Spring Gourmet Mag, Palermo Issue by Claudia Rinaldi

A Historic and Gastronomic Tour of Palermo

I wasn’t sure what to expect about this “book” that is named after the now-defunct magazine. What I found is a curious combination of travelogue, history, and recipes, with plenty of pictures of both the recipes and Palermo. This is an intensely personal book. In the early parts of it, she takes you on little day trips around the vicinity, seeing both places of historic interest as well as foodie places. There aren’t many recipes in the first part of the book, but as the book goes on, more and more recipes show up. I absolutely loved the photographs as well as her descriptions of Palermo and the recipes. I felt like I was walking the streets with her, which is certainly fun for an armchair traveler. The recipes themselves are written in both metric and Imperial measure, though I am always leery of Imperial measures that have been derived from a metric source. The collection of recipes I would call quirky, some that are specific to Palermo or Sicily and others that are more pan Italian in nature. There are lots of fun ideas in here, from main dishes to snacks and even offbeat things like digestivos. If you like a little bit of food with your armchair traveling, you may very well enjoy this book.

By the way, I think this ebook is best enjoyed on a tablet or computer, not a standard Kindle. You’ll lose the effect of all the lovely photographs on a black-and-white Kindle.