Fresh, colourful and incredibly delicious, Italian food is arguably one of the most popular cuisines around the globe: who can resist a mouth-watering bowl of simple spaghetti, or an oozing, stone-baked pizza fresh from an authentic pizzeria?

Join Christine Smallwood as she explores the vegetarian cuisine of Italy, revealing the tools and techniques of Italian nonnas everywhere and the key ingredients to bring authentic Italian food to your own kitchen. With classic recipes, and little twists on traditional dishes, sink your teeth into the 70 recipes within these pages and explore the vast regional variations from north to south, and the incredible diversity to be found within the rich history of the Italian cuisine.

From bite-sized courgette polpettine and bean crostini, to the rich and delicious pasta with pesto trapanese or pizzoccheri - and who could forget aubergine parmigiana or mouth-watering Panzanella - all recipes have been beautifully photographed and brought to life, ready for you to recreate at home.

Christine Smallwood is a food and travel writer. She is the author of a series of books on the food of specific Italian regions, with books on the north, centre and south of the country. She was appointed the international curator of a food festival in Puglia, and was awarded the Crest of Puglia by the President of the region in March 2008 in recognition of her knowledge and communication of its gastronomic culture.
Christine leads food tours in Italy, has worked with organisations such as the Culinary Institute of America and is a board member of the Abergavenny Food Festival in Wales.