Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Giovanni Ballarini talks about Paris being the capital of haute cuisine, and about the birth of bourgeois cuisine at the time of the French Revolution. Chef Mariasole Capodanno talks about her experiences, as a young girl, with real French cuisine and how even the presentation was so amazing. Neapolitan and Sicilian cooking came out of the work of chefs who had been employed during the reign of the Bourbons, especially in Naples and Sicily, where the chefs were called Monsù, or Monzù a corruption of the French, Monsieur.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Gualtiero Marchesi talks about his experiences in Paris, learning from the chefs there. Actually, he already knew much of what was taught to him, because he'd had chefs in his family who were well-versed in both every day and fancy fare. He, on the other hand, was looking for something new and different.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Alberto Capatti shares his memories of the grand restaurants of Paris in the sixties. Velvet curtains, low lighting, fires in the fireplaces, ten kinds of cheese — a far cry from what would become known as "nouvelle cuisine."
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Alberto Capatti talks about his first culinary experiences as an Italian in France, not knowing how to choose wine, etc. Gualtiero Marchesi talks about how he sought to take the elements he admired in French cuisine and apply them to his own style of cooking in Italy.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Gualtiero Marchesi had the opportunity to witness the beginnings of "nouvelle cuisine" in France before it arrived in Italy. The Troisgros family, with whom he worked, were famed for their innovative cooking. Their restaurant was in an area with no gastronomic legacy, and they had to rely on their skill, rather than on characteristic local ingredients.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
What Gualtiero Marchesi learned from the Troisgros brothers in Roanne, was, above all, the importance of simplicity.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
The beginnings of La Nouvelle Cuisine (French: the new cuisine) are likened to the Impressionists, abandoning mythical themes, and painting directly from nature. La Nouvelle Cuisine focused on the quality of the food itself. Marchesi was in tune with this idea, and at the same time, knew he'd found true artistry in the Troisgros brothers in Dijon, when he went to work with them in the late sixties.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
From la nouvelle cuisine, which at its beginnings was reserved for fancy restaurants and connoisseurs and was looked upon with some scepticism, important lessons could be learned about cooking methods and the quality of the food itself.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Italians are very attached to tradition. In fact, although eating habits have changed, many traditional dishes, rather than being discarded, have been transformed. This means more variety and smaller portions, so that a diner will eat more than just a plateful of pasta.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
An animated video showing how the Juventus have won an amazing thirty-one championships.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Alice introduces us to her group of friends. They've called themselves "JAMS" and we find out why in this episode. She begins telling us the story of how they got to know one another. Alice talks about la prima media. This is equivalent to the first year of middle school or the 6th grade of elementary school. The kids are about 11 or 12 years old.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
It's the first day of school for our friends. In fact, it's their first year of middle school. The desks are set up for pairs of pupils, so choices have to be made as to where to sit and whom to share a desk with.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
The class is welcomed by the principal as well as the art teacher. The surprise is that there will be a cooking course twice a week, as well as a group cooking contest. Who's on board? As we know, Joy is enthusiastic about it, but what about the others?
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
Alice, Joy, and Max want to win the contest, so they go around the neighborhood to find some traditional recipes. One stop they make is at the home of Joy's father's friend. The three classmates meet up with Stefano more than once, making them curious.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Italy
At the park, the kids try to come up with a recipe and they invite Stefano to take part in the project. One thing leads to another.
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