TONI BRANCATISANO
By M. Ferhat YÜKSEL
A couple of months ago, while in Rome for some business meetings, it struck me that traveling to Italy without delving into the food scene as a food lover and amateur chef would be unforgivable. You just cannot explain that to someone. Between business meetings, our hosts in Rome took us to the Gambero Rosso Cooking School where we were given the opportunity to try our hand at cooking different Italian dishes. After this eye-opening experience, we were taken on an interesting gourmet tour in Rome by the kind, humorous and professional Toni Brancatisano, an Australian who conquered the Italian food scene and has become somewhat of a celebrity in Italy.
THE ROAD TO ITALY
Brancatisano grew up in Melbourne, Australia as one of four children and the younger of twins. In 1993, she graduated as a Registered Nurse from the Royal Melbourne School of Nursing, and moved to London in 1995 for a planned six-month working holiday. Toni would in fact spend almost three years in London, but as her visa came close to reaching its expiry date in 1998, she accepted a summer job as a nanny for an English family in Tuscany, Italy. Before starting the new job, she traveled to and worked as a prep chef in an Italian Restaurant in La Jolla, San Diego for around three months.
EARNING THE RESPECT OF ITALIANS
Brancatisano’s love for cooking and food led her to participate in and win the first cooking reality show on Italian TV (Before Masterchef came to Italy), “La Scuola – Cucina di Classe”, which aired on Italy’s food-focused Gambero Rosso Channel on SKY. Brancatisano competed against 15 contestants for 12 weeks and was declared the winner in the end, and her success led her in 2010 to host a cooking show on Gambero Rosso entitled “Le Torte di Toni”. She published her first cookbook “La Torta Perfetta di Toni” in 2012, and also make two seasons of “Le Torte di Toni – Masterclass”, hosting a guest in each episode, and made “Twins – Gemelle in Cucina” with her twin sister Lisa. Following three successful seasons on TV, Brancatisano earned the respect of Italians to become a household name in Italy.
Since relocating back to Rome in 2013, Brancatisano is providing catering for special events, but can also be found speaking at trade fairs or as Master of Ceremonies at corporate events as a special guest. Recently, she has been working on a series of YouTube videos for her blog. She works for a couple of tour companies conducting Gourme Tours in Rome but she is also available for specialty, private tours that are tailor-made to meet individual needs. Starting in our second issue, Brancatisano will begin writing pieces for Démarche in which she will share her experiences and knowledge, and I believe our readers will enjoy reading and trying her recipes. I, for one, am looking forward to reading her column, and will make sure I do not have an empty stomach when I do so! To learn more about Toni Brancatisano and to see her food creations and recipes, you can follow her blog at tonibrancatisano.com. Ciao!
