Italian Keto Cookbook: Table of Contents

Romans have always started a meal small and bold: cured meats from the salumeria, sharp Pecorino Romano, marinated artichokes, olives. The antipasto (literally “before the meal”) is meant to wake up the appetite, not fill you up, which makes it naturally keto-friendly.

Venice grew rich on the spice trade, and its kitchens still show it: pepper, cinnamon and saffron alongside fish and shellfish straight from the lagoon. Slow-simmered seafood soups and broths are a Venetian way of life, cooked to the rhythm of the tides.

Tuscan cooking is famous for doing a lot with a little: the best seasonal vegetables, good bread, beans and a generous pour of local extra-virgin olive oil. Salads here are bright and simple, dressed with oil, vinegar and salt, and little else.

Florentines love to graze. Market stalls sell crostini with chicken-liver pâté, slices of finocchiona (fennel salami) and aged pecorino, all perfect small bites to eat standing up with a glass of Chianti.

Northern Italy cooks with butter more than olive oil. Milan gave the world saffron risotto, ossobuco and the breaded cotoletta, rich dishes always served with simple, well-made vegetable sides.

Chicken is Rome’s everyday protein. Pollo alla romana, chicken braised with sweet peppers, tomatoes and white wine, is the classic dish for Ferragosto, the August 15 summer holiday when Romans escape the heat.

Bologna’s nickname is “la Grassa,” the fat one, thanks to its rich cooking: mortadella, tortellini and the slow-simmered meat ragù the world calls Bolognese. Nearby towns give us Parmigiano-Reggiano and balsamic vinegar.

Neapolitans cook what the bay gives them: clams, mussels, octopus and small fish, usually with garlic, lemon, chili and olive oil. And of course, Naples is the birthplace of pizza.

The region of Campania is famous for buffalo mozzarella, sun-ripened tomatoes, eggplant and basil, the backbone of meatless Italian classics like eggplant parmigiana and the Caprese salad from the nearby island of Capri.

Verona has a sweet tooth. It is the home of pandoro, the tall, star-shaped golden Christmas cake, and Italian desserts like tiramisu and panna cotta are proof that dessert is about pleasure, not practicality.

Italians have rituals for drinks. Morning espresso is taken standing at the bar, and the early-evening aperitivo, a light drink with small bites, is a northern Italian tradition made famous in the cafés of Milan and Turin.

Turin is the capital of Piedmont and a city of treats: grissini breadsticks, vermouth (created here in 1786) and gianduja, the smooth chocolate-hazelnut blend that holiday sweets all over Italy are built on.