In the time of food influencers, social media trends, and fast-paced digital consumption, I often find myself leafing through old cookbooks with yellowed pages and no photos, brimming with the wise advice of past food writers. One of my favorite cookbook authors, Ada Boni, provides timeless inspiration with her “Il Talismano della Felicità” (“The Talisman of Happiness”).
Born in Rome in 1881 to a well-off family, Ada Boni was one of the first Italian food writers. She was a food journalist, passionate gastronome, entrepreneur, and home cook, whose writing and recipes left a lasting legacy on the Italian food scene. Her first cookbook, “Il Talismano,” might be considered as being to Italian home cooks what “The Joy of Cooking” was to their American counterparts; it was a common gift for the young and inexperienced bride on her wedding day, a good omen for happiness at the table and in the marriage.
