A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That by Isabella and Sofia Bliss, Sylvana and Nonna Spina
Favourite family recipes
Laura Cullen
A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That [©Penguin Books Australia]
This is the cookbook that had to happen. Attributed to Isabella and Sofia Bliss, both of Junior MasterChef fame, the cookbook is extremely family oriented trailing a Sicilian culinary heritage that has been passed down from mother to daughter for generations. Many members of the family make a contribution to the book and there are stories behind many of them, most of which are told through brief summaries before recipes.
A little bit of this, a little bit of that has a good variety of recipes throughout; snacks, pasta and rice, pizzas, soup, vegetables, meat, fish and sweets are the main categories covered. There is even a healthy sized index to help navigate the significant amount of dishes.
There are conservative dishes on offer like Nonna’s bitter green olives, roasted capsicum, Lupini, baked ricotta, fresh Sicilian paster and chickpea soup amongst many others. In addition there are basic recipes for things like pizza sauce and dough, pasta, salsa and cupcakes. Some standout dishes are eggplant parmigiana (a favourite for the Bliss family), crescent-shaped meat-filled pies that hark form Puglia in Italy, rice balls with sugo and mozzarella, Elisa’s Mediterranean quiches and stuffed beef roll in sugo.
However the real highlight is the dessert section. One gets the feeling that this is where the girls’ hearts really reside as there are some significantly tasty looking offerings. Isabella’s lemon meringue cupcakes, which happened to win her a ‘Mystery Box’ challenge on Junior MasterChef, is a dessert that truly tastes as good as it looks! Biscuits with custard, chocolate brownies, almond biscuits, apple doughnuts, Rita’s thin crispy waffles, and chocolate truffles will help keep the heartiest sweet tooth busy.
A little bit of this, a little bit of that has great family appeal, and feels exactly like it has been written by a family. Even to the point where their Great Granny Jean’s Christmas cake is shared, as well as Great Great Zia Angelina’s Mustazzoli (Vino cotto biscuits). The book for this reason alone feels very personal and intimate.
As far as cookbooks go this is a good one, particularly if you are curious about Sicilian cooking or are just after a broad range of Sicilian based dishes. However be aware that although this book has the names of two Junior MasterChefs attached to it, it is not a cookbook that holds back on more complicated recipes and cooking that would require lots of assistance for budding MasterChefs. Good food photography, a variety of dishes, well explained recipes, and back stories. Not a bad family effort.
A little bit of this, a little bit of that written by Isabella and Sofia Bliss with Sylvana and Nonna Spina is published in Australia by Penguin Books (Melbourne, 2011; sc, 226 pp) RRP A$35.00.
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Regions
- Brisbane and Scenic Rim (including Mt Cotton) (QLD)
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