Cooking with an Italian accent

After a long break, Cooking with an Italian Accent is back.
In this episode, I share a personal letter and a goodbye to my nonna Marcella, who passed away last year at almost 97. Through old family videos, memories of Easter lunches, homemade tagliatelle, and everyday gestures, I reflect on how she shaped my way of cooking, eating, and understanding tradition.
This is an episode about food memories, grief and gratitude, and about tradition as something alive — not frozen in time, but carried forward through cooking.
The podcast now lives inside the newsletter on Substack, where you’ll find all the links to the recipes mentioned in this episode and can join the conversation by leaving a comment.
Recipes and dishes mentioned:
- her flawless lasagne
- her rice pudding cake
- her bignè alla crema
- her tagliatelle with tomato paste, oregano, prosciutto cotto and cream
- the very best stuffed round zucchini
- extra creamy pasta e patate
- the birthday cake she baked me for decades
- candied orange peels dipped in chocolate


This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit julskitchen.substack.com/subscribe

Italy is often imagined in the golden glow of summer. But what about winter?
In this episode, we explore ten vignettes of Italy in the low season—from misty medieval towns to empty beaches, from seasonal markets to winter festivals.
Let’s paint a different picture of Italy, one filled with mystery, comfort food, and quiet beauty.
This episode is hosted on Substack, so join the conversation here: https://julskitchen.substack.com/p/italy-in-the-low-season


This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit julskitchen.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Cooking with an Italian Accent, I’m asking you to skip Florence on your next trip to Tuscany.
I’m sharing my two cents on tourism and overcrowded destinations, but I would love to know your thoughts on this, as well.
We talk about travelling during the low season and your option to slow down and enjoy the provincial life of a small town. 
We introduce our immersive three-day seasonal cooking masterclass: https://en.julskitchen.com/tuscan-cooking-classes#threeday
Our Colle Val d’Elsa foodie guide: https://en.julskitchen.com/other/travel/where-to-eat-in-colle-val-d-elsa
So now listen to the episode and join the conversation online on our newsletter Letters from Tuscany on Substack: https://julskitchen.substack.com/p/why-im-asking-you-to-skip-florence
Find me online >> Newsletter: www.lettersfromtuscany.com | Blog: www.julskitchen.com | Instagram: https://instagram.com/julskitchen/ 
Podcast realized by https://instagram.com/tommyonweb  



This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit julskitchen.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode of Cooking with an Italian Accent, after a year of absence, I tell you a little bit more about the things that have happened:
- This podcast is not dead, it is just on a break.
- Our newsletter on Substack, Letters from Tuscany, is where most of our writing and recipes will live from now on.
- For the past two years, we’ve been working on a new cookbook, Cucina Povera, The Italian Way of Transforming Humble Ingredients into Unforgettable Meals. It will be released in April 2023.
So now listen to the episode and join the conversation online on our newsletter www.lettersfromtuscany.com on Substack.
Preorder our cookbook Cucina Povera here.
 Find me online at www.julskitchen.com or on Instagram https://instagram.com/julskitchen/ 
 Podcast realized by https://instagram.com/tommyonweb


This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit julskitchen.substack.com/subscribe

The best way to understand the Tuscan pastry art is to have a walk in Siena with an open mind, following the trail of spices, paying attention to the colours and to the ingredients of the baked goods arranged in the shop windows of bakeries, cafés, and pastry shops.
The Tuscan pastry art isn’t show stopping, elegant, refined or elaborate, as you would say of the French patisserie or oven of the Southern Italian pastry art of Sicily and Naples.
In this episode, we will delve into the Tuscan pastry art, discovering how seasonal it is, how strongly related to Cucina Povera, and how it shows a lasting influence of Medieval and Renaissance ingredients, spices, and traditions.

So now listen to the episode, join the conversation online, and enjoy this little taste of Tuscna sweet treats.

Recipes mentioned in this episode:
- Schiacciata con l’uva: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/grape-focaccia
- Pan co’ Santi: https://en.julskitchen.com/bread/pan-co-santi
- Cenci: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/carnival-fried-dough-the-tuscan-cenci
- Rice fritters: https://en.julskitchen.com/tuscany/italian-carnival-rice-fritters
- Schiacciata alla Fiorentina: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/schiacciata-alla-fiorentina-a-sweet-flatbread-for-carnival
- Quaresimali: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/cookies/quaresimali-florentine-cookies-for-lent
- Pan di Ramerino: https://en.julskitchen.com/tuscany/pan-di-ramerino
- Schiacciata di Pasqua: https://en.julskitchen.com/tuscany/tuscan-schiacciata-sweet-easter-bread
- Necci: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/necci-tuscan-chestnut-pancakes
- Castagnaccio: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/castagnaccio-chestnut-cake
- Scarpaccia: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/a-tuscan-sweet-zucchini-cake
- Alchermes: https://en.julskitchen.com/drink/home-made-alchermes
- Zuccotto: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/tuscan-zuccotto
- Zuppa Inglese: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/zuppa-inglese-as-afternoon-break
- Cantucci: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/cookies/tuscan-biscotti
- Cavallucci: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/cookies/cavallucci-tuscan-cookies
- Ricciarelli: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/ricciarelli-siena-almond-cookies
- Panforte: https://en.julskitchen.com/dessert/tuscan-panforte-a-spicy-cake-from-siena

Find me online at www.julskitchen.com or on Instagram https://instagram.com/julskitchen/

Podcast realized by https://instagram.com/tommyonweb

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit julskitchen.substack.com/subscribe