The Scottish-Italian food writer traces her ancestors' journey from Rome to Edinburgh.
Mary Contini is known to most as the author of the Easy Peasy cookery books for children. She's also a driving forces behind Valvona and Crolla in Edinburgh. It's a wonderful shop with salumeria, bakery and cafe - and a monument to the enduring place that the Italian Community has in Scotland.
Through photos, letters, anecdotes and recipes, Mary's book Dear Francesca: A Cookbook With Love aims to tell her eldest daughter about the hard journey their ancestors took to escape poverty in Southern Italy in order to make a new life in a colder climate .
Simon Parkes went to meet her in Edinburgh where she cooks some of the recipes that mean most to her.
Dear Francesca: A Cookbook With Love is available from Ebury Press ISBN: 009189235X
