Overview
Italian-born chef of global cuisine, Alessandra Meschini, founder of instructional restaurant Cooking with Alessandra in Des Moines, Iowa, invites you to slow down, breathe deep, and cook with all of your senses. Each page of Amore, Amore: Cooking with Love is a celebration of food as art, memory, and story, a reminder that cooking is much more than a task; it’s a connection between the hands and the heart.
Hear the whisper of olive oil as it meets the pan, the rhythmic chop of garlic and onions forming a melody of anticipation. See the bright contrast of verdant basil against crimson tomatoes, the golden shimmer of freshly baked focaccia cooling on the counter. Smell the comforting perfume of rosemary and fennel drifting through sunlit windows, awakening nostalgia for long afternoons in Nonna’s kitchen.
From the first simmer of a rustic soffritto the Italian way to the final dusting of frosting on a Wanda cookie, Alessandra weaves together 30 recipes with stories and poetry that remind us that cooking is an act of love—a way to nourish not only the body, but also the spirit. Her dishes, steeped in tradition yet inspired by seasons of adventure, invite you to rediscover the sacred rhythm of the kitchen: slow, intentional, and full of life.
This cookbook is both a sensory experience and a heartfelt meditation on the joy of creating and sharing food. With every story told alongside each recipe, Alessandra encourages you to listen, taste, and feel your way back to what truly matters—connection, presence, and the simple, enduring pleasure of cooking Amore, Amore, slowly and with love.
Author Bio
Alessandra Meschini was born in Italy on a warm day in July. On that day, the sun was big and high in the sky inspiring an emotional recipe, a mix of flour, eggs, tomatoes, and olives. The air carried the aroma of basil, rosemary, and garlic, and as Alessandra’s mum scooped her into her arms, she went outside beneath the blazing light, took a deep breath, and kissed her as though it were a blessing. From that very moment, Alessandra has had an infinite curiosity, passion, and love for cooking.
She doesn’t keep this passion all for herself; She has an unstoppable desire to share it with others. That’s why she set up her cucina, Cooking with Alessandra, as a place of learning, discovery, and of course, mouthwatering food. The dishes prepared and demonstrated might be considered traditional, but they always include the key ingredients of imagination, adventure and originality.
Alessandra has lived and traveled all over the world and has found that nothing brings people together like food. We start with what our parents and family made for us, then we grow alongside the food we discover, collecting tastes and flavors along the way. Life has brought Alessandra to the wonderful city of Des Moines, and her luggage is heavy from her travels around the world. She brings with her the complex taste of salinity in French mussels with fries, the firm meat of a rolled porchetta, the crisp sweetness of a perfectly fried Wanda cookie, the vibrant colors of the Nigerian fruit tart, and the intensity of the sounds and smells of Mexican molcajete and tamales.
Kacey Beyer is a writer, teacher, wife, and mom whose work is rooted in connection, encouragement, and the beauty of everyday moments. She helped bring this cookbook to life by collaborating closely with the chef to shape a collection of stories, recipes, and memories that honor food as both art and a love language. She believes deeply in championing the people in her life as they chase big goals and bold dreams, whether in the kitchen, the classroom, or beyond. Through her writing, she seeks to slow the world down just enough to notice the meaning tucked into shared meals, heartfelt stories, and the quiet magic of creating something with care.
