ANTONIO Carluccio's home is brimming with personal touches, and as he shows me around, it isn't long before even the most innocuous item prompts a trickle of anecdotes.
"Those grapes out there are from a cutting I brought to London 41 years ago," the 79-year-old declares proudly, gesturing towards a branch heavy with black fruit, which I'm encouraged to try and informed it'll be used for making wine later.
Then there's the pot of quince jam he presses into my hands and explains was made yesterday with fruit fresh from his garden, the stacks of notes for his first children's book (about two mushrooms), and his friendly dachshund who doubles up as a foot warmer, and whose likeness was captured by a fan in a wooden chopping board, hand-crafted for the Italian cook's last birthday.
It's a homely house, full of rustic paintings, photographs, cushions and books, and just like the man himself, not ostentatious.
"I like to have money, because money is good," he says, crinkling his eyes. "But it's not too good, you know?
"If you have enough, it's fine. It solves many, many problems, but there are people that are avidly attached to it. It's balance. My mother used to say, when God created Italy and looked from above, he said, 'It's too beautiful, I have to balance it and create Italians!'"
Brought up in the country's north-west region, one of six children, Carluccio briefly worked as a journalist in Turin before moving to Vienna and then Germany, and eventually to London to work as a wine merchant, before devoting himself to food with the opening of his Neal Street Restaurant in 1981, followed by the first Carluccio's Caffe in 1998.
Although he's since sold his interest in the restaurant chain, he's still involved from a distance, and clearly proud of its success.
Next on the menu is his new book, Vegetables, within which roots and greens take the glory (although some meat and fish dishes are included).
"Italians love vegetables as much as they love meat or fish, there's no difference," he notes.
It's easy to draw the conclusion that this is a man who knows how to live well.
"I am not a monk, don't misunderstand me, never would be a monk," he retorts. "I'm a humanist, so that means I like human beings. I like to be with them. I like to discuss with them."
And with his hands resting on a newspaper, he's eager to discuss what he believes are overly strict restrictions on civil liberties, such as the recent call for a ban on offering biscuits with hot drinks in cafes.
"They forbid the biscuits with the coffee because it's too fattening," he explains with a sigh, pointing at the plate of tempting biscotti he's laid out to nibble on with our coffees.
"You can't just deny people something like this. Let him do it, but let him do it responsibly. Teach them. No, it's all, 'Stop, stop. No, no, no'. And it's no good... it's just indoctrination.
"Indoctrination because you really believe that your citizens are stupid."
"My philosophy is to be happy and to make people happy," he reasons. "And by result, if you make people happy they make you happy."
Below are two delicious recipes from Vegetables.
:: LASAGNE DI BIETOLE (BEETROOT LASAGNE)
(Serves 4)
4 very large beetroot, about 750g
150g smoked ham, in thin slices (optional)
Freshly ground black pepper
For the spicy cheese sauce:
70g unsalted butter
50g plain flour
500ml milk, warmed
90g Parmesan, freshly grated
Freshly grated nutmeg
A pinch of chilli powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4. Boil the beetroot in slightly salted water for one and a half hours, until the centre is soft. Make the sauce. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, then add the flour, and stir to amalgamate the flour with the melted butter. Add the warm milk slowly, stirring constantly to avoid lumps, until the sauce is thick. Add 80g of the Parmesan, some nutmeg, chilli powder, salt and pepper to taste.
Peel the cooked beetroot and cut into thin slices. In an ovenproof dish, build a layer of beetroot, followed by a layer of ham, then cover with some of the sauce. Build up these layers until you finish the ingredients, ending with the remainder of the sauce on top. Add a final sprinkle of the remaining Parmesan and black pepper.
Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes and serve hot.
:: TORTA RUSTICA DI PATATE (RUSTIC POTATO CAKE)
(Serves 6)
1kg floury potatoes
55g cooked ham, cut into cubes
25g buffalo mozzarella cheese, cut into small cubes
150g Provola cheese (smoked mozzarella) cut into small cubes
55g Parmesan, freshly grated
4 medium eggs, beaten
2tbsp finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
A knob of unsalted butter
4tbsp dried white breadcrumbs
4tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4. Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender, then drain and peel them. Pass them through a potato ricer (or sieve) to make a puree. Mix the potato puree with the ham, mozzarella, Provola, Parmesan, beaten eggs, parsley and some salt and pepper.
Use the butter to grease a round cake tin 25cm in diameter, and dust with some of the breadcrumbs. Spoon the potato mixture into this, and press gently with a fork to give some shape. Sprinkle with the remaining breadcrumbs, then trickle over the olive oil.
Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, until browned on top. Serve in slices. The cake is very good warm, but also excellent cold.
:: Vegetables by Antonio Carluccio is published in hardback by Quadrille, priced £25.
