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Rating: Anna Moroni is without a doubt one of the clean faces of Italian TV: always composed, polite in manner, never a provocative appearance, no extravagance, and one of the few not involved in the "vallettopoli" scandal.
With her participation in the famous "Prova del Cuoco" hosted by Antonellona Clerici (currently on maternity leave, excellently replaced by Elisa Isoardi, who has also helped boost the ratings), and backed by that playful rascal Bigazzi, she has shown everyone that it is possible to create a well-crafted and intelligent program that is useful, without resorting to islands, nominations, improbable music schools, and most importantly, avoiding the vulgar language that so afflicts our TV, aimed only at garnering a few more miserable viewers. I said useful, yes, because, as many of you know, "Prova del Cuoco" is a cooking show that has the merit of introducing new generations to the immense world of Italian cuisine, all "seasoned" with accessible language and a reassuring atmosphere (thanks also to the music by the timeless Antoniano Choir of Bologna - by the way, I don't understand how that choir has been composed of children for 50 years, yet they don't grow up?).
Well, you might say, but what does all this have to do with Anna Moroni? It does relate, as her presence in the show is not, shall we say, predominant (perhaps due to the need to adhere to broadcast times), and thus many aspects of her spectacular and intricate cuisine are cut from the final editing of the program. It would have been a shame to let such knowledge disperse, and so our Anna, with the complicity of Clerici, decided in the astral year of two thousand six, to publish this highly successful collection that undoubtedly outshines all releases by the prestigious Vissani, who wrongly boasted of being the crème de la crème of international cuisine.
An absolutely technical work and difficult to interpret, a challenging read with 678 increasingly difficult recipes that become downright daunting after the 450th: this is "Oggi Cucini Tu", an engaging book translated into 34 different languages, including Latin, simplified Chinese, and a joking Italian dialect. Now, reviewing each recipe individually would be an arduous task, and honestly, I don't think I'm capable of it: I apologize in advance if I limit myself here to giving you an example of what you'll find in this extraordinary well of knowledge.
Recipe 230: "Bigoli in spring onion sauce" - for 4 people - ingredients: 350 grams of bigoli, 100 grams of salted anchovies, 20 very fresh spring onions, 1 bunch of parsley, white wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper.
Instructions: Desalt the anchovies under running water, remove all the bones, wash the fillets in water and vinegar, drain them well, dry them, and then season them with a drizzle of oil. Clean the spring onions and cut half of them into thin strips, lengthwise. Sauté them in a pan with a drizzle of oil for about 15 minutes, then remove them from the pan. In the same pan, fry the remaining spring onions cut into rings on low heat with 4 tablespoons of oil, add salt, and cook them covered for 30 minutes, adding a few spoonfuls of boiling water little by little. Add half of the anchovy fillets, season with salt and pepper. Add the spring onion strips and the remaining anchovy fillets and sprinkle generously with chopped parsley. Cook the bigoli until al dente in lightly salted boiling water, dress them with the spring onion and anchovy sauce and serve after adding more chopped parsley. And here I allow myself to add a personal tip: recommended wines are "Gambellara" (white) or "Cinque Terre" (also white).
In short, a "must-have" for all cooking enthusiasts and not only: a book with a thousand facets that will surely surprise even the skeptics. Worth mentioning is an exciting preface by Bruno Vespa.
P.S: the book is quite challenging and if you find it's not for you, I refer you to watch, as already mentioned, the "Prova del Cuoco", which is nothing but a softer version of this timeless masterpiece, if and but.
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