In New Cookbook, Rachael Ray Says ‘Everyone Is Italian on Sunday’

Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week is Everyone Is Italian on Sunday by Rachael Ray (Atria Books). A long-time Food Network star, Ray is the founder and editorial director of Everyday with Rachael Ray, the host of her own syndicated talk show, and a bestselling cookbook author.

Rachael Ray. (Photo by Andrew Eccles)

Rachael Ray may be the reigning queen of quick and easy cooking, but her latest cookbook, Everyone Is Italian on Sunday, is about slowing down and taking time to make leisurely meals to enjoy with the ones you love.

Ray comes from a food-loving Italian-American family, and in the book she writes about her grandparents’ legendary Sunday feasts, complete with platters of meat, sausages in tomato sauce, and huge salads made with garden-fresh vegetables. But Ray’s book isn’t about being Italian, or even about cooking on Sunday. It’s about making time for good food and good people.

“The idea of being Italian on Sunday is that no one’s refused from the table and you’re going to share a long, comforting meal with the promise that nobody goes away hungry,” Ray explains. From a practical perspective, Sunday is the day that most people have time to cook dishes that require hours of simmering or braising; it’s also when people tend to be off from work and can visit with friends and family. But any day can be made to feel like Sunday, insists Ray. It’s not about when you gather or what you eat. It’s about making time to be together.

Chicken Cacciatore (Photo: Frances Janisch)

Of course, there should be plenty of good food, which is where Ray’s recipes come in. Everyone is Italian on Sunday is organized by dish type, and hits all the Italian-American highlights, including pasta, polenta, soups, vegetables, risotto, grains, meat, poultry, and seafood, plus desserts from Ray’s sister Maria Betar and Italian ingredient–inspired cocktails created by Ray’s husband John Cusimano.

When it comes to planning the ultimate Sunday feast, Ray says that homemade pastas, gnocchi, lasagna, and braised meats are guaranteed crowd-pleasers, but she recommends letting the season and your mood be your guide. As temperatures dip, Ray’s hearty ribollita soup, classic risotto milanese, and deeply satisfying chicken cacciatore (pictured above) will be right at home on any dinner table.

Ribollita (Photo: Frances Janisch)

In writing a book focused on Italian home cooking, Ray is returning to her roots, which is something she sees happening all over America. “We went through a couple generations of very busy moms and dads working outside the home, so maybe we learned to rely a little too much on processed and packaged foods,” says Ray. “But I think that’s swinging back. Americans are doing just fine and they’re coming back to their roots.”

Ray, who hosts Rachael Ray’s Kids Cook-Off on the Food Network, sees kids heading into the kitchen as part of this larger trend and believes it’s a movement that can really make a difference. “I think that the more kids we get into the kitchen and cooking, the better the nation’s health will be both physically and mentally,“ says Ray. Here’s an idea: Why note start with Sunday dinner?

Visit Yahoo Food throughout the week for recipes from Everyone is Italian on Sunday.

Check out other cookbooks from Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week:

My Kitchen Year by Ruth Reichl

My Life on a Plate by Kelis

Good and Cheap by Leanne Brown