A House Party In Tuscany

Art meets food in this sublime celebration of thirty years of cooking and hosting at the Arniano School of Painting in Tuscany A peculiar attribute of the landscape surrounding Arniano is the ever-changing light. Early in the morning, there is an extraordinary mist that lies in the valley and weaves through the hills, allowing only the tops to show above the smoky clouds. These changes bring with them new moods and shadows, drawing our painters to different views and areas of the garden throughout the day. In the evening, everything has altered again, and there are often intense sunsets, bringing silhouettes of the trees and much darker, richer olive colours. There are many farmhouses in Tuscany, but few are as magical as Arniano. It is here, in this 18th-century Podere, that Amber Guinness grew up and learned to cook. And it is here that I established the Arniano School of Painting, a residential painting course and immersive food and art experience. As I look through the recipes and think about the common thread that ties them together, I realize that they all exemplify a fundamental principle of Italian home cooking. Which is that simplicity, and keeping ingredients as close to their original form as possible, leads to the most delicious and rewarding food. The beauty of Italian cooking is that it’s not about fancy sauces or preparation techniques. Rather, it’s about bringing out the best in whatever you’re cooking, through patience, constant tasting, and developing flavor—sometimes using nothing more than some olive oil and salt. Filled with recipes for classic dishes and cocktails, curation tips, seasonal menu suggestions, and notes on Italian pantry and wines, A House Party in Tuscany will transport you to the Tuscan countryside and bring Arniano's conviviality to your table.