Beverly Hills

Italian Cuisine, otherwise termed as Cucina Italiana has developed through the years and stems in 4th century BC. Italian cuisine has been induced by Etruscan, ancient Greeks, Byzantine, Jewish, ancient Romans and Arabs. But it wasn’t until the 18th century when tomatoes, bell peppers, and potatoes were brought to the cuisine, items you will find in the normal Beverly Hills Italian cuisine that is found in many restaurants.

The Italian cooking style is fragmented into different divisions, just like the regions, each of which has its own style, as well as different ways of cooking. Most Italian restaurants, even Trad Di Noi La Focacceria in Beverly Hills, has simple dishes with lots of recipes comprised of 4 to 8 components. Italian culinary chefs rely mainly on the quality of the ingredients rather than on elaborate preparation. Dishes and recipes are often the creation of grandmas rather than of chefs, and this makes many recipes ideally suited for home cooking.

Many dishes which are once regional have spread with modifications throughout the country, and world. Cheese and wine are a big portion of Italian cuisine, along with coffee including the famous Italian style espresso, has become crucial in Italian cuisine.

Italy is a country of tremendous variety, and cooking is just one more part of Italian culture. The huge diversity in Italian cooking stems mainly from the various regions in Italy and major geographical differences, combined with the peasants that inhabited each area. For example, why is Risotto usual for Milan? Or why is pizza famous in Naples? The fact that Italy is a peninsula with the the highest mountains in Europe means there are lots of environments — from Mediterranean coastlines to arid plains to forests and valleys. Despite of these different versions in geography, how could a similar country generate the spicy looking classic of Naples rather than the cuisine from Rome which is rich in crops, while cuisine in Sicily has a touch of North Africa?

The answers lie in the country’s historical past including many peoples over the past three thousand years who occupied the territory, originally, the Etruscans and Greeks, then the Romans who controlled the territory two thousand years ago. Romans are more keen to unique components, not only imported wine and wheat into Italy, but spices from China are also introduced and their cooking also touched descendants in the future.

It was following the decline of the city states that northern Italy was filled partially sometimes by Austria or France leaving additional culinary influences there, particularly with their development of fresh pasta, that was a luxury item when compared with ordinary dry macaroni, that was mass produced. Fresh pasta is made up of fresh eggs, sugar, cream and cheese. Although fresh pasta traveled throughout the Italian peninsula and even outside its boundaries, northern Italy features the best recipes, as exemplified by Bologna, which is often known as the gastronomic capital of Italy.

Today many of these well-known recipes is found all around the world, from Europe to Canada to Italian restaurants in Beverly Hills, California.

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