Commendatore Antonio Carluccio OBE, Italian chef, restaurateur, godfather of Italian gastronomy
The cookbook that has most influenced your cooking
Scienza in cucina e L’arte di mangiar bene by Pellegrino Artusi
The food of love… What would you cook to impress a potential date
Something simple but utterly delicious, for example, scrambled eggs and white truffle for breakfast
Your top five dinner guests, dead or alive
Katharine Hepburn, Sigmund Freud, Mozart, Ingrid Bergman, Peter Ustinov
Fast food – your top snack tip
Caviar on blinis
Most memorable meal in film/literature/painting
Babette’s feast
Your worst kitchen disaster
Trying to make a sweet avocado tart
What do you eat when you get home from the pub [or similar]
Whatever is edible of the leftovers in the fridge, or freshly cooked (7 minutes) spaghetti aglio e olio
What would you like your final meal to be?
Spaghettini with fresh tomato sauce and basil
What is your secret talent [in or out of the kitchen]?
My secret talent is not to know that I have a talent
What did you eat for breakfast today?
Porridge with milk
Most over-rated/ under-rated food/seasoning/gadget
I hate the word trendy in food, and all the various useless kitchen gadgets
Your inheritance recipes – the one you inherited [and from whom] and the one you’d like to pass on to your children
By memory, all that my mother used to cook for the family, plus my own input. This has helped me write 23 books in the past 30 years, all related to the glorious, simple food of Italy and all of this I will pass on to future generations
Vegetables by Antonio Carluccio is published by Quadrille, £25, quadrille.co.uk. For a taste of Antonio Carluccio’s recipes visit breadandoysters.com/magazine/recipes/
