GRAZIA!

A book like this doesn’t happen without a jolly lot of hard work. The following are just a few of the many people I would like to thank, as well as a few who are included for purely contractual reasons.

First and foremost, my darling husband, Phillip. You are the egg in my omelette. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

My wonderful photographer Desiree Coffts – molto grazia! What this woman can do with a glazing brush, a bottle of glycerine and some soft light is nothing short of extraordinary.

Fiona Steed for designing the book so beautifully. Even if some of your amazing ideas (such as printing each recipe on edible rice paper) proved a little too visionary for certain publishers to fully appreciate, let alone agree to provide the funds for, they were nothing short of inspirational and I look forward to working together again.

My food stylist Jo French for her invaluable help and eye for detail. Even when we thought everything looked perfect, she was always able to find some fault – and that is a gift.

My creative designer Angela Pryor, who scoured the second-hand shops of Tuscany for authentic tableware and kitchen appliances. The fact that we were able to use so few of the items she secured in our photo shoots is in no way a reflection on the quality of her work.

My commissioning editor, Hugh Creighton, who not only encouraged and carefully guided this book but also put up with my frequent phone calls complaining about the lack of publisher support. Hugh, I never blamed you personally for the budgetary constraints that threatened to derail this wonderful project. Yes, I was cross but I now realise that you are just a very small and relatively unimportant cog in the overall book business. So thank you for doing what you could.

Fiona Scarfe and Siobhan Mullens made useful suggestions.

Leslie Reed, less so.

Tamara Feros, my editor, whose attempts to remove anything she deemed ‘extraneous’ from this book were as persistent as they were misguided. Ta.

Thanks also to my personal assistant, Claire Bayley, who was with me for over seven years and would still be today if she could just display a slightly more flexible and less strident tone when dealing with other people.

And finally, to the people of Tuscany, who welcomed us into their lives with such a generosity of spirit. Every time we ate together they wanted to share their knowledge and passion for food. In the end it’s not your recipe or their recipe, it’s one that belongs to anyone with a love of cooking. (That said, all recipes in this book are mine and any attempt to reproduce them without written permission from my publisher will be met with legal action).