Servings: 8
INGREDIENTS

* 3/4 cup butter
* 1 egg + 4 yolks
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
* 1 2/3 cups cake flour
* 1/2 cup less two tablespoons peeled almonds and pine nuts
* 1 teaspoon of baking powder

Halve the pine nuts crosswise, and peel and sliver the almonds. Preheat the oven to 350°F (about 180°C).

Melt the butter. In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and the sugar until the mixture turns pale yellow. Add the lemon rind, the flour a bit at a time, the butter, and, finally, the baking powder.

Pour the batter into 9-inch baking pan that has been buttered and dusted with flour and powdered sugar; sprinkle the surface of the cake with the nuts. Bake the cake for about 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out dry (it will also begin to pull away from the sides of the pan).

Once the Mantovana has cooled, dust it with powdered sugar and serve. It goes quite well with dessert wine.

Buon appetito!

Reason Three: To Eat Real Italian Ice Cream.
Nothing beats the real thing…..
That ice cream is very popular in Italy comes as no surprise to anyone and Gelato is very popular with Italians and tourists alike. You can find shops that specialise in ice cream called “gelaterie” but many caffes sell ice cream as well. Lots of places make their own gelato, others get it from small Italian gelato factories. Please be aware that not homemade gelato is the same; some places use commercial mixes, some places use fresh ingredients.
Look out for labels such as:
• Produzione Propria (homemade – our own production)
• Nostra Produzione (our production)
• Produzione Artigianale (production by craftsmen)

The ice cream comes in all sorts of colours and flavours with the sole purpose to make you surrender to the indulgence that is gelato.

Each Italian city is unique and offers a different atmosphere.

Reason four: the Magnificent Cities & Towns
Apart from being the capital of Italy, Rome is also often referred to as “the capital of the world“ for centuries Rome been seen as the centre of the Western civilization, today it is a modern and cosmopolitan city with unique atmosphere. The city is lively at its core, and rich in history, pause for a moment and look around you because you are surrounded by it’s ancient past you are but a few steps away the ruins of it’s The Forum, Palantine Hill, as well as the Coliseum.
Visit Florence for its art, Pisa for its tower & Venice because you will feel you have to for nowhere else is quite like it.

Reason Five: Italian is the language for lovers and the mother tongue of the renowned. Learn how to whisper sweet nothings to your sweetheart in Italian! And who knows maybe the wedding bells will be ringing for you soon.

Makes: 2 thin medium size crust pizzas
INGREDIENTS

* 2 ¼ teaspoons of dry yeast
* 1 cup warm water
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 3 cups bread flour

For toppings:

* 800 gr fresh tomatoes or canned
* 4 medium sized fresh mozzarellas
* salt
* ground pepper
* 12 leaves of fresh basil
* good olive oil

1.
To prepare the dough: Mix the water with the sugar and yeast. Let stand for 5 minutes until dissolved and the yeast starts to bubble. Add the salt, olive oil and 1 cup of the flour and mix well. Add 2 more cups of flour, dough should be still a little sticky but should be able to form a ball. Turn out onto floured surface and start to knead, adding a little bit of flour as needed, until your dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Form a fall, place into an oiled bowl and cover with a cloth napkin. Let dough rise for 45 minutes. Punch down and divide in half.
2.
To prepare pizza: Lightly oil your baking pizza pan. With your hands, press on the dough to spread it out over the size of your pan, to about 1/2 cm high (very thin). If using canned tomatoes, make sure they have been well drained and distribute over the dough. If using fresh tomatoes, cut into slices and spread them out on dough (for a different flavor, try my favorite tomato sauce as a base!). Cut the mozzarella into thin slices and spread over the top, then salt and pepper to taste, adding washed basil leaves last. Let the pizza rest for another 10 to 15 minutes.
3.
In the meantime, heat your oven to 400°F (200°C). Drizzle olive oil over the top of the pizza before placing into the oven and bake for 18-22 minutes, or until the mozzarella has melted and the crust is golden.

Try your favorite toppings, such as mushrooms, olives, bell peppers and pepperoni.
Buon appetito!

This is my favorite tomato sauce and is the perfect first recipe for anyone new to Italian cooking, I especially like to use on my pizzas. Hope you will consider giving it a go!

Makes: 2 cups
INGREDIENTS

* 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
* 1 large garlic clove, crushed
* 500 gr tomato sauce, unsalted
* 1 teaspoon dried basil
* 1 teaspoon dried oregano
* salt and ground pepper to taste

1. In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over low heat. Add the garlic and sauté, moving the garlic around until the garlic starts to colour but without letting the garlic brown. Add the tomato sauce and stir. Raise the heat to medium and add the basil and oregano. Bring to a simmer, lower heat and cover. Cook for about 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Let cool slightly before using on your pizza or use directly on a bit of pasta!

Buon appetito!

Lucca is home to the region’s second largest antique market. It lies in amongst the town’s lovely streets where cupboards, bedside tables, armchairs and lots of other objects are on sale. The market inPiazza San Giusto and surrounding, is on the third Saturday and Sunday of every month). This market specialises in furniture, from sturdy peasant fare to elegant pieces made by the French artisans who followed the Bonaparte’s here in the 19th century; but look for antique ceramics, handmade lace and beaten tin implements.
For clothes visit Piazza Marconi, Wednesdays) particularly great for cashmere lovers.

Florence devotes three weekends out of four of each month to set up Piazza dei Ciompi, where shops and stalls selling vintage objects have a permanent home and where antique dealing is a true business. The stalls are set up in the shadow of Vasari’s Loggia del Pesce, but on the last Sunday of the month it extends out to the surrounding streets with vendors coming from outside Florence. On the second Sunday of the month, you can also find a market in Piazza Santo Spirito; on the third Sunday in Piazza Tannucci and on the third weekend of the month in the Fortezza da Basso’s gardens.
(Teatro Tenda/Lungarno Aldo Moro, October 21-22). Every guide book will tell you about the famed Straw Market, but this annual gathering offers Florentines a chance to sell some of their families’ old stuff. You know, that 16th-century oil you found in the attic, or the 18th-century chairs that don’t match the new dining room table.
In Pisa, the market takes place in the historic centre the second weekend of the month.
Prato
(Piazza del Comune, Saturday before Easter, September 8 and Christmas Day). Specializing in antique books and linens. Step around the corner and visit the Duomo while you’re at it, and roam around the centre of this lovely little town.
Porto Santo Stefano
(April 15-17, July 28-29, August 25-26). An interesting feature of this seaside market is the chance to find furniture and equipment salvaged from sailing boats and cruise ships.
Cortona
(Palazzo Casali, third weekend of every month). You’ll probably hear as much English as Italian in this wonderful hill town, capital of a region nicknamed Chiantishire.
Pistoia
(Via Cigliegiale, every Wednesday and Saturday). A bustling market that winds through dozens of streets surrounding the glorious square. Amongst the antiques you’ll also find modern kitchen utensils, scrumptious local cheeses and salamis, cheap Chinese blouses and the magnificent architecture of this wrongly overlooked Tuscan jewel.