Description:
Italy being Italy, food there forms a central part of the culture and of daily life, even in the otherworldly confines of the Vatican. Popes being human beings as well as ambassadors of the divine, the food of the Vatican has ranged, over 2,000 years, from the ascetic to the sumptuous, reflecting the tastes of the officeholder. Where, for instance, John Paul II favors clear soups and the occasional serving of white meat, his Renaissance predecessor Alexander VI was an accomplished and omnivorous glutton--to whose endless appetite, write Parma-based historians Rinaldi and Vicini, the Western world owes the custom of the Christmas Eve feast. Rinaldi and Vicini offer a vivid, anecdotal, and thoroughly entertaining account of the popes and their varied palates, matching historical observations with recipes fit for a celestial table. For the first pope, Saint Peter, they suggest a wondrous risotto prepared with arborio rice and canteloupe, followed by sole stuffed with crayfish and truffles--a bit elaborate for that simple fisherman, perhaps, but delicious nonetheless. For Paul II, the great humanist and tactician, their menu calls for Venetian rice soup, baked grouse, and Roman-style tripe--not the stuff of an ordinary meal, but a sure hit among the daring. And to commemorate the latest year of Jubilee, Rinaldi and Vicini suggest a nice glass of Brunello di Montalcino, one of Italy's greatest wines, but also a slice of pane della carità, or "bread of charity," made of equal parts of wheat, oat, and barley flour. Rinaldi and Vicini's book mixes well-tested recipes with fascinating, sometimes bizarre episodes of ecclesiastical history. In every regard, it's a treat. --Gregory McNamee
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