What We Can Learn From the Italians

Simplicity

Italian cuisine is often characterized by its simplicity, with dishes featuring just a few high-quality ingredients that are allowed to shine on their own.

Seasonality

Italians place a strong emphasis on using seasonal ingredients, which ensures that dishes are always fresh and flavorful.

Regionality

Italian cuisine is highly regional, with each area of the country having its own unique culinary traditions and specialties. Americans could learn to appreciate and explore the diversity of Italian food.

Slow Food

The slow food movement originated in Italy, and emphasizes taking the time to prepare and savor meals, rather than rushing through them.

Wine culture

Wine is an important part of Italian food culture, with many dishes being paired with specific wines. Americans could learn to appreciate the nuances of wine and food pairings, and the social aspect of enjoying wine with a meal.

Sidonie Maroon, community chef, recipe developer, culinary educator and artist

Born and raised in Southern Oregon, Sidonie shares her creativity and cooking expertise with everyone she meets. Never aspiring to be a restaurant chef, she instead flourishes in her kitchen laboratory where she cooks, blogs, and develops original recipes.

The heart of her cooking practice is a dedication to starting from scratch and building techniques from traditional world food wisdoms. She was an artisan long before it was popular: gardening, foraging, working on organic farms, living offgrid, preserving, fermenting and grain-free baking from scratch.

You can find her recipes, classes, column and blog posts on The Food Coop’s website https://www.foodcoop.coop/blog