PHOTOGRAPHS: DAVID LOFTUS
TASTES LIKE HOME
When I was 13 or 14, I started spending all my non-school hours in the kitchen, my great-grandmother’s sanctuary, which I had been forbidden to enter until then as no messy children were allowed. I felt drawn to the mysterious calm of this special room, and from that point on I never wanted to be anywhere else. From my family I inherited a dusty old handwritten recipe book filled with secrets, and I started studying it. On rainy days, I’d chase away the gloom by putting my hands in some sweet dough. What I love about kneading dough is that you’re bringing your body heat to work with the gluten and the flour: a real collaboration between you and the food. That’s the way my granny (nonna) taught me to cook - by example and through involvement. Torta della nonna is one of the most heart-warming yet easiest pies in the Roman baking repertoire. I’ve added my own twist in the form of white chocolate, for depth of flavour.
Torta della nonna (grandma’s custard pie)
SERVES 8-10. HANDS-ON TIME 60 MIN, OVEN