Mother Martha investigates restaurants, recipes and foodie culture in Rome and beyond
By Mother Martha Confetti are traditionally almonds from Avola in Sicily’s province of Syracuse coated in a hard outer shell of sugar. They are ubiquitous at many Italian (but not only) celebrations as a symbol of good fortune and prosperity. At baptisms the confetti are obviously pink or blue; at first communions, confirmations and weddings, white; [...]
By Mother Martha In 2004 Egeria di Nallo, a prolific author and professor of anthropology, political science, sociology and marketing at the University of Bologna, with a group of commmitted citizens, founded the Association for the Protection and Enhancement of Italy’s Culinary Gastronomic Heritage under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture and the University of [...]
By Mother Martha In 1300 Pope Boniface VIII proclaimed the first ordinary Jubilee, or Holy Year, with the Papal Bull, “Antiquorum Habet Fida Relatio.” Since then, they have taken place either every 50 or every 25 years. 2025’s Holy Year is the 27th. It began on Christmas Eve 2024 and will last through Epiphany, January 6, [...]
By Mother Martha The ancient Romans were the world’s first gourmets. They owe their obsession with food, at least in part, to fellow citizen Marcus Gabius. Better known as Apicius, he was a wealthy decadent epicure who in the first century wrote De Re Coquinaria (Concerning Culinary Matters), the world’s first cookbook. He specialized in [...]
By Mother Martha Theaters of Pompeii with Mt. Vesuvius in the background When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D., at least 3,000 of Pompeii’s some 15,000 inhabitants were killed, buried under continuous waves of 700° ash-containing toxic gas. The deceased were either the wealthy who didn’t want to abandon their valuables or the [...]
By Mother Martha Portrait of Heinz Beck by Adriano Truscello, courtesy of Barbara Manto & Partners For my “Food For Thought” column of October 2014, Heinz Beck, Rome’s only chef with three Michelin stars, told me: “During my 20 years at La Pergola my cuisine has passed through several styles: from traditional, to creative [...]
By Mother Martha All his life Joseph Ratzinger was devoted to his close-knit family, theology, music (especially Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven), cats, and food. His close attachment to food, especially sweets. was due to his mother, Maria Peintner. Born in Mülbach in Bavaria, though some sources say in the South Tyrol (today Italy), on January 8th, [...]
By Mother Martha Every year Forbes Magazine and Bloomberg Billionaires Index publish lists of the 50 richest people in the world. This year Elon Musk was leading the lists with $195 billion, followed by the French chairman and CEO of luxury-items LVMH, Bernard Arnault, with $153.8 billion; Indian coal and transport tycoon Gautam Adani with $129 [...]
By Mother Martha Pumpkin pie, an international symbol of harvest time, is a favorite dessert, especially in the United States and Canada, but also in Northern Italy, between Halloween and Christmas. Its custardy filling flavored with nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger, the pie, topped with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream, is especially [...]
By Lucy Gordan De honesta Voluptate ac Valetudine libri decem (On honest indulgence and good health, Ten Books, often shortened to De honesta voluptate) was the first cookbook ever printed. Compiled ca. 1465 by Bartolomeo Platina, it appeared between 1470 and 1475 in Rome. Rossano Boscolo, creator of Garum Its inauguration postponed several times [...]
