Nina Parker - Nina Capri

CONTENTS

EVERYTHING YOU SEE I OWE TO PASTA

Sophia Loren

I have trained in Italian and French cuisine and the first commercial kitchen I worked in was LAnima, London, under the watchful eye of Francesco Mazzei. My time there made me aware of the wonders of Italian cooking. Many of the first dishes that I learned had a southern Italian feel to them thanks to Mazzeis Calabrian and sous-chef Lellos Sardinian roots. Since then, my food has been a colourful mix inspired by the food of Italy and my French childhood spent in St Tropez.

After my first cookbook NINA St Tropez was published I had already set my sights on my next food destination: Capri was my first choice. I was drawn to this island that seemed to possess a similar air to St Tropez. I first visited Capri with my family when I was 12-years-old and returning there to research the book, it felt very familiar. Italy is of course a beautiful country, but for me the Bay of Naples is the most alluring and captivating part. There is an energy that surrounds it, with its rocky cliffsides, black volcanic sand, piercing blue waters, welcoming locals, blue and white wooden fishing boats, noisy Piaggios and mouthwatering cuisine that, combined, adds to the charm of the place.

When at a wedding in Ravello, we dined under a canopy of olive trees overlooking a steep drop to the town of Amalfi: there is something magnetic about this part of Italy.

I was fascinated by Capri for its seascapes and beauty but I wanted to strip it back to something more accessible and discover the real food, the food that the locals have been enjoying for years. I want to take you along on the journey to uncover the classic recipes of the island and beyond. Travels that continue to Naples, the island of Ischia and along the Amalfi Coast.

Winding up the road along the dramatic coastline, my brother Christian and I ate our way past Sorrento, Nerano, Positano, Montepertuso, Praiano, Furore, Amalfi, Ravello and finished at the anchovy capital, Cetara. What struck me most about all the restaurants we came across was that many of them are family businesses, ones that were proud to have the mother of the family as the head chef. Being a female chef myself, I have never seen so many women working in the kitchen, and although in Italy this is traditional, it seemed quite modern.