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Exploding Tomatoes and Other Stories: The Food and Flavours of Southern Italy
Having moved to a small town in Puglia over two years ago - a place she now calls home - Sophie Grigson felt ready for another adventure... Driving along the coastal 'instep' of southern Italy in her trusty purple car, she travels between little fishing ports and explores Puglia's gay capital, then heads into the wild hills of Basilicata and Calabria's high Sila famed for its chestnuts and mushrooms, and ends her journey in the bergamot orchards clustering around Reggio. In this book, Sophie charts the local delicacies, ingredients and producers; through recipes and stories, she immerses you in the beauty, culture, food and characters of southern Italy.
344 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 4, 2024
About the author
Sophie Grigson
39 books6 followersHester Sophia Frances Grigson is an English cookery writer and celebrity chef known as Sophie Grigson. She has followed the same path and career as her mother, Jane Grigson. Her father was the poet and writer Geoffrey Grigson.
She won the Guild of Food Writers Cookery Journalist Award 2001
She won the Guild of Food Writers Cookery Journalist Award 2001
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 19, 2026
Another white, British lady moves to Italy and writes a book about it. There is something about her tone and point-of-view that didn’t sit well with me. Undertones of superiority, using Italy as her playground but not respectful enough of the traditions. Did not like her writing style. Some quotes:
“It is not so common outside of Italy and honestly, I wouldn't suggest that you go out of your way to track it down.”
“Looks cute, very traditional, but personally, I'm happy to forgo hard-baked, shell-on egg on my cake.
In an entirely un-Italian way, I like it best lightly toasted and slathered in salted butter. Just saying ...”
“Smugly, I'd like to make it clear that I have known about it since the early 1980s, way before today's smart Alecs of the foodie world.”
“As we gaze at yet another abundant display of tawny dried porcini, my inner sceptic whispers that they can't possibly all emanate from the immediate vicinity, or even from Calabria. Ssh! Ssh! Don't ruin the spectacle, inner sceptic!”
I may copy a few recipes to try later, but honestly, I have better cookbooks by real Italians that I can use instead. The only pleasant part of this book for me was memories of growing up with my Calabrese Nonna cooking wonderful food, and my visits to Southern Italy.
“It is not so common outside of Italy and honestly, I wouldn't suggest that you go out of your way to track it down.”
“Looks cute, very traditional, but personally, I'm happy to forgo hard-baked, shell-on egg on my cake.
In an entirely un-Italian way, I like it best lightly toasted and slathered in salted butter. Just saying ...”
“Smugly, I'd like to make it clear that I have known about it since the early 1980s, way before today's smart Alecs of the foodie world.”
“As we gaze at yet another abundant display of tawny dried porcini, my inner sceptic whispers that they can't possibly all emanate from the immediate vicinity, or even from Calabria. Ssh! Ssh! Don't ruin the spectacle, inner sceptic!”
I may copy a few recipes to try later, but honestly, I have better cookbooks by real Italians that I can use instead. The only pleasant part of this book for me was memories of growing up with my Calabrese Nonna cooking wonderful food, and my visits to Southern Italy.
Displaying 1 of 1 review