ALMA BENUSSI

I made Risotto Alla Milanese tonight. It’s my father’s favourite dish.

Nick said it’s probably my finest dish too.

Every time I cook risotto with saffron it makes me think of my father. He really loves this dish. I doubt he gets to eat it often. He lives in Florence but grew up in Milan. Whenever he goes visit his mother, grandma would always make risotto alla milanese for him. She knows that he misses it. And I guess there’s nothing more typical of Milan than that dish. 

It’s always hard to abandon your food habits. Italy has such a wide culinary variety that even moving in another region makes a big difference.

I’ve been having cravings for Pugliese food all my life. And I won’t stop. I’ve spent so much time in Puglia during my childhood that I really have dreams at night in which I eat mozzarella and pane pugliese. And even in America I suffer for having to adapt my diet to a completely different food. I miss everything. 

Some things taste the right way only when they’re eaten in the place that they’re from.