"Father Orsini blends his ideas of Old and New World Italian cuisine into a collection of delicious recipes and interesting stories." —Bobby Flay, James Beard Award–winning chef

Father Joseph Orsini, a retired Catholic priest, has found his second calling in the kitchen. In this book, he shares his love of food and family with delicious recipes and delightful anecdotes.

With chapters arranged to coincide with the courses of a formal Italian dinner—antipasti (appetizers), ministre (soups), pasta with an astounding variety of sauces, risotti (rice dishes), secondi piatti (main courses), and desserts—this book is a rare combination of Old and New World recipes for such exciting and mouth-watering dishes as portobello mushrooms in garlic and wine sauce, linguine with mussels Calabrian style, pasta pizza, Roman roast leg of lamb, genuine eggplant parmigiana, and the ever popular roast stuffed turkey. In addition, because of the hurried and harried lives that most of us lead today, Father Orsini has included snappy, delicious, and practical recipes that make good use of the microwave oven.

This cookbook is designed to be read as one would read a short story—from beginning to end. The reader can skip the recipes and gain enjoyable historic and cultural facts about Italy. For example, Father Orsini gives a brief account of the development of Italian cuisine after the voyages of Columbus, as well as delightful histories of common vegetables and popular foods, such as tomatoes, potatoes, beans, corn, turkey, and chocolate. He also includes tips for cooking the perfect pasta, general hints for the Italian kitchen, and a list of common ingredients and terms used in Italian cooking.