Laura Ascari - Breakfast is Served

Books can be possessive, cant they? Youre walking around in a bookstore and a certain one will jump out at you, like it had moved there on its own, just to get your attention. Sometimes whats inside will change your life, but sometimes you dont even have to read it. Sometimes its a comfort just to have a book around.

Sarah A. Allen

Even before our paths crossed, we both loved the early hours, the first kisses of light on little household objects, the haze of fine airborne dust caught in a ray of sunshine between the curtains. As in a film, our daily rituals were just visible through our two windows; two magically parallel lives.

The warmth of the covers giving way to the sharp air of morning; the first cup of tea clasped in both hands. Peeping out at the day through eyes still blurred with sleep. If we had been able to describe the joy of small things, it would have been this moment, suspended in the light of a day that was still to be lived. And it was precisely breakfast that brought us together, that enabled us to discover our enormous artistic and culinary affinity. We began to photograph and draw, driven by the desire to blend our respective creative worlds and curious to see what would happen. So it was that a dream took shape. A dream that we literally put into the oven and took around the world, to discover what breakfast is like in your home and in everyone elses.

For this journey we couldnt but avail ourselves of the services of two exceptional guides. Lorenza, a passionate pastry cook who can turn raindrops into chocolate, and Ludovica, an itinerant cook who loves beautiful destinations where the prime ingredient is a splash of sunlight. A journey from one kitchen to the next, suitcase in hand, to discover the delicacies we hadnt yet sampled, the flavours that live for one season only, the zest that a good recipe first thing in the morning can give you. There are those cookbooks that aim to teach you how to cook according to the seasons, others that demonstrate the best techniques to produce the most elaborate dishes. This book is a one-way ticket that allows you to wake up in another city, another country, without needing to change time zones!

Have you packed your bag?

You are walking with your eyes closed through a magical green tea garden. The perfume envelops you as Afghani rose petals flutter down on to your head. Let yourself be comforted by the warmth of the cup in your hands.

For the qaimaq:

480ml (16fl oz) milk

90ml (6 tablespoons) double (heavy) cream

tablespoon cornflour (cornstarch)

For the chai:

480ml (16fl oz) water

4 teaspoons loose leaf green tea

teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

480ml (16fl oz) milk

4 teaspoons white sugar

2 cardamom pods, crushed

Serves 4

Cooking time: 3 hours