Everyone Is Italian on Sunday

Celebrity chef Ray calls this meaty compendium of home-style Italian recipes the most personal and important of her career, and that sense of emotional significance shines through. Ray’s headnotes are as bubbly and enthusiastic as ever, but the recipes showcase more ambitious ingredients and techniques. Drawing on her Italian heritage, she delves into both traditional and Americanized cuisines to come up with a list of hearty eats, ideal for indulgent weekends: toasted spaghetti minestra with Tuscan kale, pear and pecorino ravioli, and braised brisket with almond gremolata. Though there are few 30-minute solutions here, fans will recognize plenty of Ray-style remixes in fontina gougères; Italian-sausage burgers with provolone and broccoli rabe; and parmigiano reggiano french toast. The dessert section is surprisingly thin, albeit sophisticated (almond-fig biscotti, blood orange cake). Ray’s husband, John Cusimano, chimes in with his favorite takes on Italian cocktails (an Amalfi-Tini with limoncello and orange bitters, for instance), which add a nice dimension. For those who are looking for a new angle , this cookbook satisfies in spades. Photos. (Nov.)