There’s no doubt the hot topic this March was ‘when will the tomatoes be ready?’ Families across the state, including ours, had been anxiously keeping an eye out throughout February, in eager anticipation of ripe tomatoes, with texts and calls making the rounds each week: Are they ready? The excitement of ripe tomatoes centre around our annual Basile & Co Passata-Making day, when the Basiles, with extended family and friends, gather to make sauce.

My cultural heritage is Italian. Both of my parents and their parents were born in Sicily, in Italy’s south. I’ve grown up in country Victoria, however, my home life was very much Italian!

Chef, Naz Cugliari of Il Forno Restaurant in Hampton, shares one of his favourite side dishes, fried peppers and potatoes. In Italian, these are known as pipi e patate, a traditional Calabrian side dish, perfect with crusty bread or with meat.

If you have an abundance of zucchini in your garden, lightly fried fritters and pickled zucchini are two easy and delicious recipes to try.

In this cooking video, we welcome my mum, Marie ‘Mama’ Basile, into the kitchen to show us how she makes her delicious, tasty pasta sauce, otherwise known as sugo.

I have memories of my Nonna Curcio, my mum’s mum, teaching me how to make spaghetti carbonara, among many other things from a young age.

In this cooking video, we welcomes my dad, Luigi ‘papa’ Basile, who is sharing one of his favourite side dishes, or contorni, as it’s known in Italian — fried green peppers with onions, garlic, diced tomatoes and a touch of red chillies.

For the chilly months, or for those times when you’re not feeling 100%, homemade chicken soup is one of those recipes that everyone should have up their sleeve. This one stems from my Nonna Curcio, and mum, with a twist of chef, Naz Cugliari’s Calabrian family roots.

When serving a cup of coffee, it’s always lovely to have some freshly baked biscuits, particularly when made by Nonna (my mum, Marie).

Stuffed artichokes or carciofi ripieni as it’s known in Italian was always a delicacy in our home. We knew special guests were on their way if the artichokes were slowly bubbling away in passata in a large pot on the stovetop.

This is a traditional and rustic pasta dish perfect for the vegetarians among us! Simple and delicious, rigatoni alla Norma is a sure winner!

This is a favourite among our family, particularly for special gatherings. Though they take some time to prepare, they’re worth the effort. They’re best eaten hot, fresh out of the fryer.

I have wonderful memories of making fresh gnocchi with my Nonna as a child, right into adulthood. This is a ‘modern version’ of the traditional potato gnocchi made by her, and makes wonderful use of the beautiful fresh sage I have growing in the garden. Happy cooking!