By Leigh O’Connor.
From an early age, drawing and cooking have been a part of Guy Mirabella’s daily routine.
While his parents worked in their little fruit shop in Box Hill, he was given coloured pencils and sheets of torn butcher’s paper used for wrapping fruit and vegetables to draw on, keeping him occupied and out of the way at the back of the shop.
"At seven years old, we moved from Box Hill to Cumbrae Farm in Tyabb, just outside Melbourne,” he recalls. "It was an isolated place and a chance to create our own little world.
"Sitting at a big wooden table, I would watch Mum and Nonna cook while I made pictures covered in splodges of paint, olive oil, brodo (broth) and red sauce.”
Guy says many of his favourite recipes come from Sunday pranzo – lunch at Cumbrae Farm surrounded by Italian flavours with all roads leading to Sicily.
"The food I love to eat and make is layered with Sicilian heritage and history. I grew up hearing the call to lunch: pranzo e pronto, mangia bello, nagia bella, mangia angelia all amia tavola.”
In his latest cookbook, Pranzo, Guy celebrates Italian food and a Sicilian upbringing on the other side of the world – capturing the spirit of simplicity, fresh seasonal ingredients and sumptuous colours and flavours.
Guy masterfully weaves his recipes, images and stories around the themes of generosity, love, tradition, life and food – all the things that influence him in his cooking.
Expect to find fresh and seasonal dishes prepared with love and respect for the ingredients. From ruby red roasted plums with marsala and vincotto to eggs in purgatory with broccolini via clam soups, hazelnut cakes, rabbit stew, chicken diavola and more…
This is both rustic food to nourish and stir the soul and also beautiful food to linger over and share with loved ones. Each dish is presented in captivating style with an artists’ eye for everything that is vibrant, colourful and joyous about life.
Throughout the recipes, personal reflections on food, family, travels and Guy’s Sicilian heritage are complemented by stunning photography and design.
We have three recipes to share with AGFG home cooks:
Puttanesca only needs a glance from garlic, a touch from anchovy, a smooth voluptuous red glow from ripe tomatoes and a swirling skirt of capers and olives seeping just enough salty tears to embrace you.
"I love everything about this cake and hope to continue to bake it for as long as I can. Sometimes I substitute the dates for dried apricots. In the Autumn, when my local greengrocer has fresh dates available I use them to take this beautiful cake to another level. The same goes with fresh apricots.”
Serve these delicious mussels with thickly sliced bruschetta and enjoy!
This is a book to explore and fall in love with…and to cook from time and time again!
