Eat like an Italian: Two budget-friendly recipes to hit your five veg a day

Drawing on her dual Australian-Italian heritage, Melanie Lionello, the nutritionist and cook behind popular social media account From My Little Kitchen, grew up eating in the rustic, zero-waste style of cucina povera. “The influence of my nonna’s cooking continues to shape not only the way I cook food, but how I think about ingredients,” Lionello writes in the introduction to her debut cookbook, Easy Italian Dinners from My Little Kitchen. As a university lecturer and health professional, her focus isn’t on a dietary “magic bullet”, but on small, meaningful changes to help people reach their five daily vegetable serves.

“It can be as simple as increasing your vegetable intake throughout the day and including fibre-dense ingredients – both of which are a natural part of the cucina povera-style Italian cooking.” Here, Lionello shares two vegie-packed classics that embody this philosophy: a comforting (and budget-friendly) Tuscan tomato and bread soup, and a hearty pasta bake with roasted pumpkin and ricotta. The best recipes from Australia's leading chefs straight to your inbox.

This is one of my most highly requested recipes. I first fell in love with it when I was really little and we lived with my nonni. My cousins and I still talk about it, as it’s so nostalgic.

I’m a huge fan of using rock-hard stale bread, or bread that I’ve further dried out in the oven. The best kind to use is pane di casa, sourdough or any sturdy/hard style of bread or bread roll. Once soaked in the soup, the bread gets an al dente texture, which I find delicious – but traditionally, the bread is meant to soften completely.

Try it and see what you prefer. Ultimately, it’s delicious either way. INGREDIENTS METHOD Serves 4 Note: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 day, or freeze the soup, without the bread, for up to 3 months.

This creamy roasted pumpkin and ricotta pasta bake will have everybody wanting a second helping. I love making this during the cooler months when pumpkin is in season. The ricotta, roasted pumpkin and stock come together into a creamy, but not heavy, sauce (there’s no cream), which coats and fills the rigatoni so each mouthful is packed with flavour.

I use kent pumpkin when I can get it – although any will do. I tend to make a bigger batch so we’ve got some leftovers for lunch the next day. INGREDIENTS METHOD Serves 4 Note: This will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 day, or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

The pasta bake will be softer once thawed. This is an edited extract from Easy Italian Dinners from My Little Kitchen by Melanie Lionello. Photography by Mark Roper.

Published by Murdoch Books, RRP $39.99. You have reached your maximum number of saved items.

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