Carrara brothers offer family recipes in new cookbook
March 19, 2016 – Ventura County Star
By Michele Willer-Allred
While growing up in the Tuscan town of Lucca, brothers
Damiano and Massimiliano Carrara were surrounded by
gardens and farms that afforded them an abundance of
delicious food.
One thing they fondly remember is their mother making
them fresh vanilla custard with milk from the cows and
eggs from the neighbor’s farm.
“She put it in a coffee mug and we enjoyed it on a terrace
overlooking the mountains and the fields,” remembers
Damiano.
The memories of their mother’s and grandmother’s
cooking, as well as standing shoulder to shoulder in the
kitchen learning their family’s recipes, prompted the Italian
brothers to write a new book called “Dolce Italia: Authentic
Italian Baking.”
The book, meaning “Sweet Italy,” was a way to for the
brothers to share their recipes for cream and custard, bitesized
pastry, and gelato, which they also make inside their
family-owned Carrara Pastries in Moorpark and Agoura
Hills.
The book was also a way for the brothers to “demystify”
how to make the desserts with easy-to-follow recipes that
both amateur and professional chefs can make.
Damiano Carrara, 30, said it has been a long journey that
brought them to writing their first book and reaching
success in the United States with their popular pastry
shops, which made Yelp’s Top 100 list last year.
Massimiliano was 14 years old when he started baking,
often skipping school to work in a pastry shop to learn how
to create pastries and gelato.
He ended up graduating from the Italian Academy of
Master Pastry Chefs in Rimini.
Damiano credits Massimiliano, now 28, with training him to
be a pastry chef, and his passion for culinary arts led
Damiano in 2009 to come to the United States, where he
was the recipient of multiple awards in bartending.
He worked as a bartender and manager of Café Firenze in
Moorpark before deciding to open Carrara Pastries in
Moorpark in 2011.
Massimiliano joined his brother in the United States, and
the success of their first store led them in 2013 to open
Carrara Pastries in Agoura Hills.
They expanded the Moorpark location, and now have 40
employees in both stores.
Damiano also found success on several Food Network
shows, appearing last year on the “Spring Baking
Challenge,” where he made it the final round, and winning
the final competition on “Cutthroat Kitchen.”
Damiano said many of the recipes he used on the shows
ended up in the book, such as torta di ricotta (ricotta pie),
gelato, and biscotti al cioccolato (chocolate biscotti).
Massimiliano said one of his favorite recipes is the fruit
tart.
“It’s one of my favorite cakes,” Massimiliano said.
“For my birthday, I always get a fruit tart.”
Damiano said the book, which took over a year to make,
showcases recipes that both brothers really care about.
“In Italy, you don’t share your recipe with anybody. Your
recipe, you keep it. We share it. We put it in a cookbook
so people can take it home and actually do it. It’s a great
thing,” Damiano said.
“I love every single one of them. I wouldn’t have put it in
the book unless they were perfect.”
Damiano said the book is for everyone who loves to bake,
including home bakers, people who have no clue about
baking, and people who love authentic Italian cuisine.
Ingredients are measured in both grams and liters
depending on preference.
“What I really like is that they can turn simple recipes into
a spectacular thing,” Damiano said.
Damiano said cooking classes that cover many of the
recipes in the book are held each month at both Carrara
Pastries locations.
The brothers said they will be coming out with a second
book, probably at the end of the year.
They said that book will feature how to make appetizers,
pizza, and pasta from scratch, and how they learned to
cook with their family.
“My brother and I spend every day at our stores,”
Damiano said.
“This industry is our passion, and we will continue working
hard to share good, authentic Italian food with as many
people as possible.”
“Dolce Italia” can be purchased at Carrara Pastries or
online.
Visit http://www.carrarapastries.us/index.php/shop for
more information about the cookbook.