La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy cookbook

“La Cucina: The Regional Cooking of Italy” by Accademia Italiana Della Cucina

Foodies can refer to this collection of recipes as a culinary map of Italy. Over 50 years in the making this unique book was compiled by the Milan based Accadamia Italiana della Cucina, an organisation passionate about preserving the nation’s recipes. The dedication of these members sees them visiting villages and towns across Italy to collect never-before-documented recipes from grandmothers and farmers. All 20 regions of the country are featured- resulting in over 2000 recipes, eight chapters and two handy indexes.

“La Cucina” is truly an old-fashioned cookbook, where you can hear the grandmothers all over the Italian countryside telling you how to really make a dish the traditional way. It isn’t a modern day cookbook where the chef takes you by the hand and tells you everything step by step.

However, some recipes will require a bit of common sense because there are couple of mistakes, probably lost in translation.

Whether you cook the recipes from this book, or just want to read it for fun, you will gain a better understanding of the country through its cuisine. Most of the recipes are simple, and vary from region to region - which in my opinion is fantastic to see where a particular dish originated.

We love it!!!

j-b x

Santa

I’m just popping in for a quick moment to say hello to my lovely blog readers! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas day filled with family, love, good food and lots of joy!

I also wanted to show you this great photo I took of Santa on his new stand up paddle board he got for Christmas…..what a great view from my balcony!!!

Above photo taken by me!
Wishing you Happy Holidays!
j-b x

Christmas Baubles

Here are a couple of lovely baubles I have come across this Christmas season…..I will post a couple more before Santa pops down the chimney…

this one i found in the Christmas markets in Germany a few years ago…..look how beautiful it is.

www.anthropologie.eu
look at this gorgeous elephant ornament

and finally i will leave you with one of my favourites….beautifully mirrored ornaments….this looks spectacular at night with tea candles surrounding it…

All photos taken my me.

j-b x

Oh so comfy and cococozy!

We are loving the new online store on one of our favourite blog sites cococozy.com. Coco has taken her fantastic blog a step further and released her first range of amazing cushions, throws, drapes and fabrics. The prints are edgy and contemporary and come in a fantastic range of colours. Here’s a few of our favourites

 
But the top of our wish list - this gorgeous throw in Aqua. It is screaming to be snuggled into with a good book, a zeppole and a mug of hot chocolate.

make sure you check it out
http://shop.cococozy.com
x J-B

HO HO HO

Since it’s the season to be jolly, I’ve selected a handful of lovely Christmas ideas for decorating your home before the big day……

www.countryliving.com
A galvanised tub offers a charming cover for a plain metal tree stand

www.francesjanisch.com

www.countryliving.com

Kelly Wearstler designed this chic, leather dip-dyed wreath for DIFFA. Think outside of the normal pine wreath…..

www.hectorsanchez.com

www.rolandbello.com
An excellent way to hang your christmas baubles in a decorative way.

www.anthropologie.com
A lovely winter woollen stocking

www.freshome.com
This tree is made by tacking up knickknacks and odds-and-ends in the shape of a classic Christmas tree, this display conveys a festive tree without the help of a single branch

www.houseandhome.com
This DIY Christmas board is a great idea to display your Christmas cards and tags….and can be used over and over again even when Christmas is over.

www.livingetc.com
And finally a little present for Santa…… and personalising his midnight refreshment with a write-on-glass pen
Spread the Christmas magic around!!!

j-b x

Christmas Delights

Everywhere we go now we are surrounded by the delights of Christmas- the snow, the sparkling lights, the lovely smell of the pine trees, the Christmas carols….and it always gets me thinking about the yummy Christmas desserts I can look forward to… the buttery, spicy scents of the kitchen can mean only one thing – Christmas is here.

Here are a few I think look delicious and I cant wait to try them out for myself!!! What are your favourite Christmas sweet treats?

Christmas mince pies

http://www.jamieoliver.com

Pandoro gourmand

http://www.marieclairemaison.com

Almond shortbread wreaths with brandy glaze

http://gourmettraveller.com.au

Christmas morning muffins

http://www.nigella.com/

Almond sherry christmas trifle

http://www.gourmet.com

Sables aux fruit confits

http://www.marieclairemaison.com

Contemporary Christmas puddings on a spoon

http://www.jamieoliver.com
They all look pretty good to me……
j-b x

Hangin' In Hawaii

Jelly-Bella’s favourite destinations ….

You know your in Hawaii, when all you can see when you look up is the soft swaying fronds of palm trees. When the blazing sunsets and salty air make your eyes water and the smell of frangipanis warms your whole being.

One of the most amazing parts of the Island of Oahu, and my favourite, is the beautiful North Shore. Some of the houses along this stretch are incredible. A mix of traditional hawaiian style living spaces, with contemporary lines and shapes dot the beach front. The gardens are lush and green and overflowing with sweet smells and gorgeous colours. The inspiration here is endless......

J-B X

J-B's Hip Hotels

It is really hard to find great hotels that tick all the boxes. Places to stay that have character and flair, that are central to the action and affordable and that will have you booking your next stay before you’ve left. Once you find that little gem it’s important to pass it on and share the love. So of course we would love to share with you all the most fab and hip hotel’s we’ve stumbled upon on our travels.

Moana Surf-rider - Waikiki

One of the best qualities about the Moana Surfrider is that it’s rich and long standing history has been retained through all of the renovations it has undergone. As one of the oldest structures along the famous strip of sand that is Waikiki, it’s original facade has retained its elegance and character but has taken on a sophisticated and contemporary look with the pale grey and white colour palette.
The whole resort has a hawaii meets bahamas feel to it from the carpet featuring a palm tree motif, to the wicker lanterns that run along the hallway’s, it all works. While the rooms aren’t overly huge, the fit out is elegant and uncluttered. The plantation shutters add that extra touch. One of my favourite spots was the huge veranda/terrace that ran around the back of the hotel, gorgeous old wicker chairs lined up every afternoon, while high tea was served - a wonderful place to escape the afternoon heat and catch the cool sea breeze.

check out http://www.moana-surfrider.com/

Colours Of The North Shore

dusty pink evening skies. fragrant hibiscus unfurling their delicate layers to reveal shades of vibrant fuschia, lipstick pink and tangerine …. this is the colour palette of the north shore.

x J-B

Ange's Had A Face Lift

Angelina’s is one of my all time favourite tea rooms and a must-see every time I visit Paris…and she has had a small face lift to the entrance of this jewel, which looks great!! The new display cases look really chic, and all the on-display pastries are beautifully layed out which makes it a very difficult decision as to which one to devour first. On the menu for me is always a chocolat chaud and a mont blanc…..delicious!!!  Go and check her out and let us know what you think of her recent renovations….Enjoy!

http://www.groupe-bertrand.com/angelina.php

All photo’s taken by me!
j-b x

Sirmione

I am away from Cagliari for a few days and my starting point of this adventure is a little town called Sirmione. Sirmione is a comune in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy (northern Italy). It is surrounded by the comunes of Desenzano del Garda and Peschiera del Garda in the province of Verona and the region of Veneto. It has a historical centre which is located on the Sirmio peninsula that divides the lower part of Lake Garda.

Here is a google map of the exact location of Sirmione:

Starting from the 1st century BCE, the area of the Garda, including what is now Sirmione, became a favourite resort for rich families coming from Verona, then the main Roman city in north-eastern Italy.

The historical centre of Sirmione is pedestrianised; its narrow winding lanes were busy with tourists but I am sure the Summer period is a lot more crowded. Orienting yourself can be confusing, but the town is so small that you can’t get lost for long. Sirmione is a very picturesque town, with its two main tourist attractions being the castle and the Roman ruins.

The town is dominated by a thirteenth-century castle, the Rocca Scaligera, defended by a moat patrolled by swans and ducks. It is a real fairytale castle from the exterior.  

This fortification, surrounded by water, was built near the end of the 12th century as part of a defensive network surrounding Verona. The castle is a beautiful!

I thoroughly enjoyed my afternoon wandering the streets of Sirmione.

 J-B. Xx

BookShelf: French Essence by Vicki Archer

We love Vicki Archer! She has published a couple of gems about her life and experiences living in France. With a beautiful eye for style, her books are filled with the breathtaking interiors of her french home Mas Bernard, a working olive grove. Plus she shares all the wonderful haunts she has discovered during her time in France. If you love all things French, you must check this out. Photography by the wonderful Carla Coulson. The address book in the back gives a great head start on the best of the best for everything any stylish and tre chic person would lust after. We love love love this book. Check out Vicki’s blog as well http://frenchessence.blogspot.com/

J-B Xx

BookShelf Essentials

It’s time to start stacking the bookshelf … we have so many inspiring books to share with you we thought we’d start with the books you absolutely must have.

We like to think of these books as old faithful. You can always pull these off the shelf when everything seems a little stale and grey and instantly you’ll feel lighter, brighter and ready to go again.

Enjoy
J-B x

Black + White. And Green

I have been doing a little “spring cleaning” lately and I stopped to look through some of the millions of magazines I own …. I just cant bear to throw any of them away. Anyway I saw some great images in them which triggered a topic I thought to share with you…black, white and green.
I think these three colours together are very striking … see what you think of some of these images I found….

Belle Magazine

The black and white stripes with the solid green look great together!!
Belle Magazine

Vogue Living Magazine

House & Garden Magazine

This bathroom is so glam!
http://www.kwid.com/

j-b x