Foodie Lass Vegetables The Italian Way – Turning Simple And Fresh Into Extraordinary By Giulia Scarpaleggia
Vegetables the Italian Way is not just your normal run of the mill vegetable cookery book but an opportunity for the reader to enjoy Giulia’s Italian journey through beautiful photography and flavoursome recipes.
Vegetables are generally an afterthought (unless you are a vegetarian). Recipes can sometimes seem bland and uninspiring. If you want vegetables to take the main stage as a dish then Vegetables the Italian Way can help you on your way using good quality ingredients such as oil, fresh herbs and the wonderful flavour of lemon.
The chapter headings in this cookery book are organized by cooking methods:
Tossed & Stirred
Braised, Boiled & Stewed
Twice-Cooked
Sauced
Fried & Grilled
Baked & Roasted
Stuffed
Preserved
Sweetened
The author provides us with more than 70 seasonal recipes to choose from making sure your vegetable cooking repertoire is elevated to centre stage.
If you have never cooked an artichoke then this recipe is a great starter!
Roman- Style Artichoke & Mozzarella Crostini
Serves 8 as an appetizer
For the artichokes
1 lemon
8 globe artichokes
3 tablespoons very finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tablespoons very finely chopped fresh mint or calamint
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 cup/240 ml extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup/120 ml dry white wine
For the crostini
8 slices country bread, about 3/4 inch/2 cm thick
One 8-ounce/225 g ball fresh mozzarella, cut into bite-size pieces
8 anchovy fillets
Prepare the artichokes
Grate the zest of ½ the lemon in a small bowl, then halve and squeeze the lemon into a large bowl of cold water. Add the two squeezed halves to the water.
Work with one artichoke at a time and transfer to the bowl of lemon water as you go. Remove the tough outer leaves, cut the prickly tip of the remaining leaves, then peel the base and stem with a paring knife, leaving about 1 inch/2.5 cm of stem attached to the base of each artichoke. Rub with a lemon half and plunge in the water. Tap the artichoke heads on a cutting board to loosen the leaves, then gently open them from the center, like a flower, and scoop out the fuzzy chokes with a small spoon.
Mix the lemon zest with the parsley, mint, garlic, salt, and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, then fill each artichoke with the herb mixture.
Arrange the artichokes, stems up, in a pot where they can sit tightly next to each other. If there’s too much space left in the pot to keep them in place, use the halved lemon you rubbed them with to prop them up. Pour in the remaining olive oil and the wine. Cover the pot with a double-folded piece of parchment paper, then place the lid on over the paper.
Cook the artichokes over low heat, with the cooking liquid bubbling around the artichokes, until they are dark green and soft and you can easily pierce the thickest part of the stem with a knife, 35 to 40 minutes.
Remove the artichokes from the pot with a slotted spoon (reserve the cooking liquid) and arrange them on a serving plate, stems up, then drizzle some of the reserved cooking liquid over the artichokes.
Serve at room temperature straightaway or use to make the crostoni.
Make the crostini
Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C.
Quarter each artichoke and top the bread slices with artichokes and mozzarella bites. Nestle an anchovy fillet among the mozzarella bites so that it won’t burn in the oven and will work as a surprise kick of flavor.
Drizzle 1 teaspoon of the flavorful artichoke cooking liquid over each slice of bread.
Place the crostoni on a baking sheet, then transfer them to the hot oven and bake until the mozzarella starts to melt, about 8 minutes. Serve immediately.
NOTE: The artichokes can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5 days. Reheat them gently before making the crostini.
Excerpted from Vegetables the Italian Way: Turning Simple and Fresh into Extraordinary. © 2026 Giulia Scarpaleggia. Photograph © Tommaso Galli. Reproduced with permission of Artisan Books. All rights reserved. Vegetables the Italian Way by Giulia Scarpaleggia is available from all the usual book outlets.
