît! A la table, s'il vous plaît!
Copyright for the featured images used:
© EMF / Klara&Ida

Book tip of the week: Cooking like a real Italian

Dolce Vita to cook at home

If you want to understand why Angelo Coassin, alias @cookingwithbello, has attracted millions of followers online, you don’t have to look far – his first cookbook, “Cooking Like a Real Italian,” is an invitation to a culinary journey through Italy that is as charming as it is practical for everyday use. What particularly struck us while reading it was that the recipes are deliberately kept simple, but never banal. The typical Italian culinary philosophy – few ingredients, maximum quality – is consistently implemented here. From classic antipasti to pizza, pasta, and more, to original dolce and aperitivo ideas such as a tiramisu espresso martini or a pistachio lava cake, the book brings both tried-and-true classics and creative new discoveries to the table.

Between the recipes, Coassin charmingly conveys what Italian cuisine is really all about: the feeling of enjoying food together. This also includes many small but valuable tips, such as the famous pasta water for creamy sauces or the perfect lemon pesto. We particularly like the successful balance between traditional family cuisine and modern influences – inspired by Angelo’s childhood with his mother and grandmother as well as his international career.

INFO:
Cook like a real Italian – Amazingly simple & guaranteed authentic favorite recipes
Author: Angelo Coassin (@cookingwithbello)
Publisher: Südwest Verlag
176 pages
ISBN: 978-3-517-10394-5
Price: €25.00 [Germany] | €25.70 [Austria] | CHF 34.50
Publication date: April 2025

Taste of Tomorrow 2025 – powered by Chefs Culinar

New competition, strong talents – the finalists have been chosen

For the kitchens. For the future. For the industry. Taste of Tomorrow is the new competition for young talent that will bring young culinary talents from several countries to the big stage in 2025. After a multi-stage selection process, the eight finalists have been chosen.

Book tip of the week: Taste. My Life for Cooking and Filming

When food becomes biography

With Taste: My Life in the Kitchen and on Camera, Stanley Tucci delivers much more than a culinary autobiography. This book is a subtle, intelligent reflection on life, told through the prism of food. Between film sets and family kitchens, between Meryl Streep and Nonna Tucci, a mosaic of anecdotes, memories, dishes, and deep insights emerges – sometimes humorous, sometimes touching, always with genuine flavor.

We didn’t just read Taste – we lived it. Tucci succeeds in presenting cuisine as the language of life: how much it shapes us, connects us, comforts us – and even brings us back to life when we lose our taste for it, as in his own battle with cancer.

In addition to lovingly told family stories, he makes us smile with anecdotes about cooking with celebrities or his ironic take on his own Italian cliché. The recipes scattered throughout – some traditional, some surprisingly modern – make the book not a classic cookbook, but a very personal culinary reader.

INFO:

Stanley Tucci: TASTE. My Life Through Food and Film
First German edition (original title: Taste. My Life Through Food)
Translation: Steffen Jacobs
Publisher: Arche Literatur Verlag
320 pages
ISBN: 978-3-7160-2813-1
Price: €25.00 [D] | €25.70 [A] | also available as an
e-book
Publication date: February 2023

quick & dirty
Twice as good - 2 books in a set: over 200 recipes and reports from South Tyrol to Sicily © EMF/Klara&Ida
Book tip of the week: 200 x Italy

“200 x Italy – The XXL Cooking and Baking School” is a real feast for all lovers of Italian cuisine. This set of two comprehensive cookery and baking books takes us on a culinary journey across Italy – from the Alps to Sicily. With over 200 authentic recipes and numerous background stories, it invites you to experience the diversity and tradition of Italian cuisine directly in your own kitchen.

We are particularly impressed by the range of recipes, which really doesn’t leave any area out. From classic antipasti to hearty main courses such as risotto alla milanese or arancini to sweet temptations such as torta della nonna and amaretti, there is something for every taste. The clear instructions make cooking easy even for beginners, while experienced amateur cooks will be inspired by the variety of dishes to try something new.

The lovingly designed reports, anecdotes and atmospheric photographs are a highlight of the book. They manage to perfectly capture the charm and joie de vivre of Italy and convey a feeling of dolce vita that goes beyond the mere preparation of the recipes. The stories about traditional festivals and regional specialties make the book more than just a collection of recipes – it is a declaration of love to Italian cuisine and culture.

Info:
Edition Michael Fischer / EMF Verlag
ISBN 978-3-7459-2288-2
640 pages