I always ask myself: what determined that extra gear, where did the difference come from, why does this person possess it and another, perhaps just as good, does not. Artists and entrepreneurs, writers and directors, bartenders and chefs, the great ones all share the same professional mark that leads them to go beyond others, an innate talent that is fortified every day through a great deal of physical and mental work. Discipline, training, study and apprenticeship, self-denial, love of research and endless pleasure in offering others the result of one's experiences. For you too, your profession is all this , or is it instead something else that has brought you as far as you have ?
Personally, I believe that achieving results from a professional point of view, is not an easy thing in any field. Becoming a cook, means being able to deal with unsympathetic work schedules from the youngest years and being able to adapt to sometimes really difficult situations. The apprenticeship of a cook, can be really intense and require considerable commitment but for those who, like me, feel this profession in their souls, the sacrifices and efforts are pleasantly repaid by the satisfactions. Determination and perseverance and passion are the elements that have led me to achieve what I have achieved so far.
No chef likes to categorize their work, caging their style in my opinion is even a lack of respect for the chef's own freedom of expression. Pigeonholing so many experiences and knowledge and the many dishes offered is impossible, but I see that food and wine critics on a par with art critics are very fond of being able to spend definitive adjectives on the work of chefs: thus we have the category of creative chefs, traditionalist chefs, spectacular chefs,deconstructive chefs, balanced chefs, etc... I prefer to ask you directly: when you cook, when you develop a new recipe, what do you think about? What do you look for? Who does she think about? What are you most concerned about?
For me, making a new recipe or a new dish means allowing my ideas to flow out and take shape...there is no such thing as a precise thought or research, perhaps I would define it as an instinct that from the mind I can concretize by playing with tastes, flavors and colors.
Among the first things that leap to the eye, immediately stands out the distance between such a nobly Campanian surname, (born in Vico Equense, a town in the Neapolitan area that is a concentration of the Christmases of great personalities in many different disciplines) and Villa Crespi, the wonderful space of which Antonino Cannavacciuolo is patron and chef, on Lake d' Orta in the province of Novara. Distances that could be jarring, separating, and instead become harmonious and soothing. So I ask her where is the balance between the roots, the memory the colors and scents of the city of birth and the style of the host territory, its raw materials, its rigor, the colors and heats of winter. Do you seek the synthesis between these two important territories in your life, or do you feel disengaged and set up your work from other considerations and other knowledge?
I carry my Campanian origin in my heart as a magnificent cultural and emotional baggage, from which I find constant inspiration: there is no lack in my presentations of the memory of the flavors and colors of tradition, the sea, the sun, and lemons... The best of the products of my childhood juxtaposed and reinvented with what is special about Piedmont and "modernity" can offer. A union between the North and the South that seeks to show the beauty of variety and diversity.
What currently motivates you the most ? Is there currently an ingredient, scent or cooking or presentation technique that is particularly engaging you?
At the moment I find myself more and more savoring the beauty of simplicity. Nothing beats what simple can offer...the flavors, the tastes, the colors, the cooking...simplicity presents itself directly and explicitly, showing its beauty without secrets or veils.
Her story certainly sets an example for many young people entering this profession. Lately, it seems to me that they are moved more by the hope of making a quick buck through TV visibility, instead of being sustained by a genuine, pervasive passion and desire to learn (but this is just my questionable feeling). What would you feel like advising those who wish to take this path today? What should they look out for, what should they focus their efforts and thoughts on?
I think it is easy for young people today to be fascinated by the "beauty" of the cook especially these days and given that Chefs are constantly being presented on television and in newspapers as if they were stars...but the road is really long, and the path difficult. However, I can only encourage those who decide to tackle this career driven by passion and instinct, and I can only advise them to pursue their dreams with tenacity and determination.
And it is hard to believe that an absolute protagonist, as you are of the best high-level Italian cuisine could have new desires or dreams in the drawer, but still I ask you, do you cherish any new project? Any ideas to put into practice?
The dreams in the drawer are a continuous stimulus and the source of ever new inspirations. My dreams are related to the desire for a peaceful future, not only professionally, but also personally. Dreams are wishes....
Last, a more private question. If you had not been a chef could you have done anything else? If so, what other trade or profession would you have wanted to pursue?
If I had not been a chef, I strongly believe I would have been a fisherman...or maybe that is what I would like to think. I love the sea and the water in general very much. My many commitments do not prevent me as soon as I have the opportunity to take a little trip in Lake Orta with my little boat and relax by fishing. I know how demanding even the work of fishing is...but I like to think of it and experience it in the most pleasant way possible.
In addition to reporting on the Villa Crespi website www.villacrespi.it (a wonderful place to visit by all means), are there any social networks or other references for professionals who follow this blog to get in touch with you?
Recently, we are making our own blog: www.magazine.villacrespi.it where we present the Villa, the Restaurant, and all our initiatives. I recommend a look.
Interview by Monica Palla