Italian Mantra: Family mealtimes are sacred. Cooking an act of love.

Students to an Italian cooking school to master the craft and artistry of Italian cooking and eating learn skills that nourish the soul as well as the body.

Italians shrug off all the US Diet fads and are the better for it, with smaller portions, leisurely dining, good childhood educated choices, necessitated walking.

OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR

YOU ARE HOW YOU EAT

The New York Times
By Giuliano Hazan
July 6, 2004

VERONA, Italy — I have just greeted a new batch of students here in Verona, the gateway to the Valpolicella wine region on the picturesque foothills of the Dolomites. Their mandate is a delectable one: to master the craft and artistry of Italian cooking. What greater pleasure than to whip up — and eat — risotto with truffles, pasta with porcini, homemade tortelloni filled with Swiss chard and ricotta. As their teacher and culinary guide, I have had the good fortune of growing up with parents who nurtured my passion for cooking and eating well. Some of my fondest memories are of times spent in the kitchen with my mother. I would stand with her at the stove and carefully stir the risotto — something my 5-year-old daughter now does at my side. In Italy, cooking and eating are not chores, they are one of life's gifts that nourish the soul as well as the body.

Sadly, according to fans of the low-carb mania that is sweeping the United States, the Italian gastronomic landscape is the equivalent of a minefield. Our diet of pasta, rice and an abundance of fruits and vegetables is loaded with evil carbs.

So why is it that Italians are shrugging off America's latest dietary obsession?

For one thing, the mere idea of giving up pasta would be cause for severe depression in an Italian. I experience withdrawal if I go more than four or five days without it.

And why is it that the number of Americans who are overweight or obese continues to increase at an alarming rate while here the percentage of overweight or obese people is half of what it is in the United States? After all, those trim and fit Italian men with flat bellies and women with hourglass figures are all sitting in restaurants eating pasta, polenta and crusty bread.

Ultimately, it's not the carbohydrates — or the next unsuspecting food group that will come under attack — that will make us overweight. It's our relationship with food and our lifestyle. In other words, how we eat is just as important — if not more so — than what we eat.

Maybe that's the ultimate cooking lesson. In general, Italians take their time when they eat. Many businesses in Italy still close in the middle of the day for three hours to allow for a leisurely lunch. Family mealtimes are sacred. Cooking for one's family becomes an act of love. Family meals allow for conversation and strengthen the family bond. The antithesis of the Italian eating style is fast food and "eating on the run," where little attention is given to what is being consumed and the quicker one is done, the better. There is a physiological benefit of eating more slowly, too: your body senses that food has reached the stomach and shuts off the feeling of hunger before you overeat.

Italians also tend to lead less sedentary lives. Walking is a necessity not just in cities but also in smaller towns where cars are usually banned from the center of stown. Many people live in walkups, and elevators are usually found only in high-rises.

Above all, portion sizes in Italy are undoubtedly smaller than they are in America. According to a poll sponsored by the Union of Italian Pasta Producers, over half of Italians interviewed eat pasta every day. But pasta is generally only one of several courses in a typical Italian meal. So although per capita pasta consumption in Italy is four times as much as in the United States, Italians actually eat less pasta at a single sitting than do Americans, who tend to eat it only once or twice a week. The trend in the United States seems inevitably headed toward larger and larger portions. To suggest that more and bigger is not better seems almost un-American.

When I was growing up in Italy and then in New York, I remember having a one-liter bottle of Coke in the refrigerator. It took my parents and me almost a week to drink it. Now, a 32-ounce Coke is a single serving.

And when my grandmother came to visit from Italy, many years ago, we went out to eat at a restaurant in New York. She was served first and was baffled by the amount of food on the large plate placed in front of her. Then she had a realization: "Oh," she said, "am I supposed to serve everyone?"

Let's not forget that bad habits begin in childhood. Children's menus in American restaurants seem to be made up of fried foods, hamburgers, chicken fingers and macaroni and cheese (which my 5-year-old insists is not pasta). Restaurants will say that it is because that's what youngsters like. The truth is that it is what parents are teaching their children to eat. Once at a Japanese restaurant a family sitting at the table next to ours looked in amazement as our daughter was thoroughly enjoying her eel sushi. They said they never would have even considered offering it to their child instead of ordering off the children's menu.

In Italy there are no children's menus, but half portions are always happily provided. You may be surprised that some restaurants in the States are willing to oblige as well.

Americans' quest for the ultimate miracle diet has engendered a dizzying array of often contradicting messages. Whether it's salt, fat and now carbohydrates, it seems as if no food group will be left unscathed. We might be closer to finding warning labels on our food telling us that "eating may be hazardous to your health" than we think. That would be a very sad state of affairs indeed, as nothing could be further from the truth.

Eating sensibly is really the best diet, and the better we can teach our children to appreciate good food and the pleasure we can take from eating leisurely together as a family, the less likely we will be to feel the need to try the latest diet fad. Savoring a good meal simply makes us feel good. Food should not be feared. It should be a source of pleasure and well-being. So sauté a little sliced garlic in extra virgin olive oil until it sizzles, add ripe fresh peeled tomatoes, cook 15-20 minutes, stir in some fresh basil and toss with some spaghettini. Then sit down with your family and enjoy one of life's simple pleasures together.

Giuliano Hazan is a cooking instructor and the author, most recently, of "Every Night Italian."

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