Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking (Marcella Hazan)
The English-language authority on Italian home cooking — canonical bolognese, ragù, and pasta doctrine.
Marcella Hazan's 1992 consolidation of her two earlier books; still the reference point every Italian classic gets measured against. Her bolognese — milk before wine, long slow simmer, no garlic or herbs — is the base most "perfect bolognese" attempts start from, and her doctrine (few ingredients, treated correctly) is the corrective to maximalist recipe drift.
Reach for it as the authority position when a recipe concept weighs traditional vs. modernized choices.
Backs: spaghetti bolognese, spaghetti carbonara, risotto alla milanese, lasagna al forno.