How does it feel to share this book with readers as the seasons change?

Terribly exciting. It’s always sad to say goodbye to summer, but I also love that sense of the season changing – of moving from languid hot days to crisp autumn ones, filled with such beautiful colours and that back-to-school feeling. As we move closer to winter, I hope this book serves as a manual of how to make the coldest and shortest days of the year joyful rather than something to dread. The book is all about hunkering down in the kitchen with friends and a glass of wine while making something delicious to eat.

Can you explain the concept of quanto basta and how it shapes the cooking - and living - practices featured in the book?

The Italian kitchen expression ‘quanto basta’ sums up my whole cooking - and much of my life - philosophy. It literally means ‘as much as you need’ and if you leaf through any cookbook originally written in Italian you’ll see that in the list of ingredients for any recipes, many of them are followed by the initials ‘q.b’. Basically, meaning you should add as much salt, flour, butter or whatever it might be, as is needed. It’s an approach that encourages you to use your instincts rather than painstakingly measure out olive oil to the millilitre when a glug or two will do.  I love the sentiment behind it, that of not stressing too much or taking cooking too seriously, but instead of using your taste, touch, instinct and a little bit of common sense to make something tasty and create a lovely meal to share with people you love, and that includes cooking for yourself.

What’s the one recipe from Winter in Tuscany you’d encourage readers to try first, and why?

I would say for a delicious, cheap and deeply satisfying supper I would start with rigatoni al sugo finto. Finto in Italian means ‘fake’ and this sugo – which is usually a meat sauce - is finto by dint of it containing no meat at all. Instead, red wine (whatever already open half bottle you have knocking around on the counter will do) is used to tint very finely chopped carrots, onions and celery to give the impression of minced meat. It’s wonderful, tasty and satisfying as it’s made with inexpensive ingredients that cook down more quickly than a traditional ‘bolognese’ and come together to create something really special, and possibly even better than the original that it is trying to imitate.

How has creating this book changed the way you experience winter yourself?

It’s made me appreciate how much I’ve actually always enjoyed winter, which was something I hadn’t really noticed about myself before. Don’t get me wrong, come March I am ready for Spring, in the same way that by September I am excited for Autumn. But I actually love the sense of hibernating, not rushing around, and of curating cosy evenings in with as many people as will fit around my table (which is different to summer, where the outdoors means one can over invite and no one feels cramped). Winter is also the best time to take on a fun long kitchen project, slowly stewed peposo, which takes three hours of long slow cooking. Or making pici (thick, long, noodle like fresh pasta from Siena) with friends to have a delicious cacio e pepe. When it’s trickier to spend time outside, it’s lovely to hunker down in the kitchen, hide from the cold and spend a little more time making something delicious to eat.

Has writing it shifted your perspective on the season?

It’s made me see how many amazing opportunities there are in the kitchen at this time of year despite it being the darkest time with the shortest days. Gorgeous meaty mushrooms, cosy comforting soups, no-waste frugal pastas - it’s been a joy to bring together these – in my opinion – glorious recipes to help people eat cosy, delicious, nourishing food when we need it most.

Which Falcon product do you love most, and how does it lend itself to the style of cooking in your book?

I have a collection of large enamel white and blue roasting trays which I love. The reason they are so brilliant is that you can put them in the oven and then pop them straight on the table for people to serve themselves from as they are so beautiful and look as lovely as a serving platter. A great example of this is my baked procini with cheese, honey and thyme. It’s a speedy and delicious starter, you just put all the ingredients into a -preferably Falcon – roasting dish, pop it in the oven and it’s ready in 10 minutes. The meaty mushrooms with the melted cheese and thyme are a lovely combination when eaten with very good crusty bread to soak up the sweet honey mushroomy juices straight from the Falcon pan.

What are you most looking forward to this season?

Cosy nights in by the fire, the Tuscan olive harvest and the new season’s peppery acid green olive oil on toast, plus lots of reading, cooking and eating. 

I love this as a very speedy and delicious starter. The meaty mushrooms with the melted cheese, honey and thyme are a lovely combination when eaten with very good crusty bread. If you can’t get fresh porcini, this recipe also works well with portobello, shiitake, oyster and chanterelle mushrooms – just roast them without the cheese for a few minutes first. I’ve even used pre-sliced white mushrooms from the supermarket. These threw out a lot more moisture, but this was no bad thing, as it called for more bread to soak up the sweet honey mushroomy juices alongside the melted cheese.

PREPARATION:– 5–10 minutes

BAKING:– 10–15 minutes

(SERVES 4)

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 large porcini mushrooms, or 400 g (14 oz) mushrooms of your choice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground
• black pepper
• a few thyme sprigs, leaves
• picked
• 8 slices of fresh pecorino,
• emmental or mild cheddar
• 4 tablespoons runny honey

TO SERVE:

• good crusty bread

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) fan-forced.

Clean the mushrooms using a clean brush or tea towel to rub away any dirt.

Cut away any roots or particularly earthy bits.

Slice the mushrooms lengthways about 5 mm (1/4 inch) thick. Transfer to a roasting tin large enough to lay the mushrooms out in a single layer. (If you’ve bought pre-sliced mushrooms, put them directly in the roasting tin.) Drizzle with the olive oil, season with salt and black pepper and toss, then arrange so that the mushrooms aren’t piled up on top of each other. Scatter the thyme over, then lay the cheese slices on top and drizzle with the honey.

Bake for 10–15 minutes, until the mushrooms are cooked and the cheese is bubbling.

Serve hot, with a loaf of crusty bread.

Winter in Tuscany by Amber Guinness is published by Thames & Hudson, 25 September 2025. Order your copy now.