Recipes and Memories from the Real Little Italy
The Arthur Avenue Cookbook Recipes and Memories from the Real Little Italy
Arthur Avenue winds its way through the heart of the Bronx. Known to many as the “real Little Italy,” the storied Arthur Avenue neighborhood has been home to a vibrant community of Italian-Americans for over a hundred years. Today, this area continues to thrive as visitors and residents stop to buy a fresh, crusty loaf of bread; to enjoy a meal at Mario’s Restaurant; to dawdle for a while at Randazzo’s raw bar on a warm summer afternoon; or to hear Mike’s Deli owner Michele Greco belt out an aria from Rigoletto and spellbind his customers with tales of the Avenue’s past.
Now, for the first time, the residents of Arthur Avenue invite you to experience the magic of their kitchens and share the flavors of their family tables. Passed down through generations, their delicious recipes are time-tested, tried, and true — and ready for any kitchen. They include:
• Sicilian Baked Ziti • Yankee Stadium Big Boy (The Greco family’s famous grinder that was rated one of the best in the city by the New York Times) • Osso Buco • Olive Ciabatta • Italian Ricotta Cheesecake • Cannoli • and more
The Arthur Avenue Cookbook also invites you to savor the memories of the neighborhood’s most colorful residents, restaurateurs, and shop owners, and those of their families — many of whom have lived in the neighborhood since it first came into being. Meet Mario Borgatti, the noodle maker who has been there for more than eighty-five years. Anthony Artuso, Sr., takes his bakery business so seriously that he went seventeen years without a vacation — in part, to ensure that each bride and groom got the perfect wedding cake. And Mike Rella, president of the Arthur Avenue Retail Market, remembers learning English by working in a butcher shop, where he’s now a partner with his uncle Peter Servedio.
This cookbook also provides a guide to the pastry shops, delis, restaurants, and other famous and lesser-known gems that line Arthur Avenue. Gorgeous photographs, extraordinary characters, and enticing dishes make The Arthur Avenue Cookbook an irresistible addition to any kitchen.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Truly marvelous and authentic recipes!
I ordered this book after seeing it on Food TV. I have baked 3 cookie recipes and made one pasta sauce from this book and they are all superb. As somebody else said, the “real deal”. I grew up next door to a lovely Sicilian woman and the pignoli cookies in the book are exactly as she made them. If you have one Italian cookbook, this should be the one.
Great memories, great recipes. Fun book to look through. A must have if you love true Italian cooking.
It’s permanently on the counter right next to my WEEKEND BAKER cookbook.
PS: I have to add a negative. In my opinion, a few of the recipes leave out *just a little bit*. I noticed in the pignoli cookies, for example, I believe the instruction should say “beat the egg whites”, it does not tell you to do that. I have found the same in another recipe. Just my opinion, but I think there is a little secret keeping. I still recommend this book, there are truly marvelous recipes to be enjoyed.
3 Stars The Arthur Ave. Cook Book
If you have ever lived near, or on A street in NYC like Arthur Ave.and Little Italy, the pictures and recipes will bring you there again, you can even hear the conversations, and the smell of the neighborhood are so vivid, you want to try to repeat the recipes and be there. They did,nt have super markets, it was a neighborhood ,and shopping for the foods needed for the day ment talking to the veg. man and the sausage maker and then the cheese store. It ment asking how the family in Itly was, and getting the news or a different story from every market. Fresh bread OH How I Miss it. This book is a master of REAL ITALIAN FOODS, and from the REAL ITALIANS
2 Stars Arthur Avenue Cookbook
I was very disappointed in this cook book. It had some great pictures , some not so great , but most of all the recipes were not what I was looking for. They were not what I call “Real Italian Grandma recipes”. I was sorry I bought the book.
5 Stars This Cookbook Reeks with Honesty
The Arthur Avenue Cookbook is beautifully put together in every way. The recipes, the photographs, the storyline and the quality of the book itself are absolutely first-rate. The people in this book are completely genuine – there is an honesty about their lives and their livelihoods that jumps from the pages. There are no pretenses here: the recipes do not require a lot of complex sauces or fancy ingredients and there isn’t a lot of impressive talk about the celebrities who may have visited these businesses, rather it is a book about ordinary people with extraordinary attitudes about what tastes good. It is all as you would want it – cooking that is straight from the heart, straight from the soul. Bellisimo!!
5 Stars The Arthur Avenue Cook Book and Memories from the Real Little Italy
The recipes were excellent but the story of the “Real Liitle Italy” was fantastic. I grew up in this neighborhood as a child and was encouraged to find out that many of the merchants and the character of the area are still in place. Great recipies and even better story. I have not been back for many years , but I will now make an effort to visit when I go back East.
